Competitive Intelligence

Competitive intelligence is information collected about a company’s competitor that gives insight on the competitor’s recent and future activities, shows the effects that a competitor’s actions have on a business, and analyzes a competitor’s strengths and weaknesses. All information gathered in competitive intelligence is obtained legally and ethically and is taken from information available to the public. There are different applications for competitive intelligence for both short-term and long-term strategies, and it can be applied differently to each functional area of a company.

Why does TrackMaven think that Competitive Intelligence is important?

Gathering competitive intelligence should be a part of every marketer’s strategy. This practice can save a business many resources, including time and money. Companies can use this information to benchmark against their competition to see what actions to replicate, and which actions to stay away from.

One of the biggest value drivers a company has is its competitive advantages. Aggregating competitive intelligence can aide companies in establishing their own competitive advantage. Learning about a competitor’s products and services can provide insight on the value they offer, and will show ways that businesses can differentiate their products to provide additional value.

When companies are constructing social media campaigns, a good place to begin is by looking at competitors. By viewing their social media profiles, it easy to observe the channels that are best reaching consumers, the kind of content that is producing the most engagement, and the channels not being used by the competition that are available to capitalize on.