围魏救赵
Stratagems of Winning · 胜战计When the enemy is too strong to attack directly, strike at their point of vulnerability. Redirect force to where the opponent is weakest.
During the Warring States period, Wei attacked Zhao and besieged its capital. Instead of meeting the strong Wei army head-on, Sun Bin suggested attacking the undefended Wei capital. The Wei army was forced to retreat to defend their home, and Zhao was saved without direct confrontation.
Rather than competing head-on against eBay's auction stronghold, Amazon attacked eBay's vulnerability: lack of fulfillment infrastructure. By offering sellers logistics, trust, and Prime shipping through FBA, Amazon drew sellers away from eBay without fighting on eBay's terms.
Airbnb didn't compete with hotels on amenities or locations. Instead, it attacked hotels' weakness: high prices and impersonal experience. By offering affordable, local accommodation, Airbnb forced hotels to compete on unfamiliar terrain — authenticity and community.