One important step before you start a business is doing business competition analysis / competitor analysis. You should review the literature of the competitors, to see how they represent their business and what kind of public image built. Business literature often includes mission statement and also identify specific products and services they are. James W. Hart, a marketing expert, offers tips competition analysis that includes the steps as follows:
1. Play as customers with enough money. Give a competitor in your area and speak with a representative from the company as you are the potential prospects who are looking for information. You can ask the formula 5WH (Who, What, When, Where, Why and How) to provide intelligent questions and get answers about the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. One of the most important things you need to successfully do is make their sales & information to send them to your package, where the package will be explained about their products and services. Your competitors' business literature will tell you in detail about their public image, and besides that, you can learn the strengths and weaknesses of products and services they offer in detail. Make sure you also learn how they handle calls from customers, processing information requests, and how long the inquiry finally came to your hands. Can you offer a communication system is better? The appearance of their business card? These small things like this can give a picture of the strengths and weaknesses of your own, so it can be determined whether you can compete with them or not. Are you going to compete on price or better service?
2. Just give competitors outside your area. You can then call the company which are similar to your (or your reply is planned) outside your area, where you are not considered as their rivals. As such, they do not feel threatened when you ask questions. It is useful if you can speak with key personnel from similar companies, for example in the other provinces. When you talk to competitors far away like this, your approach should be more "straight-forward". You can tell the owner or managernya, that you are thinking to open a similar business and expect to enter / input from them. Often they will be happy to provide input about their industry, business as a whole and more free information to you. Even so, you need to be careful not to spend too much time in question, limit your phone conversations 10 to 15 minutes maximum. The best way is to think about the questions in advance, and write it on paper, so you can ask nicely. Thus you will look like a professional, and if one day you need to call again, they will receive. If you sound like an idiot when talking on the phone, they may not receive your call again. The key is to not waste time.
3. Finally you can do "in-field competition analysis" by doing telemarketing to prospects and ask if they know your competitors, had a business relationship with them, and others. By doing this, you also do prekualifikasi of potential prospects who never do business with your competitors, and open opportunities for sales. In addition, when you are out doing sales calls, you can perform the same way when talking with prospects and you can find out what they liked and what they do not like about your competitors. Once again, you can open the possibility of sales by identifying points of differentiation you against competitors.
By doing the steps above and phone-sharpen your skills, you will certainly get a lot of useful information about the business you're considering.
source: infopeluangusaha.com
