Idea Ripper // ArchiveCards: 1555 [Live] | Updated: 2026-10-14
Card #c1346IR // #c1346Synthesis

"I’d sift through all my competitors’ publications in Boston and call every single one of their advertisers every single week to poach them to Barstool."

— In our words · Source: Cancel Me If You Can (Dave Portnoy)

[Use when]

You're looking for your first customers and your competitors publish who theirs are.

[Why it matters]

Competitors' pages are a free, pre-qualified list of businesses that already pay for exactly what you sell. Portnoy worked the list weekly instead of hunting for new categories of buyer.

Filed under situations:When it’s day one and nothing exists yetWhen a rival’s move changes your game

More from Cancel Me If You Can

#c1344"At this point the business model was pretty simple: if I could sell $3,400 worth of ads in the newspaper, I would break even."You're running a new venture on thin cash and the finances feel vague. #c1345"How do you sell ads for a newspaper that doesn’t exist? On promises."You need paying customers before you have a finished product. #c1347"Barstool is looking to hire writers. We don’t pay at all, but we make up for it by offering zero benefits."You can't pay yet and need contributors who care about the work itself.

Same situation, different book

#c1330Make them try to be like youYou're the outsider in a field and feel pressure to imitate the incumbents.From Courage Can Save Us #c1297Stack new edges before the old one diesYour current advantage is working well and you've stopped developing a replacement.From Trade Outside the Box #c1248Build the campaign before you know the candidateA big decision is still pending and you could start building the capability any outcome will need.From This Is the Plan #c1227Simple boxes beat optimal packingExperts defend a custom process that performs well at one step and slows down the whole chain.From How to Take Smart Notes