In today’s global marketplace, a company is not only faced with increasingly fierce
competition from existing competition, but also from new entrants who may focus on a particular market niche that may be key to your company’s success.
As a result, knowing who your existing and potential competitors are and what they are doing has become even more important, and should be a key driver in your own company’s business decisions. In addition, many products and services today are virtually similar, so that you have to develop ways to successfully differentiate your products and services in the marketplace.
By carrying out the right kind of competitor research and analysis, you will be better able to:
- Identify your marketable competitive advantages for your products and services
- Evaluate markets vertically, horizontally, by market segment, and/or geographically
- Anticipate your competitors’ likely moves
- Differentiate yourself yourself more clearly from your current and prospective competitors
- Carry out more effective and rapid decision-making
- Bring you closer to your current and prospective customers’ needs
- Offer more identifiable value to your customers
- Determine the likely potential of new products and services
- Establish how and when to launch new products
- Settle on what products and services you want to provide, and also determine whether and how to change your current service offerings
- Develop a long-term marketing strategy
