What is competitor research?

Competitor research refers to the collection, collation, analysis and evaluation of competitors' relevant information to understand competitors' strategies, products, prices, channels, promotion, finance, manpower, etc., so as to evaluate competitors' strengths and weaknesses, Competitive strategy, market trends, potential threats and opportunities, etc., to provide basis and reference for their own strategy formulation and innovation.

What is the purpose of competitor research?

The purpose of competitor research is mainly in the following aspects:

Understand the competitive environment, identify competitors, identify their competitive advantages and disadvantages, find their own market positioning and target customers;

Analyze competitors' strategies, predict competitors' behaviors and trends, formulate corresponding coping strategies, seize market opportunities, and prevent market risks;

Learn the advantages of competitors, learn from the successful experience of competitors, improve their product quality and service level, and enhance their core competitiveness;

Discover the shortcomings of competitors, tap the potential problems of competitors, look for gaps and opportunities in the market, and create your own differentiation and characteristics.

Who is the competitor research target?

The object of competitor research includes not only direct competitors, but also potential competitors, substitute competitors, indirect competitors, etc.

Direct competitors refer to companies that provide the same or similar products or services in the same market, the same segment, and the same target customer group. For example, the direct competitors of Champ Consulting include Washington Consulting, Analysys Consulting, and Sadie Consulting. Wait;

Potential competitors refer to enterprises that are likely to enter the market or segment in which the enterprise is located and provide the same or similar products or services. For example, potential competitors of Champ Consulting include Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, McKinsey, etc;

Alternative competitors refer to enterprises that provide products or services that can meet the same or similar needs of customers, but in different forms or methods. For example, the alternative competitors of Shangpu Consulting include Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, etc;

Indirect competitors refer to enterprises that provide different products or services in different markets or segments, but will affect the customer's purchase decision or consumption ability. For example, indirect competitors of Shangpu consulting include banks, securities, insurance, etc.

What is the competitor research method?

The main methods of competitor research are as follows:

Desktop research refers to the collection of competitors' public information, such as company profiles, product introductions, financial reports, news reports, industry reports, etc., through the Internet, libraries, newspapers, databases and other channels;

Field research refers to obtaining on-site information of competitors, such as company size, product quality, service level, customer feedback, etc., by personally or entrusting a third party to the competitor's location, sales outlets, exhibitions, etc., for observation, interview, experience, etc;

Questionnaire survey refers to the design and distribution of questionnaires to competitors' customers, suppliers, partners, employees and other relevant personnel to understand the relevant information of competitors, such as customer satisfaction, supplier evaluation, cooperation relationship, employee benefits, etc;

Network research refers to the collection of competitors' network information, such as website traffic, online word-of-mouth, user comments, online public opinion, etc., through search engines, social media, forums, blogs, comment websites and other network platforms.

What are the steps for competitor research?

The steps of competitor research generally include the following:

Determine the purpose of the survey, identify the main issues and expected results of the survey, and develop a survey plan and budget;

Select the research object, according to the type and importance of competitors, determine the scope and priority of research, select the sample and method of research;

Collect and analyze information, use various research methods to obtain all aspects of information about competitors, organize, summarize, compare, evaluate and analyze, and find out the strengths and weaknesses, strategies, trends, threats and opportunities of competitors;

Formulate and implement strategies, formulate corresponding strategies and action plans according to the results of competitor research, such as differentiation, focus, alliance, attack, defense, etc., implement and monitor the implementation effect of strategies, and adjust and improve in time;

Continuously track and update, establish a competitor information base, regularly collect and update competitor information, continuously track and analyze changes in competitors, and make timely responses and adjustments.

