There is a skewed philosophy in the marketing world today – that in order to beat your competition, you must know your competition inside and out. However, this philosophy tends to yield mediocrity, not innovation.

I keep running across phone manufacturers that are promoting their upcoming “iPhone killers.” And with each one, I have the same reaction: “really?!” (in a slightly skeptical and sarcastic tone).

The problem with these new phones is that the manufacturers are focusing too much on the competition. It is apparent that they began the initiative by analyzing everything about the iPhone and then building a device that mimics it, but with more features.

In contrast, I imagine the development of the iPhone was much different, and it probably started with one question: how can we make the best phone in the world? Sure, I bet they studied other devices, but probably for insight on what they did not want to do as opposed to stealing features.

These are two entirely different mindsets. One says, “How innovative can we be?” and the other says, “How can we beat product X?” If you practice the first philosophy, you are really limitless in what you can produce, and you customers will respond positively. However, the second philosophy can only position you in relation to whatever product you are trying to beat. At the end of the day, you just look like a copycat.

Now, is it possible for a company to produce an “iPhone killer?” Sure it is. But it will happen by innovating, not trying to mimic the iPhone.

Are you paying too much attention to your competition, or are you simply producing the best work possible with excellence? Put some blinders on and do what you do best.

When our clients celebrate, we celebrate too. So, we are thrilled to congratulate Tenth Avenue North for winning a Dove Award for New Artist of the Year last night. It’s quite an accomplishment.

Our team enjoyed working on designing and developing the band’s website earlier this year (TenthAvenueNorth.com).

Way to go, guys! Keep up the great work.

Check out Tenth Ave on iTunes.

While I lived in New York, I participated in a leadership exercise that illustrated the potential of productivity under pressure. Our group was divided into two teams and given the task to create an actual product, build a website, and provide a way for someone to purchase the product online. Now, this process could take as much as three months or even more to complete. However, we were given a mere three hours.

Both teams kicked into high gear as soon as the clock began, and three hours later, both teams had a product, a functioning website, and an online purchase option. Granted, the products did not look that great, the websites were extremely bare, and the payment option was done through PayPal, but - both teams had completed the almost-impossible objective.

Many times, we do not really push ourselves. We find a nice steady pace and stick to that. It’s comfortable. However, by not pushing ourselves, we are not meeting new challenges. If we are not challenging ourselves, we are not growing. And, if we are not growing, we are not reaching our potential.

Part of our philosophy at Anthology is to push things to the max. Most of our deadlines are aggressive. Our time budgets are aggressive. And we demand excellence. However, by pushing hard and creating difficult objectives, we are constantly refining our process and growing as a team. Our tiny successes become big successes and our tiny failures becoming huge learning experiences.

I have always been a freak about efficiency - I guess it is a combination of having an appreciation for aspects of engineering and having the tendency to be slightly obsessive-compulsive from time to time. Optimization yields efficiency.

In my day-to-day life, I try to optimize whenever possible - from lines of code in a long web app to simple things like how many loads of laundry I do in a given month. I always try to find the fastest way to get from point A to point B without affecting the quality of the end product.

Optimization is really key to progressing and evolving as an individual. As you optimize aspects in your life, you can begin to take on new things, bigger responsibilities, and explore different options.

Programmers always boast about optimization of code, but I think the principle can apply to all areas of our life - even design. Some of the best designs I have seen have been optimized for simplicity and communication. It is all about getting the core functionality of something and removing the clutter.

Anthology recently had the opportunity to develop a custom spash page for the band Leeland. The project consisted of time-released videos of each band member on the splash page. These videos were humorous and received great response from fans.

A secondary page was created to communicate the band’s “Opposite Way” movement - living the opposite way of the world. This page carried a more serious tone and allowed people to leave stories about how they were living the opposite way. The stories shared here were inspirational to other fans.

LeelandOnline.com

The Opposite Way Movement

Leeland on iTunes