One of the most common pieces of advice new or prospective business owners receive is to “research your competition.” That’s all well and good, but how many times can you relentlessly explore your competition’s website or read glowing articles about them in trade magazines before you realize your research needs a little structure? And here it is – the top 10 questions you should ask when researching your competitors.
1.) Who are the principals in the company? What educational and professional backgrounds do they have? – While this is vital to know, resist the urge to compare your experience and credentials. If most of your competitors have sales backgrounds, your IT background will give you a unique perspective and make you stand out from the crowd.
2.) How long has your competitor been in business? – Is you industry relatively new or do you have to compete with an established name?
3.) What do your competitors charge? – Are you overcharging? Undercharging? Are your competitors offering value-added services that you haven’t thought of yet?
4.) Have your competitors announced news lately? What was it? – To find this information searching for your competitor on Google News or checking out the “Press Room” or “Media” link on their website.
5.) What are your competitor’s plans for the future? – This can be difficult to ascertain, but sometimes media stories or press releases will mention a company’s future plans.
6.) What particular niche does your competitor fill? – You may find that you have hundreds of direct competitors, but you could just as easily find that your industry has plenty of room for someone who fills your particular niche. You might even discover a new niche to conquer!
7.) Who are your competitors marketing to? – Sometimes this will be readily apparent and your competitors’ marketing materials and website will practically call their demographic by name. (Think about those life insurance ads on television that begin with, “Are you between the ages of 55 and 80?”) Other times, this will be harder to figure out. And that can be a good thing for you, because you can target your marketing more narrowly and move in on their territory!
8.) What kind of marketing and advertising are your competitors using? – Do they broadcast TV commercials? Or maybe send out direct mailings or use email advertising? (To find out, sign up for your competitor’s site if they have a membership option.) And nowadays, more and more people are turning to social media for their marketing. How does your competitor differentiate their marketing strategy? Does it appear to be working for them?
9.) Do your competitors have listings in a database like Hoovers? – Hoovers allows you to research businesses, their finances, principals, growth, assets, employees, locations, and more. Hoovers is a pay service, but many colleges and public libraries have subscriptions. Check around before ponying up.
10.) How do your competitors’ customers feel about them? – Your competitors probably have client lists or testimonials on their websites. If possible, contact customers and ask them their opinions on working with your competitor.
One of the best ways to research your competitors is by simply talking to them. If they’re located nearby, drop in for a visit. Don’t get all James Bond on the situation – introduce yourself and explain that you own a similar business. In the best case scenario, you make a new contact and find out that there’s room for everyone in your industry. In the worst case scenario, you will still know your competitor just a little better.
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What do you think?
How do you research your competitors?
Are you an expert investigator? Share your secrets!
2
I'm a children's portrait and wedding photographer and I've found one easy way to keep up with what other photographers are doing is to add their blogs to my google reader page. I just started using google reader and it's my new best friend for keeping up a bunch of different topics. It's nice to be able to scroll through all the new posts for the day and just skip to anything that might interest me.
Posted Jan 29, 2010 10:24:56 AM by: Misty Richmond Photography
1
I go a step further and take something of my own to be repaired, just to see how they go about it, how long it takes, how they deal with me, I say I don't need it in a hurry and then phone next day saying that sorry I do need it back asap and see how they deal with that. I make a mental note of their workshop, the amount of work they have, how organsied they are, how accessible. The ones Iike, I tell them who I am and ask them if they would be able to help me out when I am busy, ill or away and offer the same for them.
I do need a safetynet as I work entirely on my own and it may be a sneaky way of getting someone willing to help out, but at least I know that they are of the same standard as me.
Its also good to know what services they do provide because if I get asked to do something that I can't do, rather than say sorry I can't help you I can say, I know someone who can. I may ahve lost taht particualr business but they may return for something else.
Posted Mar 12, 2010 7:03:32 AM by: Studio Stitches