Does your business currently use competitive intelligence and analysis? Competitive intelligence and analysis is extremely important to business success in today?s highly technological world. It allows you to truly understand your customer and to connect with those customers you have not yet reached. Why do you need a competitive intelligence program to succeed?
To develop brand loyalty
Branding is necessary for business success. Branding encourages customer and brand loyalty. It allows customers to recognize you and to remember you when they require your type of service. Successful branding requires many different factors and a competitive intelligence agency can help with that. To brand, you really have to understand your customer. In return, your customer really has to understand you, the business. Approximately 64% of people cite shared values as the main reason they have a relationship with a brand. However, brand loyalty also requires great customer service and experience.
Attracting new customers currently unreached
Most businesses will find that they attract the same type of customer over and over again. That is because it can be extremely difficult to branch into a new customer base. It could also mean that current marketing strategies are only reaching the current customer base. Because marketing is supposed to reach new customers, marketing changes are often needed. How can competitive intelligence and analysis help with this?
Because competitive intelligence and analysis analyzes current customers, marketing departments have a better idea of who their strategies are currently reaching. They can then look at the demographics and spending habits of the markets that they are currently not reaching. For example, the internet has become an important tool for marketing today?s businesses. As of January 2014, 74% of online adults use social media sites. If you are not currently utilizing social media sites to their full extent, you are likely missing out on an entire group of potential customers.
To increase customer experience
Most business owners understand the importance of a great customer experience. However, many do not know how to successfully achieve this at high rates. Competitive intelligence and analysis looks at different aspects of the customer buying experience and analyzes it for the level of experience. A lot of business owners rely on customer reviews to establish brand satisfaction, but 78% of consumers have bailed on a transaction or not made an intended purchase because of a poor service experience. There is no data telling the business owner why this transaction was cancelled.
Customer satisfaction survey questions can be very important in understanding the customers? experience. However, customer satisfaction surveys should be given to all customers, even those who never went through with their purchase. These customers? feedback may be more important than those who did go through with the purchase. These feedback questionnaires allow the business to understand where they are failing and what changes need to be made to increase overall customer satisfaction.
Product development
Designing a product and then selling it is not enough for business success. A successful product is one that is ever changing. If you never change the product, customers will never return. If you never expand and update the product, you will never reach new target markets. Product development should occur on a daily basis and it should be an important part of the overall business plan. Additionally, competitive intelligence and analysis should be used to make changes to products based on customer feedback.
Competitive intelligence and analysis is a newer method for business success. This type of analysis allows business owners to see where they are succeeding, and where they are failing. They can connect with their current customers and see what customers they are missing. This type of feedback can be especially helpful for increasing business profits and pushing the business into success.