While on-boarding a new client recently, I carried out a competitor review. It was an analysis and comparison of what their competitors were doing well, where their press coverage ran and what kind of social media presence they had.
It’s always an interesting exercise. While there are obvious similarities, I’m always surprised by the variety of quality, cadence and consistency delivered by any given business across external communications.
So, why should you, as a business leader, founder or manager care what your competitors are doing? Well, it’s a great way to check you’re doing all the right things and not missing out on opportunities or prospective customers. It’s a useful litmus test to see how you measure up – and more importantly – how you could improve.
Great competitors elevate our work. They force us to level up and deliver better or, at the very least, an equal level of service. I’m frustrated by the number of people I’ve met recently who are exclusionist – rather than inclusive. Excluding competitors or sticking your head in the sand ignoring them just kicks the can down the road. At some point, if they’re better than you, they’ll take your customers.
At the very least, it’s worth keeping an eye on them. If you’re too busy for that sort of nonsense. Don’t fret. There are quick and easy ways to check out what your competitors are up to – which include:
Follow them on social media
It’s a no brainer really. Why would you not follow your competitors on social media? You get the latest information straight to your phone. Read, watch or scroll past at will, but it’s accessible information at your fingertips. At worst you’ll lose a few seconds of scrolling; at best you’ll learn something new or pick up a good idea.
Sign up to their newsletters
Some companies share regular newsletters – either ad hoc or monthly. Again, it doesn’t take much time to sign up for a newsletter or quickly scroll through. It’s always interesting to see what information they consider to be important. Who are they talking to? Who are they working with? Whose attention are they after?
Set up a Google alert
It’s useful to see where competitors are sharing their news. They’ll likely have favoured publications. Are you also featured regularly? If not, why not? How can you change this? By setting up a Google alert, you can be sure to see any key press coverage about both your company and your competitors.
Also keep an eye on the content they share. Is it news, comment or thought-leadership articles? Do they say the same thing or use the same case studies – or do they change it up?
Look at the comments section
It's useful on platforms like LinkedIn to read the comments and look at likes. Now algorithms regularly mess with how many eyeballs see content, but it’s a good steer to gauge how popular the posts are to followers who, by definition, are already interested in what they have to say.
Do it better
Pick one thing they’re doing better than you – and do it better than them. It could be anything from posting more regularly on social media channels to creating bespoke video content of clients giving positive testimonials.
Maintain a ‘test and learn’ mentality at all times. What can you learn from your competitors and why they’re succeeding? They’re experiencing the same issues and challenges you are – so think about what knowledge is useful to you. What can you learn and improve on?
While business leaders are often busy keeping on top of the day job – it’s important now and again to look up and sense check what you’re doing with the outside world. Competitors, while they might be a thorn in your side, come with a raft of information.
With a few small actions that take only minutes, you might just learn something, improve your business or even gain new customers.
Victoria Fairclough is a PR & Communications Consultant at Fair Communications. For more information, please visit: www.faircommunications.co.uk
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