| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Competitive Research and Google
It all started out with an email message: "I am starting a new one of a kind company ... at least I think I'm one of a kind ... how do I find out who else out there might have beat me to the punch? And how do I build a web page to advertise my hopefully one of kind new business?" This is a rather vague question but I'll try to be as helpful as possible with my answer. First off, I have to say that as a management consultant, I am always leery of people who think that they have no competition. With few exceptions, if there aren't already some sort of businesses in the space you're exploring, you need to ask the question why? before you congratulate yourself on coming up with a remarkable innovation. That isn't to say that you shouldn't bother if there are already companies doing what you want. Not at all! If you can come up with a new or unique angle, price the service/product differently, or even just do a better job of the same thing, there's no reason you can't be a great success. This all assumes that you know exactly what business you're in, and that's a really important first step. There are lots of people with good ideas that don't actually translate into good businesses. You need to have an idea that will lend itself to producing a revenue stream, for example, because non-income companies are, well, an oddity of the dot-com bubble and nothing more. One smart way to learn more about focusing your business idea is to read through my tutorial at Startup101 Info entitled Pitching Your Company to Investors. Whether or not you plan on actually raising investment capital, it'll help you clarify your ideas. Then spend some time working on a business plan too, and that site also has another helpful tutorial called Writing a Great Business Plan. To proceed with a business plan, though, you will need to be able to identify your competitors and, actually, that's what you asked about in the first place! The first approach I would use is to try to imagine that you're a customer, not a competitor, and ask yourself "how would I find out about companies offering what I seek online?" Probably your first stop would be Google, and that's a very good place to mine for competitive intelligence. If you're thinking about, say, being a mobile auto mechanic, then you'd want to search for auto mechanic and your area, or on-site auto mechanic or similar. The key in this kind of searching is to let your mind wander a bit to come up with creative ways of seeking the same thing. Also, don't forget to read the Web sites you find for inspiration on search terms too. Once you've found some competition - and I'm sure you will - then you should ask yourself whether you have a geographic advantage for local customers. With a mobile mechanic, you obviously need to be pretty close to your customers, but if you're selling a new type of computer firewall, your competitors can be anywhere on Earth. Identify your competitors, try to isolate their core value proposition (that is, exactly what they are selling and how), then compare that to what you've envisioned for your own business. If you still think you can compete and that your company can have some clear differentiators in the marketplace, then and only then should you start considering a Web site. And for a business Web site, the subject of a much longer essay, your key task is to quickly, accurately, and pleasantly convey what problem you're solving for your customers. Oh, and do so in a sufficiently compelling way that you convert visitors into customers, get them to pull out their credit card and actually pay. This is a lot to digest. Check it out, and feel free to pop back with more questions as you proceed. Good luck! Dave Taylor has an MBA and an MS Ed. and has been working with entrepreneurial companies as a management consultant for years. His latest projects are startup info, where there are lots of free tutorials on topics important to entrepreneurs, and Ask Dave Taylor, where he fields questions about starting a business and management.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Set Your Business Apart With A Unique Selling Proposition Unless your company has absolutely no competition now or in the forseeable future, you're well advised to find and develop a unique selling proposition (USP) that differentiates your business from all of your competitors.For you to succeed, you have to identify and understand what you or your business does or can start doing for your prospects and customers that provides them with a result that is superior to the competition's. Boost Your Business With Testimonials When used correctly, testimonials can boost your response dramatically. They help build the prospect's perception of believability, stability, honesty, and value in your product or service. How to Save Thousands on Your Marketing Marketing can be expensive. It doesn't have to be, but sometimes you will spend more than you should. Getting Into Marketing Momentum ... The Accelerated Way GETTING INTO MARKETING MOMENTUM: The 5 Power Principles for Getting Your Business into High GearDo you know the #1 reason why most businesses fail and why you could become a fatal statistic as well?The answer is .. Is Your Company A Member Of The Community? One particularly hot south Texas day, I was making a routine sales call to a family Mexican restaurant. Angela, with whom I had an appointment, is a real "hands on" lady. Name the Top Cable Network When Cable began as Community Antenna Television in 1948, all it did was collect over the air TV signals and send them down a cable.When Cable networks began, so did Cable advertising. Web Site Marketing: 10 Little Known Upsell Strategies That Will Magnify Your Profits What is Upselling?It means pre-selling any additional features of your products and services even before your customers make a purchase.For example, let's say you're selling a computer with a 15" monitor for $600. Time for A Marketing Tune-up If you have been in business any length of time, I can assure you that habits, not conscious thought, are guiding your marketing actions. Many business people are great optimists, or they probably wouldn't have gotten into the game to begin with. Creating And Maintaining A Mailing List Starting to collect proper information to create a mailing list is not difficult, once you know how to proceed. In this report, uses for mailing lists are briefly described. Five Mistakes Absolutely Guaranteed to Drive Away Your Best Clients We all work hard to attract even one paying client. In fact, we work hard to attract serious inquiries. 10 Elements Every Direct Mail Piece Should Have Don't want your direct mail to end up in the trash with the rest of the unread mail? Studies show an effective direct mail campaign should draw a .5 to 1 percent response. Roping In Loyal Customers While Making An Extra Profit! You've probably bought a book or two at one of the major chain bookstores. When you're checking out, you get asked if you have the "discount card. How to Create a Countdown Marketing Calendar Just like there are reverse dictionaries, there is a reason to create a count down calendar. A count down calendar starts with Franklin Covey's philosophy, "start with the end in mind. The Real Marketing Genius I spend a lot of my time reading books and listening to tapes about business and marketing. I guess that's understandable. Turbocharge New Sales with a Marketing Database What is the most valuable asset your company owns? Inventory? Equipment? Employees? If you've got customers, your number one asset is your customer list.You've heard the old adage, "It's 5 times easier to sell an existing customer than to find a new one. Mission Statement Impossible Dant dant da da dant dant da da. Dant dant da da dant dant da da. Three Ways to Put Fresh Spins on Old Marketing Concepts Are you struggling to find a new twist for old advertising or marketing campaigns? If you're a small business owner or a copywriter/coach/other creative professional, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Having to come up with new ideas for a long-term client (or even your own business) can be overwhelming. Fern Reisss PublishingGame.com: Achieve Media Attention for Your Business Do you want to be quoted by the national press on a daily basis? (How much would that be worth to your business?) In the past six months, I've been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, Entrepreneur, The Associated Press, PBS, Voice of America, Family Circle, Glamour, Redbook, Self, Health, Prevention, Parents, Parenting, Women's World, First for Women, Newsday, Newsweek, Salon, In Touch Weekly--and even The National Enquirer. In fact, I've been quoted in over 100 prestigious U. The Most Powerful Marketing Weapon Ever Invented It was probably first discovered out there in the caves or wherever else the history of mankind begun. And yet this weapon has been used so sparingly over the centuries. Loyalty Cards Systems - Beware, Some Should Be Avoided Recently, I discussed a loyalty card system with a vendor who was selling quite a number of his systems to restaurants. I was shocked to discover the lack of detailed information that this vendor catered for, and the opportunities the system he provided squandered.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
