The last thing you want to do is spend months developing a product or service, only to find that there were already some very good solutions out there that are way ahead of you. So do your homework! Other reasons to do a thorough job of analyzing the competition:
- It will help you think through your differentiation. The better you understand the competition, they better you'll understand your advantage and your differentiation.
- You'll sound much more credible. It's pretty embarrassing when prospective team members or prospective investors ask you about specific competitors only to find out that you haven't heard of them or don't know anything about them. So, again, do your homework and check out competing solutions.
- And please remember: there is always competition (or at worst, there are always alternatives). You really do want to understand what alternatives customers will have to your solution.