The Importance of Competitive Analysis

[greeneagle]

We are in the process of launching our new Site by the end of the month (I Hope)!

In the process, I just wanted to toss out a "seed thought" and see what sprouted:

"Competitive Analysis in any marketing or advertising medium is absolute necessary in the value provision equation."

Copyright Mountain Eagle Marketing 2004 - All Rights Reserved.

Do you start with "Competitive Analysis from initial client contact?

Ken

[Jason Tor]

Ken, here is part of an article from.
http://www10.americanexpress.com/sif...1,15565,00.asp
"Effective Competitive Analysis

For your small business to succeed, you need to know almost as much about your competitors as you do about your own company and customers. Unfortunately, many small business owners make the mistake of waiting until a competitor has opened up shop across the street and is cutting into profits to find out who and what they’re up against.

A competitive analysis allows you to identify your competitors and evaluate their respective strengths and weaknesses. By knowing the actions of your competitors, you will have a better understanding of what products or services you should offer; how you can market them effectively; and how you can position your business.

Competitive analysis is an ongoing process. You should always be gathering information about your competitors. Look at their Web sites. Read their product literature and brochures. Get your hands on their products. See how they present themselves at trade shows. Read about them in your industry’s trade publications. Talk to your customers to see how they feel about competitive products or services"

The rest of the article is very informative, check it out.

p.s. I've been super busy, I'll send you a message with the details.

Jason Tor

[greeneagle]

Hello Jason!,

Good article - and I agree completely. In fact I ran across an interesting "speal" on a major "Search Engine" Site the other day that suggested it would probably take around a year and 100 pages now to create an informative Site with sufficient content depth and uniqueness to beat out the competition. That scenario doesn't leave much room for 5-10 page digital company brochures anymore for anyone wanting to create a valuable web presence.

In fact I, almost have to agree somewhat reluctantly, because the only Site I have that has single keywords as #1 on all the majors is a Site with over 100 pages. Their business has gone "mad" since we turned them around in the last couple months. It's amazing how much influence you can have on a client's business!

Hope you are doing well, haven't seen you around in a while! Good to hear from you again. I hope that the PR5 launch on your new Site helped stimulate business. I PM'd you about News Releases a while back and didn't hear in return - figured you were caught up with clients.. PM me when you have a few moments break from the clutter! I'd like to discuss a few things with you.

We will be doing some "News Release" and Article Submission "Blasts" to lists of multiple sites soon as I can drag 2 clients along. New products, patents etc... "let's get behind the 8-ball guys"... You have material.. You know it can be a real pain in the ass dragging them along, even when occupying "proven status", everyone is so busy. Let's talk "News Release" and "Article Submission/syndication" and results when you catch your breath.

Balancing this issue, we only have one client (on maintenance) that we need to be concerned with the possibility of outstripping his delivery capabilities.. The saga goes on...

Best Regards,

Ken