Considerations and recommendations for competitor research

Competitor research is a complex and important task that requires attention to the following aspects:

The research information should be true, accurate and timely, not blindly believe or spread false or outdated information, and should be supported by sufficient evidence and data to avoid misleading or being misled;

The information to be investigated shall be legal, compliant and reasonable, shall not violate laws, regulations or ethics, shall not infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of competitors or other interested parties, and shall respect the privacy and trade secrets of competitors;

The research information should be comprehensive, systematic and in-depth. We should not only look at superficial or one-sided information, but also conduct comprehensive and in-depth analysis from multiple angles and levels to find out the essence and law of competitors;

The research information should be targeted, valuable and useful. It should not collect irrelevant or useless information. It should select and use meaningful and influential information according to its own research purpose and strategic needs;

The research information should be innovative, different and distinctive. We should not only imitate or copy the information of competitors, but also create our own information and knowledge according to our own actual situation and advantages.

Case Study of Competitor Research

To better illustrate the methodology and effectiveness of competitor research, let's take Champ Consulting as an example of how it conducts competitor research.

Shangpu Consulting is a company specializing in market research, data analysis, and business consulting. It mainly serves customers in the Internet, e-commerce, finance, education and other industries, providing customized solutions and value-added services.

The purpose of the competitor research of Shangpu Consulting is to understand the competitive environment, find their own market positioning and target customers, analyze the strategy and trend of competitors, formulate corresponding coping strategies, learn the advantages of competitors, discover the shortcomings of competitors, and create their own differences and characteristics.

The subjects surveyed by Champ Consulting's competitors include the following categories:

Direct competitors, such as Washington Consulting, Analysys Consulting, Sadie Consulting, etc., provide the same or similar market research, data analysis, and business consulting services in the same market, the same segment, and the same target customer group as Champ Consulting;

Potential competitors, such as Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, McKinsey, etc., which may enter the market or segment where Champ Consulting is located and provide the same or similar services of market research, data analysis and business consulting;

Substitute competitors, such as Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, etc., which provide products or services that meet the same or similar needs of customers, but in different forms or methods, such as search engines, e-commerce platforms, social media, etc;

Indirect competitors, such as banks, securities, insurance, etc., offer different products or services in different markets or segments, but can affect customers' purchasing decisions or spending power, such as loans, investments, protection, etc.

The methods of competitor research by Champ Consulting include the following:

Desktop research, through the Internet, libraries, newspapers, databases and other channels, to collect competitors' public information, such as company profiles, product introductions, financial reports, news reports, industry reports, etc;

Field research, by personally or entrusting a third party to the competitor's location, sales outlets, exhibitions and other places, observation, interviews, experience, etc., to obtain the competitor's on-site information, such as company size, product quality, service level, customer feedback, etc;

Questionnaire research, through the design and distribution of questionnaires, to competitors' customers, suppliers, partners, employees and other related personnel, to understand the relevant information of competitors, such as customer satisfaction, supplier evaluation, cooperation, employee benefits, etc;

Network research, through search engines, social media, forums, blogs, comment sites and other network platforms, to collect competitors' network information, such as website traffic, network word-of-mouth, user comments, network public opinion, etc.

The steps taken by Champ Consulting's competitor research generally include the following:

Determine the purpose of the survey, identify the main issues and expected results of the survey, and develop a survey plan and budget;

Select the research object, according to the type and importance of competitors, determine the scope and priority of research, select the sample and method of research;

Collect and analyze information, use various research methods to obtain all aspects of information about competitors, organize, summarize, compare, evaluate and analyze, and find out the strengths and weaknesses, strategies, trends, threats and opportunities of competitors;

Formulate and implement strategies, formulate corresponding strategies and action plans according to the results of competitor research, such as differentiation, focus, alliance, attack, defense, etc., implement and monitor the implementation effect of strategies, and adjust and improve in time;

Continuously track and update, establish a competitor information base, regularly collect and update competitor information, continuously track and analyze changes in competitors, and make timely responses and adjustments.

Below, we use a specific case of Champ Consulting Services to show the specific application and effect of competitor research.

Case Background: One of the clients of Shangpu Consulting is an online education platform, which mainly provides online courses and tutoring services for primary and secondary schools, and is aimed at students and parents across the country. The customer hopes to understand the development trend and competitive landscape of the online education industry through the services of Shangpu Consulting, find their own market positioning and target customers, formulate appropriate product strategies and marketing strategies, and increase their market share and brand influence.

