Every organization has to compare itself to its competitors, whether in terms of positioning, communication strategy or internal organization. While questioning oneself is often beneficial, trying too hard to emulate one’s competitors can sometimes lead to a loss of uniqueness.
You may have noticed that your competitors sponsor certain events, have launched a video channel or podcast, are interviewed in the press or place advertisements in professional journals, etc. Similarly, it’s sometimes tempting to replicate their entire range of services, in order to offer your own customers an exhaustive choice. But this is rarely a winning strategy: you can’t stand out from the crowd by conforming.
What’s more, it’s difficult to measure the return on investment of your competitors’ communication tools or the effectiveness of their positioning. It’s possible that their sponsorship strategy is costing them a lot without bringing in any customers, or vice versa. Looking at the fields of geopolitics or development aid, we see that many solutions that were successful in one context have failed when implemented in a different context.
The keys to a good benchmark
Before taking inspiration from what is being done elsewhere in your communications strategy or positioning, it is essential to :
- try to determine how effective the competitor’s measure is;
- measure the financial and human cost of implementing this measure;
- assess the suitability of this measure for your existing strategy;
- propose a differentiating added value to your service offering.
Competitive intelligence is of course fundamental, but it should also serve as a stimulus and a reminder that nothing can be taken for granted. Above all, it’s essential to keep in mind that a communication/positioning strategy is built around customer needs, not what’s being done elsewhere.
To go further
The limits of benchmarking
