In business, it’s important to know who (and what) you’re up against. This means you need to know what products and/or services your competitors are selling, and how well they’re selling them.
Enter: The competitive analysis.
A competitive analysis is a strategic way to identify who your competitors are and how you can beat them at their own game. Doing this research upfront will help you differentiate yourself from other businesses, provide what your competitors cannot, and ultimately increase revenue.
Here, we’ll explore the importance of doing a competitive analysis. Then we’ll dive into the 14 tips you can use to run your own competitive analysis.
1. Identify your competitors
You probably already have an idea of who your competitors are. But, it’s a good idea to do some research to identify all of the competitors in your space.
Start by searching for keywords related to your business. Make a list of all the companies that show up in the search results. You can also check out industry directories, review sites, and social media to find competitors. For example, if your business involves compliance solutions, researching competitors in that niche might lead you to companies that offer whistleblowing software.
Don’t forget to consider indirect competitors, too. These are companies that sell different products or services, but still compete for your customers’ budget.
2. Research your competitors’ products and services
What’s your unique selling proposition (USP)? This is what sets your business apart from the competition. It’s what makes your business the best choice for your target customer.
To find your USP, you need to know what products and services your competitors offer. You’ll also want to know how they promote their products and services.
Look at their website, read their product descriptions, and take note of how they position their products and services. You can use this information to compare your products and services to theirs.
3. Analyze your competitors’ content marketing
Content marketing is one of the most important aspects of a business’s inbound marketing strategy. When done effectively, your competitors’ content marketing can help them generate more leads and sales. For example, if you’re in the jewelery industry, you might notice competitors creating content about engagement rings, showcasing styles, trends, and buying guides.
When analyzing your competitors’ content marketing, ask yourself the following questions:
• What type of content do they create? (e.g., blog posts, infographics, videos, etc.)
• How often do they publish new content?
• What topics do they write about?
• How long are their blog posts?
• What kind of engagement do they get on their content? (e.g., comments, social shares, etc.)
• Where do they promote their content?
• What kind of results do they get from their content marketing?
To find your competitors’ content, you can use a tool like BuzzSumo, which allows you to search for the most popular content on any topic. You can also use a tool like SEMrush to find out what keywords your competitors are ranking for and what kind of content they are creating around those keywords. Incorporating high-quality content that’s engaging, well-researched, and relevant is essential for improving SEO, enhancing audience engagement, and driving conversions.
4. Understand your competitors’ social media efforts
Social media is a great way to get a feel for your competitors’ branding and voice. You can see what types of content they’re sharing and how they’re interacting with their audience.
You can also compare your social media efforts with your competitors’ by looking at the number of followers they have, how often they post, and how much engagement their posts get.
If you’re a social media manager, you can use a tool like Sprout Social to analyze your competitors’ social media efforts. You can compare your profiles to your competitors’ and see how you stack up in terms of follower count, engagement, and more.
5. Check your competitors’ search engine ranking
The next step in your competitive analysis is to check where your competitors are ranking in search engines.
Use an SEO keyword research tool to find the keywords your competitors are ranking for. For instance, if you’re in the real estate industry, you might find that ‘tiny homes for sale Virginia‘ is a popular search term. Then, input those keywords into Google to see where your competitors are ranking.
Make a note of the keywords your competitors are ranking for and the pages on their website that are ranking. This will give you an idea of what type of content is performing well in your industry.
6. Analyze your competitors’ advertising
The last thing you should do in your competitive analysis is to analyze your competitors’ advertising. What are they saying? What are their offers?
You can find this information on their website, or you can go to Google and type in the name of the company followed by the word “ad.” This will show you any ads they are currently running.
You can also use a tool like Adbeat, which will show you all of the ads a company is running, as well as where they are running them. This can be a great way to get a sense of how much money your competitors are spending on advertising, as well as where you should be advertising your business.
7. Monitor your competitors’ customer feedback
Customers are the most important people to your business. After all, without them, you wouldn’t have a business.
So, it’s important to pay attention to what your competitors’ customers are saying.
If you see a lot of negative reviews or feedback, that could be a sign that your competitors are struggling to keep their customers happy. And, that’s a great opportunity for you to swoop in and win over some new customers.
