Competitive intelligence involves gathering data to compare and contrast a product with similar goods or services, including distribution networks and financial stability. This ongoing process can inform short-term goals or long-term competitive strategies.
Competitive intelligence is a collective term relating to the collection of data that can be used to strengthen the market position of a good or service by comparing and contrasting the product with similar goods and services currently available. The type of competitive intelligence may have to do with the products or it may focus on some auxiliary factor. Other factors may include the distribution system or network, a competitor’s financial stability, or any other factor that can be seen as a strength to compete or a weakness that can be exploited.
The fundamental process of competitive intelligence is fact-gathering. Companies will employ people who will focus on a product or group of products offered by a competitor and gather as much public knowledge about the products’ components as possible. This effort is typically undertaken as a means of discovering ways in which the competing product is identical and how the product differs. Information of this type can help in creating a marketing campaign, as it can actually demonstrate how Product A can do everything that Product B does, but without any undesirable side effects.
Along with gathering information about a competitor’s product, the competitive intelligence process can also draw on the distribution network used to bring the product to the consumer market. Although Product B may be distributed through certain points of sale, it may be that Product A is not only available at the same points of sale, but several others as well. Knowing what markets and retail outlets currently carry both products can be extremely helpful, as it may lead some consumers to try Product A that is available at a local store, rather than driving across town to buy Product B.
Competitive intelligence is an ongoing process used by companies of all sizes. In some cases, the use of competitive intelligence has to do with a short-term goal, such as a product launch. In other cases, the data collected during the competitive intelligence gathering process can form the basis for long-term competitive strategies.
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