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BASICS << Competitor and market analysis
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Competitor and market analysis
Published 2 February 2009, written by Graeme Peterson
A fundamental understanding of customer needs and key competitors are essential components of a strategic marketing plan.
‘Marketing is merely a civilized form of warfare in which most battles are won with words, ideas, and disciplined thinking’.
Albert W. Emery
In today’s environment, the need for referenced and citable information is paramount. The publication strategy and plan therefore play a central role in expressing the words, ideas and thinking for most brands and in the overall implementation of most strategic marketing plans. It is crucial that the publication strategy and plan are based on a sound understanding of your customers and their needs, rather than an internally-focused approach which limits your thinking around the product or brand.
The competitive environment for new products is getting tougher. Regulatory hurdles are higher and are driving some companies to adopt less risk-averse product development strategies. In time, this will concentrate activity and reduce the number of competitors in an area. At the same time, higher costs are cutting margins and therefore the pressure to achieve ‘success’ is greater than ever. This success can only be achieved by identifying your customer insights and knowing your competitors better than they know you!
An in-depth knowledge of competitor positioning, messaging and activity is essential for planning strategic communications through to supporting day-to-day decision making. Competitor and market analysis is based on detailed insights that range from the emotional needs of your customers through to tactical knowledge of what data are going to be presented where by which competitor! This knowledge requires time to build; however, it is important to start using basic techniques as described below.
Competitor profiling
The strategic rationale of competitor profiling is clear. Superior knowledge of key competitors offers a legitimate source of competitive advantage.
Profiling facilitates this strategic objective in several ways:
Revealing strategic weaknesses of rivals that may be exploited. e.g. if they always publish data at the same meeting!
Anticipating the strategic response of rivals to planned strategies, the strategies of other competitors, and changes in the environment.
This proactive knowledge gives strategic agility. Strategies and plans can be implemented more quickly in order to exploit opportunities and capitalise on strengths.
What are their strategies?
When looking at a competitor’s strategy, think about what the competitor says and what it does. This can be found in several ways:
Annual shareholder reports
Interviews with analysts
Statements from managers
Press releases
However, the stated strategy often differs from the real strategy. It is possible to discern what the competitor is actually doing by looking at their:
Publication record and placement profile
Key messages
R&D activity
Promotional campaigns
Strategic partnerships
What are their objectives?
It is important to identify what each competitor wants to achieve in the marketplace. It is possible to predict their short-term and long-term goals, and the potential market reaction. For example, are they trying to expand the market or are they positioning against another competitor?
What are their strengths and weaknesses?
Knowledge of a competitor's strengths and weaknesses is imperative as this can easily provide a competitive edge and help with successful marketing strategies. When analysing the strengths and weaknesses of a competitor product or company, it is vitally important that any comparisons are objective.
Some key success factors to consider include:
Customer awareness
Product availability
Product features and benefits
Product quality and price
Selling staff
What are our customer insights?
Customer insights form a major part of your understanding of your customers' motivation to prescribe and they may help to identify key success factors for a publication strategy.
They are additional variables that should be tracked to provide an on-going knowledge of competitors and the marketplace
Share of Market: The sales share that the competitor has of the relevant market. It is also important to know this relative to the prescription share, which may well be different.
Share of Mind: The percentage of customers who named the competitor in answering the question “Name the first company that comes to mind in this area.”
Share of Heart: The percentage of customers who named the competitor in answering the question “Name the company from whom you would prefer to buy the product.”
Who are the gatekeepers?
As for other aspects of the strategic marketing plan, publications play an increasing role in reaching different customer groups who have different needs. Increasingly, market access is a critical consideration and full knowledge of PAYORS' needs and how best to communicate to them is an essential part of the plan.
Summary
Detailed knowledge of customer insights and competitor products/services will enable you to best plan your publication strategies and plans, hopefully leading to increasing overall market share, profit and ultimate success!
About the author:
Graeme Peterson (E: graeme.peterson@prime-medica.com) has many years of strategic marketing experience gained from the pharma and medical communications industries. He is the founder and Managing Director of Prime Medica.
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Feedback: Do you have any comments about this article? Contact the Publisher, Peter Llewellyn.
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