It is not enough to just build a great app that your customers love. This is important, no doubt, but if you want to build a strategy that will succeed over time, you need to employ a range of tactics that will help you build and secure a market position and limit options for your competitors. In this chapter, we will look at the various techniques a savvy entrepreneur can use to build a moat around their business, thus minimizing the effects of an attack by a competitor.

In particular, we will look at the following topics:

• Intangible assets such as intellectual property (IP) laws and legal protections
• The benefits of the network effect and the platform effect
• Control over a vertical market or key relationships in a vertical market
• Switching costs and pricing strategies
• The benefits of good customer service and customer support
• The power of a well...