Octopus Competitive Intelligence

What are the three common errors in thinking that reduce creativity and innovation? This article asks what are the three common errors in thinking that reduce creativity and innovation? To start with, poor decisions usually result from flawed thinking rather than being presented with the wrong information. This is especially the case after researching the subject using Competitive Intelligence.  Flawed thinking when making decisions is usually because we fail to consider biases. Using key assumption checks. And making sure we are aware of our biases will ensure we can keep our minds open to new ideas. Otherwise, seeing solutions becomes a challenge. What is a Key Assumption? A Key Assumption is any hypothesis accepted to be accurate and which forms the basis of the assessment. It’s the most crucial structured analysis technique you can use. And more information can be found within this other Octopus article called is  Competitive Intelligence without key assumption checking ju...

To gain and keep on achieving Competitive Advantage in your market, you must have a thorough knowledge of your competition. This article explains how analysis of your competitors gains a Competitive Advantage in your market. Competitive analysis helps you do three things: Understand how your customers and potential customers view the competition Identification of the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors Provide you with a great starting point for developing effective competitive marketing strategies in your target market.  But this is all well and good, and it sounds like a great idea. But where do we start? The first action is to identify who your competitors are. Any service provider or product similar to yours within the same geographic region can be classed as a direct competitor. And many businesses geography barriers are reducing at an alarming rate all the time. Think Boots and Superdrug. And any business offering something different or something that customers can u...

  How Competitive Intelligence helps understand how decision-makers think This article describes how Competitive Intelligence helps understand how decision-makers think. Often this is where people looking at Competitive Intelligence for the first time go wrong. They direct their efforts into what information is required. They look and worry about how to find the information. Which websites or expensive databases will reveal what they are looking for. Just subscribing to a costly database or platform without understanding what you really will provide with everything other than a hefty bill and something else no one will use. Any database or platform will not provide you with any Competitive Intelligence at all. It’s what you do with the information on a consistent basis. Competitive Intelligence analysts should initially ignore the required information. And target their thoughts on what the decision-maker needs to make their decision.  Be strategic not tactical What is Com...

  How to research your competitor with quick Competitive Intelligence This article offers tips on how to research your competitor with quick Competitive Intelligence. The process does not need to be onerous or time-consuming to start with. The trouble with Competitive Intelligence, the more you do, the more time it takes. Because the more you do, the more you learn, the more certainty you have and Competitive Advantage is soon found.  1. Get up to speed quickly Subscribe to trade magazines, newsletters and relevant publications. Buy back issues of the most valuable publications. You will be astonished at what happened in your industry you did not know about. Do your homework. Expand your industry thinking and find general business trends, as well as industry trends. And scan the table of contents from two publications, one from an indirectly related industry. Get ones from totally different industries. 2. Listen to your staff What is Competitive Intelligence? Competitive intel...

  What’s your Competitive Advantage and why Analysis of your competitors is important? What’s your Competitive Advantage and why Analysis of your competitors is important? Deciding what you are great at doing is one of the most important aspects of any strategic planning. And it’s not how good you are. It’s how much better you are than your competitors.  Suppose you’re competing in a market where you offer the same thing as many of your competitors. The primary way to compete is on price, so you will likely be asked to reduce your prices. But if you can do something different from the others, you will have a say in how much you can charge for your offering. Meaning your prices can likely rise without much of an objection. Make the most of your Competitive Advantage So it would help if you determined how you can make the most of your Competitive Advantage. To do this, focus on something that you can deliver your competitors can’t. So, something that will enable you to dominate ...

  Is Competitive Intelligence without Key Assumption Analysis just lots of words? We have mentioned this once or twice. But in case you haven’t read one of our articles before, we will repeat it. Great Competitive Intelligence is about asking great questions. And spending time doing excellent analysis of the information you find is the cherry on the cake. In this article, we ask, is Competitive Intelligence without Key Assumption Analysis just lots of words and graphs on a page? Once you have the questions and found the information, the analysis matters. It makes a Competitive Intelligence Analyst stand out in the crowd of mediocrity. So yes, Intelligence without analysis and some thought is just a lot of words and graphs. And Key Assumption Analysis should be on top of your to-do list.  What is a Key Assumption? A Key Assumption is any hypothesis accepted to be true and which forms the basis of the assessment. It’s the most crucial structured analysis technique you can use Wi...

  What’s meant by Competitive Intelligence and how to apply it to our business As Competitive Intelligence professionals, we are asked What’s meant by Competitive Intelligence and how to apply it to our business. Over the past couple of years, this question has been getting less and less. Especially within major corporations and increasingly middle-market players. And even those who achieved investment 3 to 5 years or so ago have found new major stumbling blocks. Blocks reducing their growth potential long before Covid did its thing to the world.  Some companies don’t really understand who their competitors are. Know very little about them and assume their offering is superior. Based on what? Absolutely nothing. There are many frameworks, models and software offerings out there. And some of them are useful. Still, here are some questions to help you advance your Competitive intelligence activities. The first place to start is a realisation. If you don’t know your competition, ...