The biggest branding sin of all are “Me too” products

When product management or company management is convinced they need a “Me too” product or solution, the company is doomed for failure.

In most cases most businesses or companies have one product or solution that generates the most revenue and the most profit.
In order to:
- Expand into other parts of the market or business
- Shield off competitors entering the customers
- Protect a part of the market
Decision makers will decide to resell or develop a “Me too” product or solution.

The “Me too” problems

The problem is multiple:
- Motivation can be or will be low due to lack of inspiration
- Engineering development time will be invested
- Purchase time will be spend on searching vendors
- Support needs to know the product requiring training
- Service needs to serve more products requiring training
- Product management needs to create supporting content
- Marketing spending is needed to promote it
- Sales needs to be trained to sell the product
- Partnerships will have a time to get partners supporting it
- Business development will seek new business opportunities that are likely not interested.
- Administration will have additional overhead costs due to the new product or solution

The management reaction increasing the spending

After one or two years being in business with the “Me too”, company management or the Board of Directors will match or compare the results with the profits realized with the main product or solution. The conclusion will be negative.
Management will urge to sell more of the “Me too” in order to recoup their investments, which will lead to:
- Public Relations will send out press releases that generate no real interest.
- Marketing will set up pointless campaigns to promote the “Me too”
- Lead generation will demand lots of efforts without much response
- Sales people will put much effort in it without much success.
- Partnerships will waste time to convince partners to support the “Me too”
- Business development will engage into conversations with companies for non-existent or non-feasible opportunities.

As capacity is a limited source in any company this is double waste of time and money as all people involved could have been working for the successful product or solution instead.
Focus is what counts in sales, marketing, partnerships and business development. There is no time to waste and competition is fierce even for a market leader.

In only a few cases the “Me too” will serve its’ purpose: keep competitors out of the customers. Even in those cases the ”Me too” will probably not be really profitable itself.

Thus once the company has made the decision to have a “Me too” the result to expect is a death spiral.

Innovate instead

Instead of creating, developing, marketing, lead generating and selling a “Me too” product, a company should try to develop an innovative product that the market really wants and is a leap forward using new technologies or a new approach.
In that case your company has a story to tell to the market.

How many “Me too” have you been through in your career ?
Has any been successful ?