How to Understand Your Competitors weaknesses and strengths

[Jasz]

When you're learning from your competitors, it's important to understand their strengths and weaknesses, the market trends they're following and the overall strategies they're using.

You can learn a lot about your competitors by reading their blog posts, analyzing their social media accounts and observing their web designs. But how do you know which of these tactics are working for them?

You need to look at the results. Specifically, what are they doing that works? What isn't working as well?

What is Working for Your Competitors?

You can find out what's working for your competitors by studying their sales funnel: how they attract visitors and convert them into customers.

For example, if one competitor has a high percentage of sales on its homepage but another has a higher average order value, that could mean that the first competitor is getting lots of new customers who aren't ready to buy yet while the second is selling more expensive products or services.

 

[King bell]

In order to understand your competitor's weaknesses and strengths, you need to first identify where your company’s comparative advantages are. A comparative advantage is an area in which a company has a competitive edge over other players in the industry; this means that their products are of better quality, they offer more convenience or they have lower prices.

For example, Apple has a competitive edge because their iPhone and iPad devices have near-universal appeal to consumers, while competitors' alternatives often seem outdated by comparison.

By understanding your competitor's weakness and strengths you can then assemble an actionable strategy to avoid/attract competitors' customers in what will become an increasingly competitive marketplace.

In addition to identifying your comparative advantage, the next step is to understand who is your competitor and why they are your competitor.
The best way to identify your competitors is by using a tool such as Google Trends (make sure you limit the search window to the last 5-10 years). By utilizing these tools, it's relatively easy for business owners and leaders within their industries to identify trends and competition-related information about their industry.

 

[Mastergp]

In Nigeria most businesses involve competition, and when competition is involve sales product might reduce, so one need to use different t tactics in order to succeed in what he or she is engaging in.
Some times one need to understand his competitors weaknesses it shouldn't be just one weakness but they should be many I have a few surjection on how to do this:

Buy your product in quality :
Most times our products superiority could write a finger on the wall, many customers or client likes product that are higher in quality in order for it to last longer and has a taste of value.

Buy in Quantity:
When we buy product in large quantity we will have more product to offer when other competitors are lacking in that way drawing customers or client to yourself.

Sociable:
This quality plays a great deal when we are social and free in our conversation that is showing a smile and not getting easily provoke when client don't meet to our expected demand, most competitors aim is to make sale and they might get very provoke so we should not be like them but let friendship lead.

 

[Kennysplash]

Some people say that you should just focus on yourself and your business and not think of others in the same line as you. Anyone that says that are not ready to do good business. You have to look at your competitors to figure out what they are doing right and what they do wrong. You will be able to use it as a guide in running your own business. You can either choose to learn from them or ignore them totally. Find out more about them discreetly, know their strengths and weaknesses. This way you will be able to leverage on that and use the information you got to improve yourself.

 

[Shaf]

I think one of the best ways to create a business that is successful is by competition.

If you have a business idea, all the information you need to get via research can be found by studying your competition. You can find out what products or services sell best, their marketing strategies, the profitability of the market and what complains customers usually have.
This way, you can create a better or cheaper solution and market it even more than your competition are doing.

One of the best ways to study your competition is by checking the reviews left by customers online. Just like you check fir reviews before buying a phone or downloading an app, reviews cam tell you want people want the most and issues they would like solved.

Of course no one will tell you how to beat them in business, but if you can study in person how your competition works, you can get an edge. You can settle for an internship or even apprenticeship to learn the internal workings of the business.