If you’re running a business, then you’ll be well aware we’re facing difficult financial times. Costs are going up for basics like heating and electricity, making it more expensive to simply open an office or shop in the morning. And those same costs are squeezing your customers or clients, leaving them with less money to spend with you.
These circumstances inevitably lead to a heating up of the competition between rival businesses: the amount of money up for grabs has diminished and that means you have to fight harder for your share. Today we’re taking a look at what your competitor strategy has to deliver in times of crisis.
Clear Brand Vision
One of the most important things you can do to help in this newly competitive environment is know what your customers see in your business. It’s a fact of life that, although you put your money and effort into branding exercises ultimately what your brand is, your business’ public identity is set by the public, not you. So you need to go to them to understand what your unique strengths are perceived to be.
This is important for many different reasons. When competition gets tougher it’s important to differentiate yourself, to be able to lean into what people see as the unique things about your business and clearly communicate why they should pick you above others. Similarly, you also need clear sight on what might make you a less attractive prospect so you can plan how to change that perception without undermining your brand.
A change from being a high price, high quality brand to a cheap and cheerful one is hard for customers to swallow, but you can emphasise the value of your proposition in other ways, with ongoing support, lifetime guarantees and promises of efficiency and return on investment.
Understanding Your Competitors
It’s equally important to understand the businesses you’re competing with. What do your customers think of them? What gaps do they leave in the market for you to exploit? And what are they likely to do in response to the rising costs and falling revenues?
A mixture of market research and competitor wargaming can help understand what you’re contending with, and plan around the likely moves your competitors could make. One of the most important resources you can have is space: space for your new product or sale to shine, space to stand apart from the competition, space to shine. Understanding your competitors allows you to identify that space, in the market, in the calendar, in your customer’s perceptions, and step into it.
