When it comes to success, execution beats innovation
The latest buzz in amongst the Swedish internet enthusiasts is the Read/Write Web lists of national web apps. There have been a few complaints (here and here for instance) about Sweden being a disgrace as we apparently haven't thought of enough stuff ourselves. Apart from that not being true, it also raises the issue of cloning vs innovation.
In my opinion, the critical point is the execution of the idea - not the idea itself. At least when it comes to comparing "top sites" of any sort. There were plenty of video options before YouTube, there were social networks before MySpace and so forth. The interesting point is not that their idea was fresh out of the box, but that they tweaked so successfully into becoming a success. Take a look at Startup Reviews study on MySpace for a few good pointers on why it exploded, and others didn't.
There are many factors that decide the success of a website. Firstly, it is a matter of expectation and measurement of course. Are we looking at revenue streams? Unique visitors? Potential? Reach in the target group? And what was the purpose of the site? Not all sites aim to become the largest player in the field. Depending on what perspective to use, all the apps on the list would rate differently.
So even though it's a really good idea for a series (I wish I thought of it first!), it's not a good foundation to start ranting over Sweden being a useless country when it comes to web success.
tags bloggar.se: web2.0, kloner, myspace, youtube + Ping Intressant.se
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Good Old flickr
9Kommentarer
Henrik Torstensson / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
IMHO the interesting Swedish Internet companies stack up very well against international competitors. However, few of them are playing the Who is most 2.0 game that Web 2.0 blogs sometimes get caught up in.
NextGen / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
...on the other hand, in what way is Sweden a success?
Björn Jeffery / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
NextGen: Like I stated above, it’s all matter of how you choose to measure it. But simply comparing us to USA isn’t fair in a lot of ways.
Next Generation Internet » Blog Archive » Inte så bra Sverig / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
[...] Skrev en tidigare artikel med rubriken “Inte bra Sverige” om detta, som mottogs blandat. Good Old Trend (Björn Jeffrey) och Henrik Torstensson delade inte riktigt mina tankar, även om de ej var helt motsägelsefulla heller. [...]
Niko / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
Many agree that execution is actually an inseparable part of innovation. For example, the wikipedia article says: An essential element for innovation is its application in a commercially successful way.
So, one could define innovation as:
idea + execution = innovation
And I would add that either the idea or the execution needs to be unique in some respect.
Henrik Torstensson / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
Success, in my eyes, can be good business, a well-designed product, an innovative product or a product with impact. My problem with the Web 2.0 meme is that while the design principles in general are good/great, they do not specifically address user needs. That is why I not get upset when Swedish companies/sites/software do not place highly on a specific Web 2.0 list.
Very few of these have any Web 2.0 cred, which created a pretty unexciting Swedish Web 2.0 list at RW/W.
Wertjatry / 10.25, 1 november /- besvara
stimulating and educational, but would be suffering with something more on this topic?
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