{"id":24540,"date":"2022-12-16T17:00:40","date_gmt":"2022-12-16T17:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.revuze.it\/blog\/?p=24540"},"modified":"2023-01-06T12:50:59","modified_gmt":"2023-01-06T12:50:59","slug":"competitive-intelligence-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revuze.it\/blog\/competitive-intelligence-2\/","title":{"rendered":"How Competitive Intelligence Lets You Stay Ahead of Your Rivals"},"content":{"rendered":"
Businesses don\u2019t exist in a bubble. Competitors always try new tactics to gain market share, leaving you behind. That\u2019s why performing competitive intelligence isn\u2019t optional these days but a must. This guide will walk you through the details of competitive intelligence, from basic definitions to actionable strategies explaining how to perform it and gain the upper hand.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Imagine, if you will, that you\u2019re a baseball player who\u2019s up to bat.<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019ve no idea what pitch the pitcher is going to throw.<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019ve got no clue where the catchers are planning to move to.<\/span><\/p>\n All you can do is make your best guess, right?<\/span><\/p>\n Well, not exactly. Each pitcher has their preferred throws, and there\u2019s a good chance they\u2019ll use one that they think you\u2019re weak to. If you prepare for such a pitch, you\u2019re more likely to score a home run ????.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In a way, the world of business is just like the game of baseball. Being able to predict what\u2019s going to happen next will give you a huge advantage. You\u2019ll be able to see your competitors\u2019 latest moves to try and squeeze you out of the market and counteract them.<\/span><\/p>\n That, quite simply, is competitive intelligence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Competitive intelligence is data collection and analysis by your organization on its competitors. This is done using openly-available sources, such as:<\/span><\/p>\n Public companies are much easier to gather data on, as they are lawfully required to publish their quarterly earnings. Private companies are a little bit more difficult to examine, but there are methods you can use. Legal ones, that is.<\/span><\/p>\n When we say competitive intelligence, you might think that you\u2019ll be aiming right for the target and getting ahold of your competitors\u2019 strategies directly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This is not actually the case.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n You see, competitive intelligence is done <\/span>legally<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Every business has a right to keep its inner workings a secret, especially concerning its information. Stealing that information is highly illegal as it would involve either breach of contract or hacking into their servers.<\/span><\/p>\n Information gathered illegally can, of course, be used to make decisions, but that\u2019s not competitive intelligence – it\u2019s industrial espionage, which we strongly discourage.<\/span><\/p>\n Competitive intelligence has many sources.<\/span><\/p>\n Which ones you turn to will largely depend on your intentions when performing your research. Nevertheless, all of them can provide valuable data if analyzed correctly.<\/span><\/p>\n The content that your competitors write about on their blogs is a gold mine of information. Not only does it tell you what type of consumer they\u2019re hoping to attract, but <\/span>how<\/span><\/i> they\u2019re hoping to attract them.<\/span><\/p>\n Just like our blog, you\u2019ll find a variety of topics based around the general market that your rivals are in being written and posted. Some of them might seem to have little relevance, but when you analyze them fully, you\u2019ll find ways in which they link back to your competitors\u2019 game plans.<\/span><\/p>\n We wouldn\u2019t be writing about competitive intelligence here at Revuze if our software couldn\u2019t help in that regard, now would we? Our AI can help you obtain competitive intelligence in real-time, so feel free to <\/span>book a demo<\/span><\/a> if you\u2019d like to learn more.<\/span><\/p>\n Social media often has a news component for businesses, whereby they keep their stakeholders updated with their new and ongoing dealings.<\/span><\/p>\n Thanks to this, they\u2019re prime information sources. New product launches, new deals, and customer responses, you can find a lot of data on these platforms.<\/span><\/p>\n You might think that a lot of social media information can only be used in reactive responses rather than proactively, and in a sense, you\u2019re both right and wrong.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You can only respond to each individual piece of information, however, they may reveal a trend that shows your competition\u2019s ongoing strategies.<\/span><\/p>\n Take, for instance, the example below from Nestle.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Taken individually, each advertisement gives off a different message. The first one showcases the benefits of plant-based food, the second promotes involving children in your cooking.<\/span><\/p>\n When looked at together, they tell a different story. Nestle is promoting healthy eating, presumably because they want to boost sales of their healthy eating product lines. This is a bold new direction for a company known mostly for its chocolate and confectionary sales.<\/span><\/p>\n Whenever your rivals <\/span>launch new products<\/span><\/a> or services, the first thing you should look at is their reviews.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Not only will they give you insight into what your competition is trying to achieve, but they\u2019ll tell you the audience’s response to it.<\/span><\/p>\n There\u2019s no use creating the perfect egg scrambler if your customers want their eggs fried, after all.<\/span><\/p>\n Reviews are <\/span>useful for existing products<\/span><\/a> too, with any changes reflected in the feedback they receive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n While not the most intuitive of places to look, job boards can nevertheless be a valuable source of information.