Every business, be it small or large requires a competitive advantage to distinguish itself from the competition that is going on in the market. With the consumers becoming more tech-savvy, they do more research online before making a buying decision. This is when the importance of attaining a competitive advantage is felt more.
What is a competitive advantage?
Competitive advantage is an attribute that enables an organisation to outperform its competitors by offering its customers greater value, either by offering greater benefits that justices the high price or by offering quality products at low prices.
Ways to gain competitive advantage
In this competitive business world, each advantage counts to establish your brand at the top of the industry. Gaining competitive advantage requires extensive research, strategic planning, and a good investment in doing marketing. In order to stand out and prove that your products or services are the best for your prospects, your business needs to offer something unique and compelling value proposition.
Whether you sell products, services or a combination of both, here are some ways that can help you attain a competitive advantage.
• Understand your ideal customers
All customers are not the same; a customer who is willing to make a purchase from you may not be your best customer. You can win life-long customers and win business by targeting the right customers, understanding the purchasing process, knowing the information required to take purchasing decisions, offering the best pre and post-sales customers and so on. When they feel that your company really understands their needs and you provide them what they want exactly, they will definitely put you above the competition.
• Same product, low price
Cost leadership is one of the main things that businesses try to acquire. It’s an advantage a business achieves when they are able to provide same quality products but at a price lower than its competitors. However, to do this businesses should look for ways to produce good quality products with low production costs or utilising the resources in a more efficient way.
• Create your own data
When your business uses the statistics and data points in the marketing content you create, it provides a sense of credibility and authority. Though you may want to do proper survey to gather data, you can do this easily with the help of online tools.
• Establish your unique value proposition (USP)
Many businesses use common value propositions such as service levels, pricing, brand recognition, quality, and so on to establish a competitive advantage. Though it can be great at the beginning, it will not help you to move forward successfully in the long run. When you provide something unique from your competitors, you can make a mark in the competition race.
• Use defensive strategies
Your business can utilise a defensive strategy to remain competitive as it allows you to further distance yourself from the competitors. This strategy is closely related to cost leadership and differentiation as it’s a way for businesses to keep the attained advantage in one place.
