Aristophanes, a Greek poet once said “The wise learn many things from their enemies”.
So should we fear our competition or learn from them?
If we know who our competitors are and what they are offering we can strengthen our business and help you to make your products, services and marketing stand out.
This doesn’t just mean compare the physical product or service they are offering. Look at what marketing approach your competitors have. How do they position their brand? What is their customer service like? How are they promoting themselves? What about their website? What is their content telling you? Is it easy to navigate and simple to understand?
A Chinese war strategist believed that success in battle requires that you know yourself as well as you know your enemy. So if we take this into the business arena, then you need to have a good understanding of your own strengths, as well as understanding what your competitors are good at, if you are to be successful in business. You can't look at the competition and say you are going to do it better. You have to look at the competition and say you're going to do it differently.
So what does this all have to do with marketing?
“You can’t look at the competition and say you are going to do it better. You have to look at the competition and say you’re going to do it differently.”
If you want to win business, you need to position yourself correctly in the marketplace – to grab attention, to differentiate yourself from the competition and to win those elusive customers.
So do you know what your competitors are offering to your potential customers and how this compares to you? Are you positioning yourself in a place that your potential customers will choose you?
Over the last few years, I conducted mystery shopping and competitor research for my clients to help them get a better feel for where they sit amongst them and how they can stand out. It can be a fully structured approach or a more casual ongoing temperature check.
If you’d like help finding out what makes you stand out and use this to win business, please get in contact.