<\/span><\/p>\n Imagine for a second that your main rival has suddenly posted a lot of job openings in their R&D department. This is pretty unusual since they typically have a low personnel turnover rate.<\/span><\/p>\n So what\u2019s going on? Well, there are several options:<\/span><\/p>\n In the case of the first option, the job listings would be permanent posts. In the case of the other two, they\u2019d likely be temporary.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The second option might also be listed as \u201ctemporary with a possibility of becoming permanent.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Just like that, simply by keeping an eye on the job boards, you\u2019ve gained valuable information on what your rival is up to.<\/span><\/p>\n As mentioned previously, public companies have to release their financial statements quarterly. With this data in hand, you can see:<\/span><\/p>\n Business news is absolutely full of valuable information. There will be announcements about new products, new hires, expansion moves, and more.<\/span><\/p>\n Some businesses even have a News section on their websites or apps, which coalesces all this information in one place.<\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re part of an industry that has brick-and-mortar stores, you can look at the local information surrounding said stores in order to gather information.<\/span><\/p>\n What times do your competitors open and close? What area of the town or city are they located in? Do they have a decent amount of floor space dedicated to customers? Do they keep their stock on hand in a back room or a nearby warehouse?<\/span><\/p>\n All these little details can tell you what might and might not work in your own stores. Of course, copying your rivals exactly isn\u2019t ideal as they might be constrained by circumstances and not able to operate as they would ideally, but it\u2019s a start.<\/span><\/p>\n You can look at legal papers filed by your competitors as they are typically publicly viewable.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For instance, a planning permission request for a large industrial building would indicate that your competitor plans to build a new manufacturing plant or similar establishment.<\/span><\/p>\n This tells you that your competitor is trying to expand their manufacturing processes, and if it\u2019s in a new location, you can assume that they\u2019re trying to expand into a new market.<\/span><\/p>\n Another great source of information is patent filings. These will tell you not only what your competition is doing but what they plan to make legally exclusive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s sometimes said that there\u2019s not an original thought under the sun that someone hasn\u2019t already had at one point. That\u2019s true in R&D as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You might have to end up abandoning your projects or adjusting them not to break copyright law if your competitors patent what you\u2019ve been working on.<\/span><\/p>\n Conferences are similar to news reports, except more detailed. They\u2019re designed to showcase all of the best aspects of a business to others within their industry, whether that\u2019s to attract new customers or collect new talent.<\/span><\/p>\n Conferences are often the most detailed sources of information on this list, and that\u2019s for one simple reason. You can actually talk to participants and get their opinions and perspectives.<\/span><\/p>\n All news, legal papers, and social network content are heavily moderated by those who release the information. When talking to someone face to face, you can often get far more information.<\/span><\/p>\n The downside is the unorganized nature of gathering data at conferences. You also have to factor in the ability to get to the conference, accommodation, etc.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n So are conferences worth it to attend? It\u2019s up to you, but we\u2019d say definitely. The rise of <\/span>virtual conferences<\/span><\/a> is also making attendance easier, so keep an eye out for these opportunities.<\/span><\/p>\n So, you might be thinking, why use competitive intelligence?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If it\u2019s all indirect information, is it really going to give me an accurate picture of what my competition is up to?<\/span><\/p>\n Competitive intelligence is akin to following footprints in the sand. You might not be there to see the person walk it, but you can see which direction they\u2019re going in, and when they shift or double back on themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n You can infer a great deal from indirect information. If you want an example from history, look no further than when <\/span>Kodak accidentally discovered the Manhattan Project<\/span><\/a>, simply by noticing that they were getting reports of radioactively-contaminated film in the area around the test site.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cKnow thy enemy, and know thyself,\u201d said Sun Tzu in the Art of War.<\/span><\/p>\n While not quite a battle between armies, business is no less competitive. If you know your rivals\u2019 moves before they begin, you will be able to counter them with great effect.<\/span><\/p>\n Let\u2019s say that both you and your competitor are in the e-commerce business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You know from experience that your competitor has put on a Black Friday sale every year, thus you can anticipate that they\u2019ll do the same this year and develop a strategy that accounts for this.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There\u2019s also the option to take a look at their past sales, as well as current hot items, which will give you a clue as to which products they might put on sale this year. If you know which categories they plan to target, you can sidestep or counteract them.<\/span><\/p>\n All in all, the best way to counter an opponent\u2019s strategy is to never let it get off the ground in the first place.<\/span><\/p>\n You always need innovation in order to keep your business fresh and on top of things. This goes doubly so for those dealing with the ecommerce market, where trends and habits change faster than anywhere else.