{"id":2158,"date":"2025-07-08T14:56:33","date_gmt":"2025-07-08T14:56:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/?p=2158"},"modified":"2025-07-08T15:19:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T15:19:09","slug":"the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/","title":{"rendered":"The Smart Copycat &#8211; How Great Businesses Borrow Better"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Startups love to pretend they are reinventing the wheel. But behind every &#8220;revolutionary&#8221; product is a trail of borrowed ideas, remixed features, and stolen UX flows. That is not a bug. It is the blueprint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The best companies are not pure originals. They are strategic copycats. The difference is in <strong>what<\/strong> they copy, <strong>why<\/strong> they copy it, and <strong>how<\/strong> they turn it into something distinct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Mediocre artists borrow. Great artists steal.&#8221;<br>&#8211; Pablo Picasso<br>(Often quoted by founders just before launching a redesigned onboarding flow.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-art-of-ethical-stealing\"><strong>The Art of Ethical Stealing<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Smart copycats do not clone. They <strong>deconstruct<\/strong>, they reverse-engineer what works, strip out what does not, and inject their own context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They know the goal is not to impress other builders. It is to deliver something familiar enough to feel usable and specific enough to feel special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"ideas, probably copied by a copycat on a board\" class=\"wp-image-2160\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-1920x1440.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-1170x878.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/kvalifik-HQgj1kE2SRo-unsplash-585x439.jpg 585w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-tip-how-to-borrow-like-a-pro\"><strong>Tip: How to Borrow Like a Pro<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Study winners in other verticals<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> Take onboarding from Duolingo. Pricing models from Notion. Retention hooks from Peloton. Copy from whoever writes Stripe&#8217;s error messages.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Copy intent, not interface<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> Don&#8217;t mimic what a feature looks like. Ask why it exists, what job it does, and how your audience would respond to it.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Localize the pattern<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> What works in fintech may flop in edtech. Adapt the behavior, not just the button layout.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Document what you borrow<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> Internalize where your ideas came from. Otherwise, your team starts thinking you invented breadcrumbs.<br><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-table-amateur-copycat-vs-strategic-stealer\"><strong>Table: Amateur Copycat vs. Strategic Stealer<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><div class=\"pcrstb-wrap\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>Behavior<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Amateur Copycat<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Strategic Stealer<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Chooses what is shiny<\/td><td>Picks whatever got upvoted<\/td><td>Picks what aligns with user needs<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Blindly copies UI<\/td><td>Changes logos and colors<\/td><td>Reimagines flow and use case<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Ignores context<\/td><td>Steals from direct competitors<\/td><td>Steals from adjacent categories<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Tries to hide inspiration<\/td><td>Pretends it is all original<\/td><td>Credits and improves<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-faq\"><strong>FAQ<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Q: Isn&#8217;t copying lazy?<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> <strong>A:<\/strong> Lazy is copying without understanding. Smart borrowing requires analysis, restraint, and taste. It is the startup version of jazz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Q: What if we get called out for being a clone?<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> <strong>A:<\/strong> Then you did not differentiate enough. Copy the bones, not the skin. Build something that evolves the idea, not just mimics it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-an-open-question\"><strong>An Open Question<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If a customer saw your product next to the one you borrowed from, would they say &#8220;same thing&#8221; or &#8220;same lineage&#8221;?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Would they see <strong>duplication<\/strong> or <strong>iteration<\/strong>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>The startup ecosystem is one giant open-source syllabus. Everything is out there. What separates the hacks from the builders is <strong>curation, application, and originality on the second draft<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Steal better. Then make it yours.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Startups love to pretend they are reinventing the wheel. But behind every &#8220;revolutionary&#8221; product is a trail of borrowed ideas, remixed features, and stolen UX flows. That is not a&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[111],"class_list":["post-2158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-news","tag-copying-business-ideas"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.9 (Yoast SEO v24.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better - Wrinkled Egg<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wrinkled Egg\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=61576194033702\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1706\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sebastian Murphy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sebastian Murphy\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Sebastian Murphy\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0043dad1daf6ae8c93857e3aa646eb3a\"},\"headline\":\"The Smart Copycat &#8211; How Great Businesses Borrow Better\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\"},\"wordCount\":423,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"copying business ideas\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Business News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\",\"name\":\"The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better - Wrinkled Egg\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00\",\"description\":\"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1706,\"caption\":\"A raccoon, completely irrelevant to this blog but cute nonetheless\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Smart Copycat &#8211; How Great Businesses Borrow Better\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/\",\"name\":\"Wrinkled Egg\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Wrinkled Egg\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WRINKLEDEGG-LOGO.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WRINKLEDEGG-LOGO.png\",\"width\":600,\"height\":151,\"caption\":\"Wrinkled Egg\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=61576194033702\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0043dad1daf6ae8c93857e3aa646eb3a\",\"name\":\"Sebastian Murphy\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/132a8ca90ff389eb063b8a0967141e60ee6457ca5c79ead485882f7f20be1ffe?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/132a8ca90ff389eb063b8a0967141e60ee6457ca5c79ead485882f7f20be1ffe?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Sebastian Murphy\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/author\/seb-murphy\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better - Wrinkled Egg","description":"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better","og_description":"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.","og_url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/","og_site_name":"Wrinkled Egg","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=61576194033702","article_published_time":"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1706,"url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Sebastian Murphy","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Sebastian Murphy","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/"},"author":{"name":"Sebastian Murphy","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0043dad1daf6ae8c93857e3aa646eb3a"},"headline":"The Smart Copycat &#8211; How Great Businesses Borrow Better","datePublished":"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/"},"wordCount":423,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","keywords":["copying business ideas"],"articleSection":["Business News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/","url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/","name":"The Smart Copycat - How Great Businesses Borrow Better - Wrinkled Egg","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2025-07-08T14:56:33+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-08T15:19:09+00:00","description":"Originality is overrated. The smartest businesses don\u2019t reinvent, they refine, remix, and execute better than the rest.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/joshua-j-cotten-IWKIHuzl-tU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1706,"caption":"A raccoon, completely irrelevant to this blog but cute nonetheless"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/08\/the-smart-copycat-how-great-businesses-borrow-better\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Smart Copycat &#8211; How Great Businesses Borrow Better"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/","name":"Wrinkled Egg","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#organization","name":"Wrinkled Egg","url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WRINKLEDEGG-LOGO.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WRINKLEDEGG-LOGO.png","width":600,"height":151,"caption":"Wrinkled Egg"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=61576194033702"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0043dad1daf6ae8c93857e3aa646eb3a","name":"Sebastian Murphy","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/132a8ca90ff389eb063b8a0967141e60ee6457ca5c79ead485882f7f20be1ffe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/132a8ca90ff389eb063b8a0967141e60ee6457ca5c79ead485882f7f20be1ffe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Sebastian Murphy"},"url":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/author\/seb-murphy\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2158"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2158\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2161,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2158\/revisions\/2161"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wrinkledegg.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}