How to Effectively Evaluate Your Competition

Staying ahead of the curve is essential for business success, and knowing how to effectively evaluate your competition gives you an advantage.

One powerful tool at your disposal is a Competitor Analysis Program, which can provide invaluable insights into your competition’s strengths and weaknesses. Knowing your competitors allows you to fine-tune your own approach in delivering top-notch service and an exceptional customer experience.

Contact centers often are the primary point of contact between a company and its customers. Since customers have high expectations for exceptional service, your contact center can become one of your best key differentiators in the market.

Here are some of the reasons why evaluating your competition is vital in making your business something that distinguishes you and sets you apart from others in the marketplace:

• Identifying Best Practices: By analyzing your competitors, you can uncover industry best practices and adopt them to enhance your own customer service strategies. This can lead to improved customer satisfaction and loyalty.
• Benchmarking Performance: In-Depth Competitive Benchmarking allows you to benchmark your performance against industry standards. You can identify areas where you excel and areas where you need improvement, enabling more informed decision-making.
• Market Positioning: Understanding your competition helps you position your customer service offerings strategically. You can identify gaps in the market and develop services that meet unmet needs.
• Strategic Planning: Armed with insights into your competitors’ strategies, you can develop more effective long-term plans and set realistic goals. This helps in allocating resources efficiently and ensuring you stay competitive.

Your competitor analysis should include the following steps:

1. Identify Your Competitors: Begin by identifying who your direct and indirect competitors are. Direct competitors offer similar customer service solutions, while indirect competitors may have different primary services but still pose a threat to your market share.
2. Gather Information: Collect data on your competitors, such as their customer service offerings, pricing structures, target demographics, and customer reviews. You can utilize online resources, social media, and industry reports to gather this information.
3. SWOT Analysis: Conduct a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis for each competitor. Assess their strengths and weaknesses in terms of service quality, response times, and customer satisfaction.
4. Mystery Shopping: Utilize a comprehensive mystery shopping to evaluate your competitors’ customer service in action. This can provide firsthand insights into their service delivery and identify areas for improvement.
5. Customer Feedback Analysis: Analyze customer feedback and reviews for your competitors. Look for recurring issues, complaints, and areas where customers praise them. This can help you understand their strengths and weaknesses from a customer perspective.
6. Benchmark Performance Metrics: Compare your own performance metrics (e.g., average response time, resolution rates, customer satisfaction scores) with those of your competitors. Identify gaps and areas where you can outperform them.

We’ve all heard the phrase “knowledge is power”, but applying that knowledge is where the actual power comes into play. Knowledge of your competitors and using it to your benefit can help with the following:

• Improved Service Quality: A Competitor Analysis Program enables you to learn from your competitors’ successes and mistakes, allowing you to continuously improve your own customer service quality.
• Strategic Decision-Making: Armed with knowledge, you can make better informed decisions about resource allocation, pricing, and service enhancements, ultimately boosting your competitive edge.
• Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: By adopting best practices and addressing weaknesses identified in your competitors, you can provide a superior customer experience, leading to higher satisfaction levels and customer loyalty.
• Market Adaptation: Understanding your competition helps you adapt to changing market dynamics more effectively, ensuring you remain relevant and competitive in the long run.
• Identifying Growth Opportunities: Through competitor analysis, you can identify untapped market segments or emerging trends, allowing you to explore new growth opportunities.

A strategic Competitor Analysis Program is an invaluable business tool. With it, you gain the knowledge needed to enhance the quality of your products and service, make strategic decisions, and stay ahead in a highly competitive landscape.

While developing and implementing your program can be complex and challenging, you don’t have to do it alone.

Outsourcing to third-party experts like ARC Quality Solutions can save you time and help you avoid missteps along the way.

We invite you to connect about what a competitor analysis and competitive benchmarking program would look like for your business.

To get in touch, use this form to book a call or you can reach us directly at 1-866-798-0488. If you prefer email, you can contact us at info@arcqs.com.

In the meantime, you might also get additional value from reading the following:

• How Can Customer Experience be Measured
• Essential Guide to Mystery Shopping
• How Customer Experience Serves Your Organization’s Most Crucial Goals