7 Strategies to Extract Valuable Insights from Online Competitor Analysis for Businesses in India
 

1. Introduction

If you are considering starting your own venture, conducting competitor research is essential for identifying market gaps, refining your concept, and determining an effective business model.

After solidifying your overall business concept, it's crucial to establish your brand positioning, evaluate the most effective methods to deliver your services, and determine the optimal strategies for promoting your offerings. 

Once your business is established, it's beneficial to consistently monitor your main competitors and conduct a thorough review every six months. This practice will assist you in addressing any emerging challenges and discovering new opportunities for growth.

In this discussion, we will explore the types of competitor information that are essential for your business and how to effectively utilize free digital tools to your advantage.

Spending countless hours on competitor analysis can be overwhelming, so this structure will guide you on what to focus on and where to direct your attention. We also highlight some common pitfalls to steer clear of. 

2. Identify your competitors. 

Begin by identifying your direct and indirect competitors. If you have already completed this step, take the time to verify if any new competitors have emerged in the market. 

Direct competitors offer the same products or services as you, likely in a similar manner, leading customers to compare your offerings directly before making a choice. For instance, this could be two sit-down restaurants or two gyms located in the same vicinity. 
Indirect competitors offer alternative solutions that, while distinct, satisfy the same customer needs. For instance, a take-away service serves as an indirect competitor to a restaurant. While it offers a different experience and menu, both fulfill the customer's requirement for dinner. An online workout subscription service might serve as an indirect competitor to a personal trainer. Being aware of indirect competitors and monitoring their activities can be beneficial, but it is generally more advantageous to conduct thorough research on your direct competitors. 
Recognising your rivals 
Make a list of the direct competitors you are already familiar with. 

To discover additional competitors you may not be aware of: 

Begin by looking up your familiar competitors on Google, and then observe which other businesses show up in the search rankings, advertisements, or in the related searches section at the bottom of your search results. 
Likewise, conduct a search on Google for terms associated with your product or service and observe which businesses show up in the search results and advertisements.
If your business operates locally, look up your business type on Google Maps. 
Conduct searches for relevant keywords or familiar competitors on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn to identify who shows up.
Social groups and forums serve as valuable resources for information. Explore Facebook groups or browse through community forums like Quora or Reddit. Here, you will frequently come across inquiries such as ‘Can anyone suggest...’ or ‘How do I...’, with various products, services, or companies typically referenced in the responses.
Limit your focus to 10 to 15 competitors for deeper analysis at this stage. Select around five businesses that closely align with your offerings, along with a mix of competitors of varying sizes and locations, featuring diverse product combinations and strategies. 

What should you do if there are no direct competitors in your market? 
This could be a positive sign, indicating a vast market opportunity and the potential for you to introduce something truly innovative. 

Conversely, it suggests that you might need to invest considerable effort in convincing customers of the necessity of your product or service. Therefore, it's essential to thoughtfully evaluate whether this is a goal you can realistically accomplish.
 

3. What strategies do competitors use for self-promotion?

After compiling a list of your nearest competitors, the initial step is to examine their online presence and the level of effort they invest in their marketing strategies. 

What is their online presence? 
Begin by evaluating their online presence. Check if they possess a website, social media profiles for their business, a Google Places listing, a mobile application, or a store on platforms like Amazon or eBay, among others.
Take a moment to explore each one to understand their online presence and the way they showcase their products. This can be beneficial for you: 
Understand how they have established their brand presence and what they highlight as their unique selling points. This insight can assist you in crafting your own value propositions to set your offerings apart. 
Observe the kind of content that resonates with their customers - you can gain insights by exploring their social media platforms and noting which posts attract the highest number of comments and likes. 
What strategies are competitors using to draw in customers and encourage purchases? 
Exploring how competitors showcase their offerings online can provide you with valuable insights for your own marketing strategies and help you attract customers effectively. Check if they are utilizing digital advertising methods such as PPC or Facebook ads, engaging in email marketing, optimizing for SEO, or promoting on social media platforms. This can assist you in formulating your advertising strategy. It's important to examine the kind of messaging they employ to promote themselves in these advertisements. 

In the past, it was straightforward to observe the advertising strategies of competitors through offline brochures, leaflets, and press advertisements. Digital marketing is often highly focused, making it easy to overlook the underlying dynamics at play. Here are four things to explore. 

