If I am designing an e-commerce site for a new product that cannot be protected with a patent or copyright, how to I protect my concept from copycats?

I can relate to where you're coming from for a couple of reasons. One, I love technology, yet I define myself more as a creative person who loves to write. As an employee, I was on both sides of the fence. For many years I was a software developer and systems analyst. And I've also been copywriter and a merchandise assistant in the fashion industry. I was always looking for the place where I fit. I've spent time in corporate--ended up hating the bureaucracy and politics. And contracting/volunteering in non-profits, which have their own challenges. Running a business isn't for everyone, so it's good that you realize it might not be the path your want to take. A lot of people do it because they believe it will lead to freedom. But it can be another trap if running a business doesn't fit your temperament. My suggestion would be to take your time right now. Do some work within yourself to be honest about what you're drawn to, and what is a complete turn off. Don't just run to something to get away from something else. It might take a while for you to define the right move. I'd start by writing out what you dislike and what you like when it comes to work and self expression. Sounds simplistic, I know. But you'd be surprised how much comes out if you take the time to write it out. Or speak it into a recording device--whatever it takes to get it out of your head. Don't be afraid to make a mistake while you're figuring it out. Every new opportunity doesn't have to be the "be all and end all." Once I made the move out of IT, I became a contractor and also did freelance writing. Not being a full-time employee allowed me to have an income while not being committed fully to a company or job. Perhaps your ultimate answer will be to do something on the side, while you work full-time in an environment that allows you to grow and do good work. Or perhaps the freelance/contractor route will click. You'll have to give yourself space to figure out what's right--what makes sense for your peace of mind and for your financial needs. It's okay if you follow your own path. It just may take a while for you to figure it out what's right for you and how to create the fulfillment you're seeking. For myself, I accept that my path will not be a straight line. In corporate I had a career path, and I knew what every step would be. That's not true now, and sometimes it can be unnerving not to know. But I've found that it works better for me to have the flexibility, and I'm wiling to accept the "uncertainty" that comes with it. That's why you have to have an idea of what you want and what you're willing to live with, so you can express yourself in the world and feel good about it.

I've been in ecommerce for over a decade and have co-founded and helped start companies collectively driving over $10MM in ecommerce sales. I've consulted for Fortune 500 ecommerce stores. Here's my advice if you're just getting started without a big budget. Note: Some of this is copied from my answer to a similar question. #1) PROVE THE ASSUMPTION: Start with a dropshipper's existing products to figure out what sells best before you spend money on manufacturing and warehousing. Amazon is perfect for this - they will pay you 4%-10% to promote 253,000,000 products (http://bit.ly/1q2M85R) - you can sign up at https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/ Alternately, get very small amounts of the product (maybe even just buy some from a competitor) and try selling them on ebay and amazon. Nothing hurts more than having $50,000 of imported product gathering dust in your fulfillment warehouse while listening to a voicemail from a debt collector. #2) SOURCING There are several options here. Many people prefer Alibaba.com. Warning - if you use Alibaba, you are stepping into a tank of pirahnas. There are more scam "manufacturers" on Alibaba than real ones. Use Escrow or AliSecure Pay if you buy. If the supplier says they only take T/T, Western Union, Moneygram - just say no! I prefer American Made when possible. If you're like me, try Ariba's Discovery Service - http://bit.ly/1q2NFZu - which will allow you to find suppliers with a physical presence in the USA. Note: Many things can be made on demand (someone purchases, one gets made and shipped) instead of in 500+ manufacturing runs. Start there if you can - Books on CreateSpace.com, Clothes on CafePress.com, Playing Cards on MakePlayingCards.com, etc - to test out your exact product. If you decide to source by purchasing product in bulk, find a fulfillment company to store and fulfill (ship) your orders. Amazon does this - http://services.amazon.com/content/fulfillment-by-amazon.htm - but they might decide to crush you like a bug if you're successful (http://bit.ly/1q2V7DX). Other fulfillment companies for e-commerce include http://www.shipwire.com/ and http://www.webgistix.com/ #3) LAUNCH YOUR SITE This is an entire topic in itself. One of the fastest ways I know for newbies to start in e-commerce is with a SquareSpace.com store. Other options include GoDaddy.com and BigCommerce.com. If you can stand to use the templates they provide instead of trying to customize them, you'll save yourself a lot of hassle and expense - customization usually looks terrible unless a designer/coder was hired to do the work. If you do customize, find someone on odesk.com or elance.com. If you're not hard up for money, just build a custom store from the start. If you can't do that, save up some money and then go for it. Focus on increasing conversion rate - for every 100 visitors, get 1 to buy. Then 2. Then 4. Then 8 (8%). #4) MARKET Figure out where your competition is advertising. Are they getting free, "organic" SEO results on Google? Using social media to drive billions of dollars of sales? (NOTE: That was a joke - don't count on social media as the nucleus of your marketing campaign. Please!) Are they paying for Google ads ("PPC"), buying email lists, using strategic partnerships for promotion, relying on shopping portals, using banner advertising, or something else entirely? There's probably a good reason - figure out what it will take to play in those waters. At the same time, try to find a small enough niche that you can win in it. #5) BEWARE Be careful about artsy things. If someone is attracted to something artistic, it's usually because there is a story behind the art for them, or because it's cheap. If you're going to try to sell artistic things, you may want to consider doing some serious research first about who has been successful in that area. Look at etsy.com to see handmade artsy items (very cool). #6) WORTH A LOOK Worth checking out as you start your journey: Art.com, yessy.com, Artfire.com, ArtPal.com #7) DEEP FOUNDATION If you need help, reach out for a 15 minute call and we'll discuss a go-to-market strategy specific to your goals.

This is a great question and an important one as well. I would start by identifying: Who is your target market? How will they use your product? On the go? On their laptop or on their mobile device? What kind of technology does your product need? Can it be built as a simple website or does in need to be an app (i.e. you need push notifications, integration with other mobile apps, etc). On the other hand, how much time and budget do you have? Typically a responsive website is faster and cheaper to build than an app and will get you out the door faster.

If you want long term evangelists you're going to have to think outside of the relationship between your product and the customer and focus specifically on the customer. Identify the influencers who are already engaging your brand through social media channels and see what you can learn about them. If their profile picture is them playing an instrument, you might send then a gift card to Itunes or Guitar Center. In Short: Spend a little money and show your interest in them instead of just rewarding their interest in you. I had Wheat Thins send me a box of crackers and that was cool but I sent one tweet out and was done. General Electric saw that I was wearing a Batman shirt and sent me a really cool book as well as a hand written thank you note. I regularly engage and promote content about GE.

Think about the entire sense of the product that the consumer gets, this includes your website, what you sound like on the phone if/when they call, your logo, the packaging of your product, etc. These are all relatively small things that you could tweak that would have a disproportionally large effect on perceived value _if_ everything is done right. Another easy move is to release another similar product at a higher price. The more expensive version should have extra features, but don't think that hard about it, it's more a placeholder which allows people to see the true value of the more affordable version. Note: with both of these tactics (and others), the goal is not to trick, it's to get a product that is genuinely valuable to the user at a fair price for the value they're getting. Perceived value is real value, and it should stick with the user for as long as they own/use the product, just like a more 'tactile' feature would. Let me know if you'd like me to give you feedback on your overall product's perceived value and how to greatly improve it, best, Lee