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What is a “tarpit idea”?

These are the startup ideas that seem good — almost too good to be true! — but have been tried by many founders before with little to no success.

Tarpit ideas are often not hard in obvious ways. They might seem so easy and good that it’s unbelievable that no one has done it — but when you look a bit deeper, you realize that they have been tried. Over, and over again.

Why is it called a “tarpit”?

It’s a nod to the petroleum tar pits that paleontologists love to explore because they’re a good place to find fossils.

Animals would confuse the shiny tar for fresh water and try to take a drink… only to fall in, get stuck, and meet their demise. Worse yet: the smell of their body would attract other animals who’d meet the same fate!

How can I avoid tarpit ideas?

If your idea has been tried before, do your research and understand why it didn’t work. Assume the founders who tried before were very smart, very determined people; what’s different now? 