<\/span><\/p>\n Competitive intelligence can uncover what it is that your competition has, but more importantly, it can also reveal what they <\/span>lack<\/span><\/i> and what consumers are after. No one can cover all bases, after all, and by keeping an eye on new opportunities, you can really get ahead in the game.<\/span><\/p>\n Markets change, and you need to change with them in order to survive.<\/span><\/p>\n One of the greatest examples of decision-making in business is Netflix, which in 2007 launched a streaming service alongside its video rental one. This proved a huge hit and allowed Netflix to become the giant that it is today.<\/span><\/p>\n Netflix saw which way the wind was blowing as music consumers turned more and more to digital media and decided to follow it. It allowed them to survive a major upheaval in the industry, which many, including Blockbuster, did not.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Netflix’s changes showcase a great example of strategic intelligence in action. Video rental was still popular back in 2007, after all, and they could simply have stuck to it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Instead, they took account of trends that showed a shift towards online streaming and were able to adapt and weather the storm.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Blockbuster, on the other hand, continued to have faith in their traditional methods and failed to take into account the long-term implications. There\u2019s only one Blockbuster left in the US now, and for a good reason.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Times change, and so do people. Nobody would say that applying the same business tactics that worked in the 1950s is appropriate in today\u2019s world, but few realize just how fast expectations can change in the age of the internet.<\/span><\/p>\n This is something that e-commerce-based businesses especially need to be aware of, what with the internet being an ever-evolving pace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Payment options, fonts and colors, images – especially if you try to use internet humor to sell your brand – links and plugins, all these can have a massive effect on your ability to sell.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you use unusual plugins, for instance, you\u2019ll turn off most customers who won\u2019t want to install one to use your store.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re given the option between two sites, one of which requires you to download extra features to use while the other is free of such inconveniences, which would you choose to use?<\/span><\/p>\n Links can also break or be archived over time, meaning what worked perfectly one day won\u2019t the next. Relying on other websites to grant information is a tricky business.<\/span><\/p>\n If a certain brand that you\u2019re displaying prominently has bad press, you may want to decrease its visibility on your store lest you get a bad reputation by association. Conversely, you can increase the visibility of other brands that have a surge in popularity.<\/span><\/p>\n Competitive intelligence will help here, telling you what customers expect from you and what you need to do in order to meet those expectations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A good example of growth meeting customer expectations is<\/span> Amazon\u2019s adoption of Venmo<\/span><\/a> as a payment option, allowing those who don\u2019t want to use their bank accounts directly a more secure way to pay.<\/span><\/p>\n Credit and debit card fraud has been <\/span>on the rise<\/span><\/a> over the past few years, making more and more consumers wary of using their cards online.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When using Venmo, your bank information is never directly given to the vendor, meaning that phishing attacks or breaches in Amazon\u2019s security are unlikely to put consumer data at risk.<\/span><\/p>\n The COVID-19 pandemic showed just how fast brands needed to be able to change to survive, with plenty of businesses not making it through 2020 intact.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While not exactly a typical event where markets are concerned, it does nevertheless highlight how much circumstances can change in short periods of time.<\/span><\/p>\n Another great example of where competitive intelligence can help you is in finding your market position.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You see, it isn\u2019t always obvious from sales figures and other such indirect data exactly <\/span>where<\/span><\/i> you stand nor <\/span>how<\/span><\/i> you are perceived by the consumer base.<\/span><\/p>\n Data sources such as reviews, ratings, etc., can give you an insight into the consumers\u2019 minds and how they <\/span>perceive your brand<\/span><\/a>, letting you assess your standing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Are you seen as a first-pick, top-rate seller? Are you just a reliable alternative when the usual options aren\u2019t available? Or are you seen as someone niche who fulfills specific demands that only a few consumers would have?<\/span><\/p>\n By using this information and comparing it to your strategies, you can see if you\u2019ve achieved your targeted market position. If you have, great! If not, you\u2019ll gain insight into why this is the case and how you might resolve that in the future.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nWhat is competitive intelligence?<\/b><\/h2>\n
\n
Competitive intelligence vs. industrial spying<\/b><\/h3>\n
How do you get competitive intelligence?<\/b><\/h2>\n
Blog content<\/b><\/h3>\n
Social media<\/b><\/h3>\n
Reviews & feedback<\/b><\/h3>\n
Job boards<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
Financial statements<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
Press releases<\/b><\/h3>\n
Local information<\/b><\/h3>\n
Legal papers<\/b><\/h3>\n
Industry conferences<\/b><\/h3>\n
What are the goals of competitive intelligence?<\/b><\/h2>\n
Anticipating your competitor\u2019s moves<\/b><\/h3>\n
Driving your innovation<\/b><\/h3>\n
Keeping track of market conditions<\/b><\/h3>\n
Growing your brand to customer expectations<\/b><\/h3>\n
Knowing your position within the market<\/b><\/h3>\n