On the other hand, if you see a lot of positive customer feedback, that could be a sign that your competitors are doing something right. You can use that information to improve your own products or services.
There are a few different ways you can monitor your competitors’ customer feedback. You can look for online reviews, check out their social media profiles, or even sign up for their email list and see what their customers are saying.
8. Analyze your competitors’ pricing
Pricing is a big deal in the business world. If your products or services are priced too high, you’ll lose potential customers to competitors with lower prices. On the other hand, if your products or services are priced too low, you could be leaving money on the table. For businesses selling tactical gear, competitive pricing is particularly important since many consumers compare options for quality and affordability when purchasing items like survival gear, protective clothing, or accessories.
Use your competitive analysis to compare your prices to those of your competitors. If you find that your prices are too high, you might want to consider lowering them. If you find that your prices are too low, you might want to consider raising them.
9. Understand your competitors’ target market
Your business likely has a specific target market that you are trying to reach. This target market is a group of people who are most likely to buy your products or services.
Your target market is made up of people who share common characteristics, such as age, gender, location, income, education, and more.
When conducting a competitive analysis, it’s important to understand your competitors’ target market. This will help you identify who they are trying to reach and how they are marketing to these people.
To do this, you can look at your competitors’ marketing materials, social media profiles, and website. You can also look at who is following your competitors on social media and who is engaging with their content.
10. Identify your competitors’ unique selling proposition (USP)
A unique selling proposition is what makes your product or service different from the competition. It’s what sets you apart and makes you the better choice. In ecommerce for manufacturing, this becomes crucial as businesses need to distinguish themselves in a competitive market often dominated by pricing and efficiency. Manufacturers offering customized solutions, faster production timelines, or superior quality materials can use these as key aspects of their USP to appeal to both B2B and B2C customers.
Identifying your USP can be a bit tricky, but it’s important to do. Your USP is what you’ll use in your marketing to show why you’re the better choice.
To identify your competitors’ USPs, look at their branding and messaging. What do they talk about? What do they focus on? What do they say makes them different?
Write down what you find and then compare it to your own USP (or what you want your USP to be). This will help you see if you’re on the right track or if you need to make some adjustments.
11. Understand your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses
Every company has its strengths and weaknesses.
The key is to identify what those are for your competitors and then use that information to your advantage.
For example, if you find that one of your competitors is really good at customer service, you might want to focus on improving your own customer service to stay competitive.
On the other hand, if you find that a competitor has a lot of weaknesses, you can use that information to position your own company as the better choice.
12. Compare your business to your competitors
Finally, you should compare your business to your competitors. By doing this, you’ll be able to identify your strengths and weaknesses, and learn how to position your business in the market.
To compare your business to your competitors, start by identifying your main competitors. Then, list the key features of your business, and rate how well each of your competitors’ businesses perform in those areas.
This will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, and see how your business stacks up against the competition.
13. Analyze your competitors’ business models
Before you can make any business decisions, you need to understand the business models of your competitors.
Business models are the foundation of a business. They define the way a company makes money, who they make money from, and what they offer to their customers. Business models also help you understand the profitability of your competitors.
To analyze your competitors’ business models, you’ll want to ask yourself a few questions, such as:
• Who are their target customers?
• What do their sales funnels look like?
• What are the costs associated with their business?
• How do they make money?
• What are their pricing strategies?
• What is their customer acquisition strategy?
• What are their customer retention strategies?
14. Use competitive analysis tools
Finally, there are a number of tools that can help you conduct a competitive analysis. Some, like the ones mentioned above, are free to use. Others, like Alexa, are paid tools.
Alexa is an advanced SEO tool that can help you see how your competitors are doing in terms of search engine rankings. You can also use it to analyze your competitors’ websites and get a better understanding of their traffic and engagement.
Other competitor analysis tools, like BuzzSumo, can help you identify your competitors and see how they are performing on social media. You can also use BuzzSumo to see what kind of content is performing well in your industry and get ideas for your own content marketing strategy.
By using these tools, you can save time and effort and get a more comprehensive view of your competition.
Conclusion
A competitive analysis can be a great opportunity to learn from your competitors and improve your own business. Use the tips and templates in this post to get started on your own analysis.