Big data technology has substantially changed the nature of business. The data analytics market is expected to grow from $30 billion last year to over $393 billion by 2032.
A growing number of companies are using data analytics to handle a variety of important functions, including researching their competitors. We have talked about some of the ways that companies can use data analytics to research competitors on social media. However, there are other ways that companies can research their competitors as well.
There are no two ways about it: competitor research, keyword research, market research, and all of the other dirty ‘R-words’ involved in digital marketing aren’t the most thrilling of activities. It is time and resource intensive and it can be thoroughly exhausting.
But is it just a boring slog? Or is it the key to outperforming your biggest rivals? Let’s have a closer look…
What is competitor research and how does data analytics help?
Competitor research (or competitive analysis) refers to the process of conducting extensive research in order to identify your biggest competitor companies, their products, sales, and online marketing tactics.
Sounds terribly boring right?
Correct.
The good news is that you can make the process a lot easier by using data analytics technology. We have a great article talking about ways that you can spy on your competitor’s moves with data analytics.
Why is competitor research so important?
If you wish to implement solid marketing strategies and outperform your competitors at every turn, you need to “know your enemy.”
When you conduct a competitive analysis you gain business-critical insights into the ins and outs of how your competitors operate and where the potential opportunities to outshine them lie.
Furthermore, competitor research is important because it enables you to stay on top of current trends and ensure that you are consistently exceeding industry standards.
How can competitor research benefit your business?
Again, conducting extensive competitor research isn’t exciting…however, the ways in which it can benefit your business almost certainly are!
- Identify your UVP: by studying your competitors you’ll have an easier time seeing where your products / services fit into the marketplace.Knowing your UVP (unique value proposition) can positively inform your marketing efforts.
- See what they’re doing right: when you know what your competitors are doing right, it can help you emulate some of their best practices – and indeed look for ways to improve on them. The idea is to outperform industry standards – which is key for getting ahead.
- Identify gaps in your competitors’ efforts: it’s not just about identifying what your competitors are doing right, but what they’re doing wrong / not doing. This can help you find new opportunities to try unique strategies and gain a competitive edge.
- Learn from competitor reviews: you can learn a lot about your competitors by what their customers say about them. Even if their reviews are consistently positive with 5-stars, you will still find suggestions of what’s missing in their products / services. This can help you add features of your own in order to fulfil those needs.
Final thoughts: It’s worth the effort!
Again, competitor research isn’t the most exciting of tasks, but it is entirely worth the effort. The more research you do, the more data you’ll collect, and the more data you collect, the better positioned you will be to get ahead of your competitors.
Without any prior research, you’ll otherwise be going in blind. And while there is always an element of trial and error in digital marketing and SEO, you want to reduce the margin for error by gathering as much information as possible beforehand to influence your efforts.
The same applies with studying your Google analytics and getting the most out of each metric.
Of course, if conducting research or trawling through analytics isn’t your thing (which is understandable), don’t panic! You can hire an SEO agency and let them do all of the grunt work for you. The best part? They’ll be well-versed in this regard and can gather more, actionable insights to utilise in your campaign.
This SEO specialists in Dallas comes highly recommended with over 100+ real life success stories.
Either way, we hope you better understand competitor research and why it is so crucial to your long-term digital marketing success.