When it comes to running a successful business, sometimes you have to lighten up on your typical good manners. Generally speaking, it isn’t nice to be nosey…But in the business world, it can mean the difference between success and closing your doors. That’s right, I’m saying that it pays to be a nosey pepper (that is, to get ‘jalapeño business’) when it comes to your competitors. Why? Well listen up, friend. I’m about to give you five good reasons to be a sneaky, snoopy spy when it comes to your competition.
1. Customers:
1. Customers:
Everyone knows that it’s cheaper to keep existing customers happy than it is to gain new ones, but that doesn’t keep your competition from trying to snatch people away from you. Keep an eye on their advertisements, because those dirty, rotten so-and-sos may just be running an incentive to switch over to the dark side. If you know about it, you can counter-attack with an even better promotion to stay.
2. Pricing:
The only way to price your goods and services effectively is to know what the other guys are up to. Subscribe to their mailing list, keep an eye on your local paper, and even have someone visit their store. If you’re feeling bold, just wander in yourself one day…but if you want to be a little more 007 about it, get a new employee to go. I don’t recommend the fake moustache disguise, though. They might know something’s up.
3. Reviews:
Welcome to the age of the internet, friend. Everyone has an opinion, and now they are free to voice that opinion anonymously. This is good news for you, because people are more likely to be really, really honest when they’re behind a screen name. Look the other guys up on Yelp! for an idea of how people truly feel. People think the bathrooms are filthy pits of despair at the other guy’s place? Slap a new coat of paint in your restrooms and keep them sparkling clean. So easy it’s almost criminal.
4. Goods and Services
It may seem obvious, but you need to know what your competitor offers so you can offer a product that is ten times more awesome. The other guys are selling cupcakes? Well now you are selling cupcakes that are filled with cheesecake and topped with cherries and sparklers. That is clearly a better product.
5. It’s just good business
You might think that spying on your competitor is sneaky and underhanded…and maybe, in a way, it is. But I guarantee while you’re sitting there trying to be the Mother Theresa of the business world, the other guy is sending one of his employees over to check out your goods. If you aren’t keeping an eye on your competition, you’re just digging your business’s grave. If you still aren’t convinced, consider this: Target doesn’t bother to do any market research before opening a store. Nope, the big wigs at Target simply let Wal-Mart do all of the dirty work, then open their own location just down the road. You could say that’s cheating, but I like to think of it as working smarter, not harder than the other guys.
For tools to spy on your competition visit:
Ad Spy &
Underground Traffic Spy
Visit OnlineMoneyForBeginners.com for free tips and tools for tips and tools for earning an online income.
Also if you know anyone who runs a Facebook page, share this link with them so they can update their fans as well