Champ Consulting conducted a competitor survey for this client, which included the following:

Industry analysis, through the collection and analysis of industry reports, policy documents, expert views, etc., to understand the development history, current situation, trends, scale, structure, characteristics, opportunities and challenges of the online education industry;

Market analysis, through the collection and analysis of market data, user research, consumer behavior, etc., to understand the online education market demand, demand characteristics, consumption habits, consumption motivation, consumption preferences, consumption levels, etc;

Competitor analysis, through the collection and analysis of competitors' information, to understand the number of competitors, types, scale, regions, products, prices, channels, promotion, finance, manpower, etc., to assess the strengths and weaknesses of competitors, strategies, trends, threats and opportunities;

Self-analysis, through the collection and analysis of their own information, to understand their own strengths, weaknesses, resources, capabilities, costs, benefits, etc., to determine their own market positioning and target customers, to develop their own product strategies and marketing strategies.

The results of the competitor survey of Champu Consulting mainly include the following aspects:

The results of industry analysis show that the online education industry is a fast-growing, highly competitive, and highly differentiated industry. It is supported and encouraged by the government, recognized and welcomed by users, and promoted and innovated by technology. It has huge market potential and development. Space, but it also faces challenges such as policy uncertainty, user diversity, technological instability, and fierce competition;

The results of market analysis show that the demand of the online education market continues to grow, the demand characteristics show the trend of diversification, individuation and differentiation, and the consumption habits are gradually formed. The consumption motivation is mainly to improve the learning effect, save the learning time and expand the learning resources. The consumption preference is mainly to pay attention to the quality of products, the level of service and the rationality of price, the consumption level is influenced by family income, education input, consumption intention and other factors;

The results of competitor analysis show that there are many competitors in the online education industry, the competition pattern is complex, the competition mode is diverse, the competitive strength is uneven, the competitive advantage is not obvious, the competitive strategy is unstable, and the competition result is uncertain. The main competitors of Champ Consulting's clients are the following:

Good Future is a leading company that provides K12 online education services. It has multiple brands and products, such as Xueershi Online School, Little Ape Search, Work Together, etc., covering all stages from preschool education to Senior high school education. It has a huge user base and teacher resources, and has strong brand influence and market share, however, it also faces problems such as product homogeneity, declining service quality, and increased user churn;

Ape Counseling is an innovative enterprise focusing on K12 online education services. It is characterized by small class system and one-to-one teaching mode, with intelligent and personalized teaching methods as the advantages, and efficient teaching effects and high-quality services. Level is the goal, with a loyal user group and an excellent teacher team, with high user satisfaction and user retention rate, however, it also faces problems such as high product prices, limited service scope, and insufficient market promotion;

Xueba Jun is a new enterprise focusing on K12 online education services. It focuses on free online courses and tutoring services, is supported by massive learning resources and tools, and takes low-cost operation mode and high-speed development speed as highlights. It has extensive user coverage and rapid user growth, and has strong market potential and competitiveness, however, it also faces problems such as low product quality, low service level, and unclear profit model.

The results of its own analysis show that the advantage of Shangpu Consulting's customers lies in the innovation and differentiation of its products. Its products are mainly intelligent online education platforms based on artificial intelligence and big data, which can provide personalized learning programs and tutoring services according to the learning characteristics and needs of each student, improve learning efficiency and effectiveness, and enhance learning experience and satisfaction. Its disadvantage lies in the popularity and influence of its brand. Compared with its competitors, its brand is relatively unfamiliar and weak, and lacks sufficient user awareness and trust. It needs to strengthen market promotion and brand building. Its resources lie in the advanced and professional technology. Its technology is mainly based on artificial intelligence and big data's intelligent online education technology, which can realize the intelligent generation of learning content, intelligent monitoring of learning process, intelligent evaluation of learning effect, etc., provide high-quality learning resources and tools, and enhance the technical competitiveness and core competitiveness. Its ability lies in the professionalism and professionalism of its team. Its team is mainly composed of experts in the field of education, experts in the field of artificial intelligence, and experts in the field of marketing. It can fully understand and meet the needs and expectations of users, and provide professional products. Design and service support to improve team collaboration and execution. Its cost lies in the R & D cost and operating cost of its products. The R & D cost of its products mainly includes technology R & D cost, content development cost, platform development cost, etc. The operating cost of its products mainly includes technical maintenance cost, content update cost, platform maintenance cost, etc. It is necessary to reasonably control and optimize the cost structure to improve cost efficiency. Its benefits lie in the revenue and profit of its products, the revenue of its products mainly comes from the user's paid purchase, advertising, cooperation sharing, etc., the profit of its products mainly comes from the difference between revenue minus costs, the need to improve the level of revenue and profit margins, to achieve profit targets.

