ARE YOU PADDLING OR FLOATING?

Ask yourself area unit you paddling or floating your canoe down the stream of your business life?  If you’re floating then you’re on the defense, if you’re paddling then you’re on the offense – wherever does one need to be?

In today’s business climate if you’re not on the offensive then you’re being whipped and tempest-swept from each facet by the obstacles you encounter.  If one thing isn’t operating in your advertising and you’re a floater then you simply wait till next week, or next month and see if it improves. however if you’re paddling and guiding your business, then you’re busy understanding a way to fix what’s not operating.

Take for instance that huge boulder within the stream referred to as “competitive intelligence”, that refers to the information required to implement roaring competitive methods.  If you haven’t got a handle on this it will spell disaster to your business.  Let’s explore associate example of what I mean.

Suppose you discover out that a rival has born the worth on a product competitive  directly together with your business’ highest profit margin item.  Before you drop your value to match, raise yourself whether or not this might have an effect on your ability to vie.  If the solution is “yes”, you must do a trifle of police investigation to answer some key queries like:
? Is the worth cut associate unequivocal comparison, or have sure features/services been modified?
? Is the worth drop ample to beat client inertia to change?
? Does the rival have the capability to handle increased  demand while not damaging client satisfaction?
? Is the worth modification restricted to at least one territory or account, or is it across-the-board?


Effective strategy covers product style, branding, services, and a bunch of different variables that, in total, comprise your competitive edge. protective your edge needs a time period stream of data concerning the dynamical competitive landscape. the foremost important fund of in progress data, on associate in progress basis is your business department.

Salespeople have the foremost direct contact with customers, and have client feedback on the competition that is each real and perceived.  However, their job is to sell, therefore it’s necessary that you simply build them alert to their importance and involvement in gathering competitive intelligence.

For the roaring grouping of data from the business department, you need to persuade them and their sales managers that the method is valuable to them. this suggests you've got some prep to try to to that is gathering data that's already accessible internally. explore and analyze decision reports, won-lost reports, and sales records for red flags and trends.  A competitive move in one territory could seem insignificant till extra to data from different territories, or as a part of a world rollout strategy.

Augment these finding with public knowledge from revealed sources and business analysts, and you'll provide your business department tips about competitive  a lot of with success.  By initiating the data sharing method, you may encourage reciprocity on the a part of sales once they see what’s in it for them.

In addition to the business department, folks from different functions in your firm area unit usually repositories of helpful rival data.  Accounting, procural, HR, and different functions attend skilled conferences with rival counterparts and will have bits and items of the competitive landscape puzzle.  Do they skills necessary this knowledge is, and have you ever driven them to share it?

This is however one very little corner of your career, however unless you’re on the offense – paddling rather than floating – you’ll lose your edge and be left within the mud by your competitors.  Personally, I’d well be paddling my very little heart out rather than being tossed by no matter winds blow my means.