Evaluate their digital advertisements: a resource such as Moat can be beneficial for discovering instances of digital display advertising that competitors (typically larger companies) have executed previously. Currently, at no expense, you can easily look up the name of your competitor and hover over any advertisement that shows up to discover the dates it was active. By creating an account, you can utilize the tool to establish alerts for new advertisements from particular competitors. 
Consider the significance of SEO (organic search) and PPC investment: SpyFu is a tool that allows you to conduct basic searches on competitors at no cost, providing a general overview of their monthly SEO clicks, the ratio of organic to paid traffic, and an estimated monthly PPC budget. It also highlights competitors for both organic and paid keywords, assisting you in recognizing rivals you may not have considered. It provides examples of various PPC ads, and while setting up an account is necessary for more in-depth information, it remains beneficial for a preliminary assessment. 
Connect with them on social media: It’s quite simple to engage with and follow competitors on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. This enables you to observe the content they share and the way their audience engages with it. 
Discover their approach to email marketing: Just register as a subscriber to receive their newsletter updates. 

4. What methods do they use to provide their product or service? 

Next, analyzing the overall business delivery of competitors can assist you in figuring out how to present your offerings if you're just starting out or evaluate how your systems stack up against theirs. When we say ‘deliver,’ we refer not only to the physical dispatch of a product but also to the entire operational process involved. Take a look at: 

They assist customers in choosing the appropriate product or service by offering valuable information. This includes utilizing detailed descriptions, engaging imagery, informative videos, relevant case studies, and authentic testimonials.
The process of completing a transaction involves accepting an order and processing the payment. 
Their approach to delivering goods and services to customers encompasses both physical and digital products, including relevant physical delivery methods. 
What type of follow-up is conducted to collect feedback and explore cross-selling opportunities?
Sometimes, adopting a customer's perspective and experiencing the service firsthand is the most effective approach. 

Pay attention to the digital tools they utilize, including the platform their website is constructed on, whether they implement online booking or ticketing systems, how payments are handled, and what methods are employed for gathering customer feedback. If you discover that the process is seamless, it can assist you in narrowing down digital platforms to explore on your own, ultimately saving you time in evaluating every available option. 
 

5. How do the prices of competitors stack up against each other?

It is crucial to analyze the price range of comparable products and services in your market to understand customer expectations regarding pricing. Be aware if competitors are engaging in a price war, as this could indicate a challenging market for new entrants to achieve profitability without significant scale. 

Be attentive to the various methods of price presentation. For instance, when selling online, a competitor may appear to have lower prices initially, but they might not offer free delivery, and return shipping could incur additional costs. 

If you have been operating your business for some time, it’s important to monitor competitor pricing and discounts, as their strategies may influence your sales performance. 
 

6. What are the strengths and weaknesses of competitors? 

While browsing through a competitor’s polished website, it’s tempting to think that everything is flawless. Nonetheless, only a handful of businesses manage to achieve perfection for their customers. 

Exploring this can be beneficial as it may enable you to rethink your business strategies to steer clear of those challenges.

For instance, if the customers of a rival: 

If you're facing issues with unresponsiveness, ensure that you have the appropriate resources in place for effective customer service. 
It appears there may be some confusion regarding what is included with a product or service. You can leverage this insight to create more effective descriptions on your website. 
If there’s a concern regarding quality, consider not stocking that item or offering that service in an alternative manner.
If customers frequently express dissatisfaction with a particular feature or indicate a desire for more options, this presents an opportunity for you to enhance your product or service. 
Review platforms are perfect for gathering insights on this, including Trustpilot, Feefo, or simply Google Reviews, which show up in the panel on the right side when you search for a business on Google. Glassdoor can be beneficial for understanding the perspectives of current and former employees regarding the company. 

Additionally, check a competitor's social media platforms to identify if any customers have expressed concerns there. 

While observing customer feedback, also pay attention to the speed at which competitors address complaints, queries, or compliments, along with their responses, as there may be valuable insights for your business to consider. 

However, it's important to keep in mind that review sites may not always be reliable, and certain reviews should be approached with caution. 
 

7. Steering clear of common mistakes 

While conducting competitor analysis is a wise approach, it's important to be mindful of common pitfalls: 

Thoroughly analyzing all potential competitors. It’s common to get caught up in research to the extent that you experience ‘analysis paralysis’ and delay launching your business. 
Letting feelings of inadequacy or an obsession with perfection take over. It's natural for well-established competitors to appear more polished than you on your launch day, but don't allow that to undermine your confidence in your own abilities and skills. Think back to when those competitors first entered the market; they were far from what they have become today, yet that hasn’t hindered their growth. 
Assuming that every strategy employed by a competitor is effective. When you observe something about a competitor, consider it as a reflection of their approach to business. Numerous enterprises engage in practices that may not be the most effective or lucrative, yet due to various pressures, they often find it challenging to implement changes. What works for them may not necessarily be the best fit for your unique situation. Keep in mind that if you decide to try something similar, it could be wise to conduct a small-scale test within your business to determine if it suits your needs. 
If you sense that you're starting to get caught in one of these traps, redirect your attention and consider everything from the viewpoint of your customers instead. In the end, the desires and requirements of your future customers must be the focal point of all your efforts.


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