Why Competition is Good for Business

Entrepreneurs just starting out often fear their competition and that’s a normal reaction but while it might sound strange, competition is actually good for business.  In fact, it’s exactly what drives successful brands.  When you’re not challenged, you might find yourself complacent and lacking innovation.  It’s important to realize that there are other businesses out there that might be doing things better and so by keeping a close eye on them, you can actually learn from them so let’s talk about how entrepreneurs can, in fact, do that.

The first thing to realize is that competition promotes creative thinking.  If you’re working in a crowded market, you can’t succeed by doing what everyone else does.  Studying the competition can show you what they might be doing wrong and therefore, enable you to do it better which will distinguish your company from all the rest.  Creative thinking is what fosters success.

Keeping an eye on your competition enables you to provide better customer service.  It is often rare that your idea is completely unique and so others out there might be focusing on the same product or service.  Look at how your competitors treat their customers and come up with innovative ways to do it better, whether it is through inventive and original marketing plans or other unique ideas.

As I mentioned, it’s easy to get complacent but paying attention to the competition will keep you on your toes and push you out of your comfort zone and drive you to be different than all the rest.  Competition forces you to constantly review your strategies and keep an eye on your strengths and weakness and allows you to make both better.  Competition will only make you try harder in the long-run.

Paying attention to the competition can provide valuable insight into the current state of the market you are trying to target.  It also helps you see what is and is not working. 

Competition validates your ideas.  By paying attention to it, you can garner a better idea as to what other companies are coming up with similar products and services.  Competition can make you see whether or not what you’re offering to your customers is unique or not.

Keeping a close eye on the competition forces focus and differentiation with others.  Without competition, it’s easy to lose focus on your core business model and core customers.  Competition forces you to think differently and think outside the box.  It pushes your company and your ideas to be the very best they can be.  In essence, competition helps you build a better business.

Another key benefit to focusing on the competition is that it helps you identify potential threats to your business.  The best way to learn what does and doesn’t work is by paying close attention to your competition.  If you see them edging into your space or copying your ideas, you can work to rebrand yourself and make your ideas more unique so they stand out in the marketplace.  By looking at the competition’s game plan, it will allow you to decipher what plans and strategies you offer could be detrimental to your business.

While this might sound strange often the competition can take customers who are not a good fit for your business out of your hair.  You can’t please everyone and if you try over and over again to target a market and find it’s not working, then it’s best to just let it go so you focus all your attention on the customers that want your products so that you can service them better and maintain their loyalty and build mutual trust with them.  Let your counterparts pull their hair out trying to please people that simply can’t be pleased.

Competition makes you more inclined to vigorously seek knowledge and research your target audience.  As I said, the competition keeps you on your toes and so you must be knowledgeable about what is going on in your industry.  Industries not only change long-term but they change daily and so you must keep up with and be aware of that change at all times and your competition will drive you to do that.

If you have employees, competition drives them to work harder.  They bring previous experience with them as well and then you have an extra set of eyes keeping a watch on your competitors.

Lastly and most importantly, competition allows for business development.  All the experiences you garner by paying attention to your competitors are the best tools to help you develop your brand.  You can always be learning so never lose sight of the competition because they can indeed teach you something that will allow you to reach your own goals for your business, become more successful in the long-run and eventually surpass them.

So what have we learned here today?  Do you share the same ideas on competition being good for business or do you feel it’s not?  What have you learned from paying attention to the competition and how has it helped your business grow and thrive?  Let me know your thoughts and feedback!

Here are some articles you might want to check out about why competition is good for business:

“5 Reasons Why Competition is Good for Your Business”: http://www.forbes.com/pictures/fgdi45eekll/5-reasons-why-competition-is-good-for-your-business-2/

“Competition is Good for Business”: http://smallbusiness.foxbusiness.com/entrepreneurs/2012/09/24/competition-is-good-for-business-plans/

“Why Competition May Be the Best Thing for Your Business”: http://www.inc.com/magazine/201311/jill-krasny/more-competition-is-better-for-start-ups.html

“12 Reasons Why Competition is Good for Business”: http://www.m4bmarketing.com/12-reasons-why-competition-is-good-for-your-business/

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Until next time…