[bctt tweet=”Never, ever, lose sight of your business game because of the competition” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”]
Competition is everywhere. These days, everything is basically a competition in business, from online DIY blogs and vlogs giving clients all the information for the same services you render to the new enemy in the block rendering the exact same services or product your offer.
On the bright side however, competition can be healthy for your business and customers too (they literally pray for it). Every customer loves to have a wide range of options and the universe is big enough to accommodate you and a million others to do business.
So rather than putting all your energy in prayers for your competitor(sss) to fold up pretty soon, it’ll be much better for you to start pouring all that energy into keeping your business relevant and on top the lighthouse, and here’s how:
First things first, avoiding irrelevance is the first major step to take in staying relevant
So at every point, always halt and ask yourself (with or without the competition) if your business is still relevant. You should also ask if your relevance is slowly fading out. This helps you understand and reinvent your business better to fit the changing times.
Keep your eyes on the game:
Never let your competitors get you all jerky and stuff. Stay focused on your business, consolidate on your strengths, and work on strengthening your weaknesses. Think about:
- What you can be doing to ace up your product and service
- How to top up your customer service (veryyy key)
- How to improve on your quality and business value
- How to expand and reach more markets and more people
Build integrity for your business and keep it that way. Say what you have and offer what you can give, this will keep your customers coming back to you even after checking out a new competition. Never, ever, lose sight of your game because of the competition.
Do a Lil’ Checking Out: Eyes on your game all right, but a lil’ spying never hurt anybody.
Take a moment to check out your competitors, do some quick research, find out all you can about them especially their greatest strength and weakness. Leverage on their weakness and see what you can do about their strength.
However, don’t panic and copycat the enemy in desperation. Don’t go slashing your prices when you clearly don’t need to, because your competitor has done so.
Do Not Be The Last To Trend:
Time waits for no one and so does technology. Whether it’s a start-up or full grown business, don’t stay sleeping on your achievements and get left behind. Be innovative, research on the latest technology, (and the ones to come) and constantly build your brand to fit in before you walk into a Kodak moment.
This also involves understanding that diverse locations have diverse customer needs. Know your customers and know what is in trend for them, like if they more concerned about service or quality, or price.
Spice Up Your Marketing Strategy:
Constantly make an effort to spice up your marketing strategy. It could be with a re-branded logo or a new tag line, loyalty discounts and promotions on your services and products, collaborating with other products or services related to yours, anything to customizing your bottle with individual consumers’ names (we know who did this one).
#MotherlandMogul key word: Keep it spiced up, don’t hang on stale strategy (even if it was once a major hit).
Take Care Of Your In-House:
Treat your employees great and make them understand the goal, cause employees can make or mar your business, sista. You don’t want your employees telling your clients (through words or actions) why patronizing your competitor might be a better idea.
We know the competition can be fierce sista, but so are you. So, put on some stilettos, and get to work; today is for good business *raises glass*