@ForWork 3 April 2022

The power of being the First ***The first of everything is special. First love, first child, first job. All are special.*** Being a leading company in offering products to the market requires high performance in terms of both creativity and application speed. Everything starts in the mind first. Therefore, investing in thinking and innovation is one of the basic inputs of being a pioneer. However, being a pioneer does not always ensure being the most profitable company. Pioneering cannot be achieved simply by creating a new product. So companies that fail to bring a product to market first need to take the lead in other areas instead of following the lead to ensure profitability. Followers who pay attention to these issues can achieve profitability. Being a pioneer in the market is not always achieved by creating a new product, but sometimes by introducing an old product to a new market. It is an important opportunity to take a place in the market by being inspired by products that have been successful in other geographical markets, especially in a country like Turkey, which is not in a leading position in technological developments. Those who want to take the lead should abandon the "I know everything, I do it" approach. It is difficult to catch up with the speed required to be a pioneer without benefiting from the knowledge and experience of others. In particular, making use of existing and tested technologies often ensures being the first and reaching the production capacity that can become widespread in the market. When bringing a product to the market, it is necessary not to surrender to the engineers and to bring the product to the market as soon as the features that will create the most value for the customers start to work well. Expecting a product to be idealized and to include many features usually means risking both losing the leading position and making it difficult to perceive the real value for the customer. To be a pioneer in the market, “perfect is the enemy of the good.” The concept should not be forgotten. However, it can be dangerous to engage in an intense marketing activity without waiting for the product to be accepted in the market. For this reason, it should not be forgotten that there is a need for time to test the product in certain markets and to make adaptations in line with customer expectations. Likewise, it is important for the product to reach the production and distribution capacity necessary for its widespread introduction to the market. It has been observed that advertisements are more beneficial to their competitors, since their availability in distribution channels cannot be ensured in many products launched with an intense advertising campaign.The drive to take advantage of a new technology alone can turn into a disadvantage, especially when network economies prevail. For example, Sony's not licensing Betamax technology to others, and VHS's rapid spread by licensing eventually led to the VHS standard winning. With a similar approach, Apple strengthened Microsoft by not licensing its operating system to other PC manufacturers. Therefore, over-confidence and passion delays reaching sufficient prevalence, making it impossible to gain a wide usage area. Gaining popularity and recognition in the market requires a significant marketing investment. Therefore, either allocates the necessary resources to create brand value, or cooperates with companies with reliable brand value. The fact that the first entrants bind profitable customers to long-term contracts makes it difficult for their competitors who want to follow them closely. At the same time, long-term contracts help the leading firm widen the gap by improving its investment capacity. Similarly, entering into exclusive agreements with important suppliers is an approach that facilitates leading companies to maintain this position.One of the issues that leading companies should pay attention to is to avoid inviting competitors to the market by keeping prices too high. It is important to ensure the permanence of the leadership that the profit is used to finance the prevalence in the market and the developments in the product, rather than channeling it to other activities. Continuity in investment is required for continuity in success. One of the requirements of leadership is good management of human resources capable of achieving this position. It is known that employees with leadership and creativity abilities act as magnets for others. Ensuring the loyalty of employees with these qualifications to the company is one of the important tools of continuous development. In summary, being a pioneer can be achieved not only by developing a creative product, but also by carrying out many activities that will become widespread in the market and make this position sustainable. In order to turn the advantage of being a pioneer into profitability, it is necessary to plan and implement these activities and the necessary resources.