Competitive Advantage Worksheet

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We answer the questions you need to know. Like, What are the 11 questions to help you do a Competitive Strategy?  Competitor analysis helps your business planning, product development, and marketing offering. An impartial analysis of who’s out there and what they do well will help find a piece of the market you can own.

And to find out who your competitors are. Which niche they serve, and where they are strong. The analysis of this information will also offer you a better idea of where you fit in the market. And how you can make the most of that position.

Nice to know

Many other businesses are interested in your customers. So it’s essential to understand what these competitors are offering. And how they usually deliver it. It’s not just a “nice to know” situation. Answering these and other questions will help you create a compelling competitive strategy. 

You may or may not worry about your competitors. They may all be successful with customers that love what they do. Their brand is prestigious, and they are making a lot of money. They are doing well in a similar market to you. And maybe you would love to find all their secrets out and break open their CRM systems? But, this unethical direct approach will be most likely to be illegal. 

Yet, Competitor Analysis is almost as good, if not better. And definitely legal and ethical. You can take their best ideas. Then you can run with them or improve on them by taking the time to look at what they are doing better than you. Understand which marketing strategies and sales tactics are not working for them. So you don’t repeat their mistakes. And understand what strategies are working that you can develop for yourself?

Have they failed?

They may have tried to develop a new product or market and failed. That’s better for you that they failed and wasted their money. You don’t need to do the same. Understand what mistakes they’ve made, so you can avoid them. What are you better at than them? If you know where you excel, then this where you should focus your marketing message.

You don’t need to have a separate competitive strategy plan. But you should really. Because if you just make it part of your overall business plan, then it’s forgotten about until next year. A competitive strategy is an ever-changing beast. The plan needs to reacts to changes, and competitor moves. The ultimate goal is to anticipate changes to your competitive environment. 

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Who are your competitors?

There are two main types of competitors in your environment.

Those companies who sell similar products or services as you

Companies who offer different products or services but compete for the same customers

Analysis
Start with the big picture questions:
Who are the key players in your market sector?
What is the market share of each of these competitors?