Using Competitor Intelligence and Analysis

The most common use of CI is when looking to expand your business or protect your assets.

When looking to expand it is important to have a strong understanding of the market and potential competition. You do not want to commit to an area only to then realise that another company dominates there, or that there is no need for your service.

It is also necessary to protect the assets your company has, which means staying ahead of the competition and not revealing your innovations. This will ensure that your business remains the market leader for competitive bid management.

Active competitive intelligence

Active competitive intelligence focuses on competitors and the market. This can be anything from the number of competitors and their market share to the service requirement in a specific area.

When looking to expand you need to be sure that your business can be successful within the chosen market. Analysing this data allows you to make an informed and profitable decision.

Defensive competitive intelligence

Defensive competitive intelligence incorporates the protection of assets, Public Representation, threat warning and the reduction of expenditures.

Using defensive CI helps protect your company from potential threats such as expanding competitors and inefficient budgeting. It is also the process by which you manage your public image through news media and online resources.

You must be careful not to release information that will give a competitor an advantage over you. Any innovations should be closely guarded secrets.

The financial aspect of defensive CI also allows you to spot areas of your business which can be further improved and optimised. Through analysing your strengths and weaknesses you can improve your business across the board.

Competitive intelligence and tendering

We often complete competitor intelligence reports for companies in relation to tendering for both public and private sector contracts.

CI provides information on expanding sections of the market including prior notice of the release of contracts along with competition within that area.

Many businesses looking to expand into other regions or countries benefit from this service through analysing the potential success of such a move. We have worked with international companies bidding into the UK and provided detailed reporting on competition and the chances of success when bidding.

You can read one of our case studies HERE.

For more information on how competitor intelligence can help your company, contact us free on 0800 612 5563 or email info@executivecompass.co.uk.