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Competitive intelligence Knowledge is power - Sir Francis Bacon. Presentation made for StartMeUp Ryerson November 11 th 2010 Marla Spergel. WHAT IS COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS.
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Competitive intelligenceKnowledgeispower- Sir Francis Bacon Presentation made for StartMeUp Ryerson November 11th 2010 Marla Spergel
WHAT IS COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS • Competitor Analysis is an important part of the strategic planning process. This revision note outlines the main role of, and steps in, competitor analysis • "Competitive Intelligence is critical to gain and maintain a competitive edge. Through proactive CI efforts, strategic and tactical agility can be improved to outperform, outmaneuver and outsmart the competition." - Bill Tyson
Concerns of an Org.’s competitive analysis (2) 2. How can our competitors be grouped meaningfully? Different characteristics for identifying Strategic groupings Figure 20.8 Source: Adapted from Wilson et al. (1992).
Why bother to analyse competitors? • To help management understand their competitive advantages/disadvantages relative to competitors • • To generate understanding of competitors’ past, present (and most importantly) future strategies • • To provide an informed basis to develop strategies to achieve competitive advantage in the future • • To help forecast the returns that may be made from future investments (e.g. how will competitors respond to a new product or pricing strategy?
Questions to ask • Who are our competitors? (see the section on identifying competitors further below) • • What threats do they pose? • • What is the profile of our competitors? • • What are the objectives of our competitors? • • What strategies are our competitors pursuing and how successful are these strategies? • • What are the strengths and weaknesses of our competitors? • • How are our competitors likely to respond to any changes to the way we do business?
Sources of information for competitor analysis • Recorded data: this is easily available in published form either internally or externally. Good examples include competitor annual reports and product brochures; • • Observable data: this has to be actively sought and often assembled from several sources. A good example is competitor pricing; • • Opportunistic data: to get hold of this kind of data requires a lot of planning and organisation. Much of it is “anecdotal”, coming from discussions with suppliers, customers and, perhaps, previous management of competitors.
Recorded Data • Annual report & accounts • Press releases • Newspaper articles • Analysts reports • Regulatory reports • Government reports • Presentations / speeches
Observable Data • Pricing / price lists • Advertising campaigns • Promotions • Tenders • Patent applications
Opportunistic Data • Opportunistic Data • Meetings with suppliers • Trade shows • Sales force meetings • Seminars / conferences • Recruiting ex-employees • Discussion with shared distributors • Social contacts with competitors
What businesses probably already know their competitors • verall sales and profits • Sales and profits by market • Sales by main brand • Cost structure • Market shares (revenues and volumes) • Organisation structure • Distribution system • Identity / profile of senior management • Advertising strategy and spending • Customer / consumer profile & attitudes • Customer retention levels
What businesses would really like to know about competitors • Sales and profits by product • Relative costs • Customer satisfaction and service levels • Customer retention levels • Distribution costs • New productstrategies • Size and quality of customer databases • Advertising effectiveness • Future investment strategy • Contractual terms with key suppliers • Terms of strategic partnerships
A Competitive Analysis on Pepsi Max • TASKS: • Based on the facts provided below, please provide: • • What threats does Pepsi Max pose to Coke Zero? • • What is the profile of Pepsi Max? • • What are Pepsi Max objectives? • • What strategies are they using and how successful are these strategies? • • What are their strengths and weaknesses? • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EX0fmBHiZy4 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BxDcn3Jw0c • http://www.cocacolazero.com/index.jsp • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-hXcRtbj1Y • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkgZFI4ZT0I