5 Golden Rules of your Competitors

"Competitors push you to achieve more."

M Cobanli

Many, many years ago, my family company appointed some very clever, highly experienced external non-executive directors. One of the first questions one of them asked was what is the structure of the market?

The question bothered me though subconsciously I knew it would be worth respecting and it stayed with me, fermenting, distilling my thoughts over the proceeding years & what I came to realise is that markets mostly work the same.

What he was trying to understand is where did we sit in terms of our size relative to the size of the overall industry. Armed with this knowledge provides companies with a better understanding of how to compete with a range of players, here's a couple of other ideas.

1) Never Underestimate Them

One of my old bosses taught me about the concept of positive paranoia which is an extremely useful mindset when lining up against someone for a big deal. Put yourself and your team in the frame of mind to really think about a deal you are working on that you know are up against another business, so much so that your life depends on it. It is a very useful exercise.

2) Know Your Competition

• Target then win their key Customers.
• Adapt your product or service offer to combat their Cost Structures.
• Ensure Value that minimises their commercial strategy & pricing.
• Find & exploit their Weaknesses.

3) Act Quickly if you See a Threat

• Uber owns no vehicles, Airbnb no real estate...
• Advancements in technology and disruption is everywhere meaning agility and responsiveness to market changes are critical.

4) Size Matters but Make Sure it is Not a Disadvantage

• This is about perception, collaborate with others to ensure you can deliver - double down on relationships and use technology to assist you.

5) Protect your Key People & Information

• Look after your best people, as Richard Branson says "Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to".
• Information is king and needs to be treated with utmost respect and security.

Any good sales person should understand how to respond to objections around their competitors, they are always going to be around in some way, shape of form.

It is best not to avoid on one hand or over analyse on the other BUT it is most worthwhile to anticipate & acknowledge them.