Who is your competition?

Naturally, before you can crush the competition, you must first identify exactly who they are. You’re probably aware of a few of them. But, chances are, there are many more flying under the radar… stealing your potential customers. So the first thing we need to do is define who they are…

The true definition of your personal competition is this: anybody who competes for the same customers.
In many cases, the ones you think might be your competition really aren’t. Just because someone offers the same type of product or service does not necessary make them your competition. Let’s say, for example, someone is offering the same type of product but caters to a higher-end clientele. In that case, they are not your competition. Why? Because they’re targeting a different group of customers, people who currently would not want your product. Of course, that type of scenario could easily change. You may very well decide to go after the higher-end clientele in your market at some point. Those same businesses would become your competitors because you would then be competing for the same customers.

This is very important to keep in mind, mainly because there are many opportunities where partnerships can destroy your competition. And trust me, mistaking friends for foes can be extremely costly to your business. For example, one successful technique is trading off leads with a business that targets higher-end customers in your market place. Here’s how it works…

When you get a client who is not interested in your product because they’re looking for something more, you can then refer them to a product that would fit them better – and vice-versa.
Needless to say, that would result in a big increase of sales for both parties involved. So, although you’re selling the same type of product as a competitor, you may not be competing for the same group of customers. We’ll discuss many more opportunities for partnerships, but first let’s talk about how to uncover your hidden competition.

As you know…

The World Wide Web is a gigantic place. There are opportunities where anybody around the world can open up shop without spending money from their own pocket. This means you can have a significant number of under-the-radar competition… and hidden in some of their “online shops” are little innovations each of them have developed.When you are able to take those innovations and improve on just a few of them, your business will be on the cutting edge of your market place.

Nobody can beat you.
Now, keep in mind, since the internet is new in many markets, the competition is so clueless you would NOT want to copy anything about their business. For those particular markets, you will be able to effortlessly dominate using the right strategies. But first things first! defining who your customers are. If you don’t have a clear picture, there is no way to know which businesses are competing with you to capture them.
A simple definition of your potential customers is all of the people who would want your product.

To find out exactly who these people are, we’re going to do a little research.