80: Identify Competition And Increase Sales Whether You Are Starting A Business
80: Identify Competition And Increase Sales Whether You Are Starting A Business, You Are Self-Employed, A Solopreneur, Entrepreneur, Mompreneur, Business Owner, Side Hustler, Freelancer, Bookkeeper, Virtual Assistant, Or VA
Learning about your competition will help you to gain sales by making sure your product goes above and beyond what your competition has to offer. Competition isn’t bad; in fact, understanding precisely who your competition is will help you determine if your business is on the right path to success. In today’s podcast episode, we will cover who your competitors are, why you should stay on top of what your competitors are doing, and how you can create your product or service so much more valuable to your customers than your competition offers. When you monitor your competition, you can easily find gaps in the market, new products or services you can offer, and ways you can increase your customer service so that your product or service is not just another comparable in the market. You will be able to offer a product or service that aligns with the needs of your clients or customers that they will ultimately select your business over any other. Understanding your competition is key whether you are a self-employed individual, a solopreneur, entrepreneur, mompreneur, freelancer, small business owner, a remote, virtual, online, or in-house bookkeeper, or a virtual assistant or VA. You need to know what your competition is doing so that you can minimize your risk as well as outshine your competition. These tips are essential whether you are using a computerized software system like QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, or FreshBooks for your business finances; or doing your bookkeeping manually with an Excel spreadsheet or even a Google Document…
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Show Notes:
Learning about your competition will help you to gain sales by making sure your product goes above and beyond what your competition has to offer. Competition isn’t bad; in fact, understanding precisely who your competition is will help you determine if your business is on the right path to success. In today’s podcast episode, we will cover who your competitors are, why you should stay on top of what your competitors are doing, and how you can create your product or service so much more valuable to your customers than your competition offers. When you monitor your competition, you can easily find gaps in the market, new products or services you can offer, and ways you can increase your customer service so that your product or service is not just another comparable in the market. You will be able to offer a product or service that aligns with the needs of your clients or customers that they will ultimately select your business over any other. Understanding your competition is key whether you are a self-employed individual, a solopreneur, entrepreneur, mompreneur, freelancer, small business owner, a remote, virtual, online, or in-house bookkeeper, or a virtual assistant or VA. You need to know what your competition is doing so that you can minimize your risk as well as outshine your competition. These tips are essential whether you are using a computerized software system like QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, or FreshBooks for your business finances; or doing your bookkeeping manually with an Excel spreadsheet or even a Google Document…
Welcome Back…Identifying your competition and staying on top of what your competitors are doing is essential so that you can create strategies to maintain your current customers as well as gain additional new customers.
I want to start by saying that competition isn’t bad. If you are just getting started with your business and you start looking into your competition, you want to see that there are already businesses that are in your field. If there was no activity, this might mean that the market isn’t ready for your product, or there is just no desire for it. If the demand is low, you could be taking a significant risk by tapping the market. On the other hand, if you find there is a lot of competition, this may be a perfect time to look for ways to find gaps to fill in the market or create a new way to meet the needs of unhappy customers.
You may find that you have direct and indirect competition in your market. Direct competition would be whenever you have a business that offers the same services or products that your business offers. Indirect competition is when you and another business compete for the same customer’s needs but in different ways. This may show up, for example, if you have a restaurant, but there is a nearby grocery store that sells prepared food as well. You are not both restaurants, but you do market to people who are looking for a meal. You may also find competition when you are a business competing for a customer’s money in a market where others are competing for the same customer in a completely different market. Don’t think you only need to keep an eye on your direct competition. By closely monitoring what other businesses are doing, this can help you build your strategy and continue to grow your customer base.
There are many different opportunities in which you can identify your competition. One of the easiest would be to do a simple search online. When you do this, you can quickly see the search results and who your top competitors are as well as any paid ads that businesses are running. You can search local business directories, associations, and your local chamber of commerce, and you can even attend trade shows to see what your competition is doing as well as how they are marketing. You can set up Google alerts for your market as well as any relating topics so that you can stay informed of any new updates. Don’t forget about talking to your current customers and asking them why they have selected you over any other competitors. These customers chose you and your business for a reason, so make sure you are doubling down on what is working in your business already.
Once you know who your competition is, you want to find out more about who they are, their values, what they are doing, and what types of customers they are attracting or who they are targeting. You’ll want to learn about their products or services, prices, discounts, if they have any loyalty programs, how they deliver their product or services, if they have a sales funnel, and how they advertise to their potential customers. You can also read your competition’s reviews to see if there are additional needs or wants they would like to have fulfilled. One example of this research would be if you see that your competition is offering free shipping to their customers, you may find that you need to do the same so that you don’t lose a customer just because the customer doesn’t want to pay for shipping.
Look into how your competition is delivering content to their audience. Which social media platforms are they using, how often do they post, and how many followers do they have? Do they have an email list? How often do they connect with their current or potential customers? Is there a way that you can connect with customers and add value for them that your competition isn’t doing?
Once you have gathered all this information about who your competition is and how they engage with their customers, it is time for you to use this information for potential opportunities for your business. This is the time to really make your product or service outshine your competition. You want to find gaps or needs in the market that you can fill or new and unique products or services that the customers want. Think about how you can offer your products or services in a better way to give more value to your customers. Find your weaknesses and turn them into strengths so that you have a competitive advantage and you know exactly what your unique value proposition is. Know what your risks are and where you can carve a portion of the market out for your business. This is how you will create your strategic plan. A plan where your customers will easily see the value you have created for them in your business, and they won’t see a need to compare your product or services to any other business before making a decision. They will know that your solution is so valuable to them that it isn’t even comparable to other businesses.
Make sure that you continue to monitor your competition on a continuous basis. Don’t think you only need to do this work when you are just starting out with your business. You want to ensure that your business and your products and services continue to evolve and meet the demands your customers are seeking. You may find that your competition has started to pivot or has added additional marketing streams. You want to make sure you stay up to date with any industry trends. As time goes on, your business may need to pivot as well to remain relevant to your customers. It is extremely important to keep an eye on the needs and wants of your ever-changing customers, and you want to be the one to supply them with cutting-edge and most sought-after products and services. If you need help focusing on your customer and identifying your competition so that you can increase your sales, I’m here to help. As a Certified Public Accountant, Business Strategist, and Business Coach, I help business owners like you reach your next level of success and grow your business. I work with business owners who need help seeing the potential in their business, deciding which tasks they need to do next, and ensuring they are taking action to achieve the possibilities in their business. They have a clear path to accomplish their goals and increase profits. Their achievement rate is much higher because I am there to hold them accountable. I’m inviting you to schedule a free consultation session where we can go over any questions you have regarding your passion and business strategies. You can go to www.FinancialAdventure.com/Contact-Us and schedule a time that works well for you. During your consultation session, we’ll dig deep into where you currently are in your business and where you’d like to see yourself and your business in the future. We’ll also go over my MASTER Your Business Foundation Diagnostic Assessment so that you can fully understand your strengths in the foundation your business is built on. I am looking forward to talking with you soon. I’ll post links to these and other valuable resources for business owners and bookkeepers where you are listening to this podcast and in the show notes.
And, you know I’m going to ask…what’s at least one thing you will take away from this episode that will help your business succeed and grow your bottom line? If you need some accountability, join our PRIVATE Facebook community and post your action item, we’d love to support you.
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