Whenever somebody pitches me on "We're the facebook for N" or "We're a groupon for N" I tune them out and find something more interesting to focus on, like the cracks in the sidewalk or that edge on the brown paper wrapper they add to a coffee cup to make sure that you don't burn yourself and sue them. What's that thing called?
Craft your positioning around the context of your audience. Do your consumers really care that you are X for Y? Hell no. They want to know what benefit you are providing them and probably have never heard of the other company you are referencing. But in the context of investors who look at 20 or more pitches a day? That's a different story. You are focusing on memorable positioning and also letting them know your business model is proven and scalable.
Why should it be memorable at all ? If you can't stay in their mind by having a great solution for a huge pain then it's a lost game anyway. If they love your idea/solution then you won't need to actively use the comparision at all.
The proof that the business model works and/or scales cannot come from a competitor (except 100% was copied from them but then again just cloning is a dumb idea anyway). That proof is the goal of any serious entrepreneur. I don't see a convincing argument towards VCs here.
My problem with this type of thinking is that is too easy for Y to swoop in and take over X for you. They have the team, reputation, and recent success. You, most likely, have nothing.
These are my best examples, but if X is just a feature that Y could implement or acquire, then making that comparison could be a major mistake. If they expand into your niche, then your X of Y idea backfires on you hardcore.
Edit: I saw that my variables were reversed at some places.
"If X is just a feature that Y could implement or acquire, then making that comparison could be a major mistake."
Very true. This could be the case whether or not you publicly call yourself "The X of Y." I've always though that most companies fall in that category, even if they don't know or outwardly admit it.
> but if X is just a feature that Y could implement or acquire
Unless, of course, the feature that Y could acquire is yours and you crush it...then your position is pretty damn awesome (assuming you don't mind working for Y).
Moral of the story? Know who you are and ride the X for Y thing if it helps open doors but don't build your brand around it. "Mint.com for the Cloud" worked for Cloudability initially but we tried to limit our use of it early on so it didn't define us. Sometimes it still does though >.<
I've been saying this forever. Innovation is not just in the product; it's in the concept, and the way you describe it, as well. I'll choose not to describe my ventures in terms of everyone else's.
This is something we struggled with. We eventually figured out that being the Airbnb of the market we're addressing didn't translate well and we moved to a different model.
Unfortunately, I still hear people describing us as "Airbnb for X". Comparisons like that stick, and if your business changes, it's hard to change a facile comparison like that.
There could be worse companies to be compared to, but having that line attached to your name can get annoying. We've got friends who have the same sort of problem, and they're just hoping to outlast it by becoming the best in their field, rather than a copycat of someone else.
