Website Caution: Be Careful Whose Site You Emulate

I met someone about to launch a business in a field already crowded with major players. True, this person is aiming at a very specific niche of this market, which could help him succeed.

But what worried me when speaking with him is this:

He told me that he is having the website for his new business built to emulate one of the most successful sites in this field. He said: "They are successful so they must know what they are doing."

But here are the potential pitfalls of this thinking:

Some of these major players started early on before competition multiplied. Some of them have spent a lot of money on advertising. Some of them have founders who have written popular books or are otherwise very prominent.

What works for the websites of these companies may NOT work for a new company whose founder isn't well known online or offline and who is a late arrival to the party.

I often write about finding your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) – what makes your business different from similar businesses. Once you know your USP you should build your website and your social media activities around your own strengths and not the strengths of your competitors.

In other words, copying the website of a company that has been around for a long time may not be the best marketing strategy. It may be better to consider how the new aspects you are offering can be prominently featured in the website of your startup company.

If you need help in identifying your USP and/or planning how your website can reflect that USP, see the first two stages of our Quick Start Social Media Track.

After all, it is important to start off on the right foot!

© 2010 Miller Mosaic, LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is the co-founder of Miller Mosaic Social Media Marketing.