The most important thing to remember is that great innovation doesn't go unnoticed. Your competitors will wake up and see what you're up to. In fact, a local client of H&C recently did a brand new web strategy and within the month they had two competitors with nearly identical websites. No stress, you couldn't care less what they are up to. We'll tell you why.
One of the most fundamental things to remember when this happens is that you are the strategist in this scenario. It is the uncreative and bad marketers of this world that will lean on the innovation of their competitors. You have crafted a website, built a strategy and established a brand in a cohesive plan that you are slowly executing. They are just following your lead.
Amongst the most common knee-jerk reactions is to republish all of the copied content to social media.. resist. Another is to tell everybody that you did it first, again, resist. It doesn't matter what they are up to because the thought pool runs dry amongst the uninventive and you are the thought leader that is blazing the trail.
While your less creative counterparts are writing from the genius ideas you've already presented, you are busy thinking ahead to the next big idea. Playing catch up while someone is still forging ahead miles in the distance is tough. They have a harder gig than you do. This is not the time to be discouraged, but in stead the time to demonstrate even better ideas and offering those ideas to your audience.
Remember that when we are talking about content marketing specifically, you are already miles ahead because your blog hit the internet earlier which means that the relevance of that blog is increasing faster while your competitor is just arriving to the scene. Plus the next great blog post that you're working on now is still those many steps ahead of what they are doing.
The other thing to keep in mind is that you arrived on the scene with your fresh look first. You had the brand colours identifying you in the pack first. You are the leader in this scenario and people will take notice. Often the copy-cat brand is left by the wayside because an inability to commit to a unique brand strategy is often the tell-tale sign of a business that is quick to throw in the towel on all things challenging. You are not that business, you will remain the leader.
There are a multitude of other considerations that further demonstrate why late to the game and wearing your uniform is not the competitor you need to be on the lookout for. Your brand strategy is strong, you are a thoughtful business person and you consider the details as often as you consider the obvious. This is your MO. So keep up what you're doing, be committed to excellent communication for your industry and continue to forge your way to the top of your industry. We are here supporting you!