Champ Consulting has developed the following strategy and action plan for this client:

Market positioning and target customers, determine their own market positioning is to provide intelligent online education platform based on artificial intelligence and big data, provide personalized online courses and tutoring services for primary and secondary school students, improve learning efficiency and effectiveness, and enhance learning experience and satisfaction. Make sure that your target customers are those primary and secondary school students and parents who have learning needs and willingness, network and equipment conditions, ability and willingness to pay, and have higher requirements for product quality and service level.

Product strategy, according to the needs and expectations of target customers, design and develop products that meet their characteristics and preferences, including the following aspects:

Product functions, providing intelligent learning content generation, learning process monitoring, learning effect evaluation and other functions, according to each student's learning level, learning progress, learning objectives, etc., to generate courses and guidance suitable for their learning, monitor their learning behavior and state, evaluate their learning effects and problems, and give corresponding feedback and suggestions;

Product form, providing various forms of online courses and tutoring, such as video courses, audio courses, graphic courses, live courses, recording courses, interactive courses, etc., to meet different learning scenarios and learning methods, and increase learning interest and flexibility;

Product price, according to the function, form, quality, effect, etc. of the product, formulate reasonable price strategy, such as charging by class hour, charging by course, charging by package, charging by member, etc., taking into account the user's ability and willingness to pay, providing concessions and discounts, improve the user's purchase intention and purchase frequency;

Product channels, use a variety of channels to promote and sell products, such as own websites and APP, cooperative third-party platforms, social media and online advertising, offline schools and institutions, etc., to expand the coverage and user base of products, and improve the visibility and influence of products.

Marketing strategy, according to the competitive environment of the market and its own competitive advantages, to develop effective marketing strategies, including the following aspects:

Brand strategy, establish and shape their own brand image and brand value, highlight the innovation and differentiation of their products, pass on the advantages and effects of their products, enhance their brand awareness and trust, and enhance their brand loyalty and reputation;

Promotion strategy, using a variety of ways and means to promote their products, such as network marketing, content marketing, social marketing, event marketing, word-of-mouth marketing, etc., to attract and retain the attention and interest of users, promote the transformation and consumption of users, and expand the scale and share of users;

Service strategy, provide high-quality service support and service guarantee, such as technical support, customer service support, after-sales support, complaint handling, return and exchange, etc., to solve users' problems and difficulties, meet users' needs and expectations, and improve users' satisfaction and retention rate;

Innovation strategy, continuous product improvement and innovation, such as functional innovation, form innovation, price innovation, channel innovation, etc., according to market changes and user feedback, adapt to and lead the needs and preferences of users, and enhance the competitiveness and attractiveness of products.

The results of the competitor survey of Champu Consulting are mainly manifested in the following aspects:

Help customers understand the development trend and competition pattern of online education industry, and provide basis and reference for customers' strategy formulation and innovation;

Help customers find their own market positioning and target customers, and provide direction and basis for customer product design and service;

Help customers analyze competitors' strategies and trends, and provide guidance and suggestions for customers' coping strategies and actions;

Help customers to learn the advantages of competitors, for the customer's product quality and service level to provide reference and reference;

Helps customers find the shortcomings of competitors and provides opportunities and space for customer differentiation and characteristics.