It’s easy to copy what is seen as working in today’s market. It’s a tough game, and anything you can do to help kick-start your new business, blog, WebTV show, podcast, service, product or digital magazine in a positive manner is understandable. However, I’m a big believer that the advantages of innovation in business go way beyond just doing well, or making money. It’s about creating the right kind of persona as an entrepreneur. It’s about moving and shaking in the right circles. It’s about “killing it” live on stage, in the boardroom, over the dining table, or on the golf course for that matter. The benefits of being innovative in the way you startup, grow and develop your business far outweigh the benefits you’ll enjoy by simply copying someone else’s idea, or model. I do see a trend of cutting corners, copying, etc. in various industries; for example, Uber was the first to offer an alternative to Taxis, and then along came Lyft and now Gett. There are always going to be those that copy and duplicate what you have done. Innovation is essential for everyone to evolve and grow stronger into a better society. Without innovation the world would run idle.

Innovation can help you discover what opportunities exist now, or are likely to emerge in the future. Successful businesses not only respond to their current customer or organizational needs, but also often anticipate future trends and develop an idea, product or service that allows them to meet this future demand rapidly and effectively. Innovation will help you stay ahead of your competition as markets, technologies or trends shift. Trends and technology are constantly changing, thus it is vital for any business to stay on top of their games to meet the demands of their customers.

Innovation is not only about designing a new product or service to sell, but can also focus on existing business processes and practices to improve efficiency, find new customers, cut down on waste and increase profits. This is also another way of how innovation changes. As new opportunities emerge so does the kind of customer that buys your product or service.

Constantly innovating and improving business practices is also likely to help you attract better staff members and retain more of your existing staff – something that is crucial to the long-term health and performance of your business. Having innovative and engaged employees are very important, without them you would not be able to exist.

I think the no. one thing why Dell managed to be so successful is that they were efficient. Michael Dell was spending time with customers to figure out exactly what they wanted before the product was made as well as offering customized orders. Listening to the customer ahead of time takes the guesswork and wasted resources out of the equation altogether. Other companies offered only one solution, whereas Dell told the consumer that they basically could “Have it your way,” in true Burger King fashion.