Tracking Competition - Linkedin CMO Discussion
Any suggestions on tools to analyze competition? Many competitors are privately held which does pose a challenge; tools such as Compete and Quantcast offer web traffic data..but unsure of their data..
28 days ago
This article offers some good resources to assist you in executing an effective competitive analysis of a privately held company.
Other ways to get information are to analyze your competitor's customers. Contact some of their existing customers through your personal network. If you know them well, they're likely to give you more inside information about customer service and satisfaction, sales process, special pricing options and custom features available etc.
I've found good ole' fashioned Blogger to be really effective. Please take a look at the Industry and Competitive Insights blog that I set-up for my companyhttp://picompetitors.blogspot.com/ .
I subscribe to all of my competition's RSS feeds and have some pre-configured searches that I check out a couple of times a week to see what they're up to. Then, I capture anything interesting on the blog. Then, about each month, I use Blog2Print to create a PDF digest of what I discovered over the course of that month and share it with fellow member of my executive team. Great way to keep them informed and looking outward without bugging them every day. I find the discipline of regularly checking and journaling when appropriate to be very effective. And, it is surprising what you'll come across.
Another great resource is Glassdoor.com. It tells you what's going on in a company from an employees perspective. Recruiters in your industry are also a great source of information since they are talking with key players in the industry and gaining insight first hand.
Lisa R. • If you haven't done this and it's very easy - analyze their websites and social media. Get deep. What's their position? Colors used? Donors? What copy points? Very deep analysis of what's out there and available. I'd call their major donors - ask what they like, don't like, etc. Why they love, give. Interview their board members. Really not that difficult. You can fish and hire above groups, but there's nothing like DIYing what's available and learning from it. You'd be surprised what you can learn.
Bill T. • See my web site http://www.competitivereviews.com for some suggestions
@tomob
Additionally I would recommend you also conduct a simultaneous inward looking analysis of your own sales and customer history - win rate, average ticket, sales cycle, customer tenure, profitability, etc.
Developing or optimizing a go-to-market strategy requires both a competitive outward picture as well as an objective inward evaluation.
A good consultant can augment your own internal staff and capabilities set to provide this type of insightful and objective support. The #1 thing a good consultant provides his or her client is "objective perspective" on their business. Additionally they provide insights, analysis and advice. But perspective is in my experience what most clients need most.
Craig Apatov
Managing Partner
Ascension Growth & Innovation Strategies, LLC
www.ascensionstrategy.com
W: 404-250-4547
Larry M. • Ramesh,
What is the purpose of the competitive assessment? What are you using it for? The answer to those questions will determine what competitive information you need and what tools will be most helpful.
I pull my competitive analysis from a lot of sources including:
* Customers
* Industry experts
* Industry trade shows
* At the bar the evening of an industry trade show
* Corporate websites
* Corporate blogs
* Corporate social media tools
* Product tests
* Online product reviews
* Corporate and product brochures
* Former employees of competitors
* The salesforce
* Customer service / technical support department
* Industry/independent reviews of product tests
* Competitor price guides
* Competitor ads
* Competitive product pricing and position
Here are a few of the Competitive tools I use:
* Google alerts
* Online searches
* LinkedIn to understand corporate leadership
Knowing how you want to use the information is key to what tools and research is necessary.
Purchase the latest printing of Sam Richter's book "Take The Cold Out Of Cold Calling." He references a lot of online sites and resources to learn about customers as well as competitors. Good luck!
Mario C. • Ramesh,
Thank you for starting the conversation, This is a great question. I agree with all the comments above.
One point I would like to make is that Competitive Analysis, like any other aspect of a company's strategy, has to be consistent and continuous. I find that many executives only start the process when a company is under threat or attack. By then, it is usually too late.
Competitive Analysis should be part of the on-going enterprise's efforts. This is the only way to discover opportunities and threats before the competition.
Suneetha M. • Ramesh - I agree with all of the suggestions above. Additionally, a key factor to look at is your competition's team composition. Look at their company
career sites and look for the kind of roles that are available. This will provide a
sense of the strategy behind the scenes, including how it might evolve in the near future.
Andrea P. • Just wanted to say that I really enjoyed this discussion, and all the points raised.... I learned some interesting tactics, some that were right in front of me... LOL
Derrith L. • Learn how to conduct a competitive analysis that will uncover actionable insights with specific things to do or change based on uncovering what your competitors are (and are not) doing. Learn more about mystery shopping and how to evaluate a total brand experience for customers. You'll find how-to guides on all that on MarketingZone, a new site for small business on marketing.
http://www.marketingzone.com/771-competitive-analysis-how-guide
Rand P. • I think posing as a student a) shouldn't fool anyone anymore, b) may hinder real students from doing actual research and c) is unethical and may even be illegal under certain fraud statutes that apply to misrepresentation. Actually hiring a student for this charade is merely a technicality. Stick with online research and the database companies.
Dave S. • Ramesh,
Check out RivalMap (www.rivalmap.com).
Martin S. • VMS has many of the services you are looking for Ramesh.
www.vmsinfo.com
Rajendra S. • PS: All of the above is gr8. Do not lose focus on your own objectives & compile the analysis mthly, qtrly, based on your business needs. Sources can be mixed -internal/ external depending on data reqd. Rgds
Scott M. • Ramesh. If you want to track your competition online, you'd be amazed at the depth of discovery. #evolvedigitallabs