What’s the competition doing? Good question.
No brand is an island
At Context Creative, we believe that for any project of significance, a competitive overview is in order. It puts your brand into context. It gives you a more customer-centric perspective. Unless you’re the absolute only one in your category (not likely, or certainly not for long), you have competition. It pays to understand your competitors’ brands and their messages as you start on your initiative.
This is also the opportunity to compare yourself to the leaders in your category. What are they saying to their customers? Why are they leaders? How do they respond to inquiries? (Have you tried your competitors’ customer service capabilities? Try them – see how you stack up. And remember to try your own too!)
What are the deliverables?
For a typical competitive overview, we will choose 6 – 8 of your key competitors’ sites and/or advertising campaigns and investigate and report the following:
• Background and overview of products and services
• Site features and functionality
• Positioning/main messages
• Key differentiation
• Key strategy
• Target audience
Context Creative also examines industry news and information to help determine size, market share, and future plans for each competitor.
A side note: If you already have an up-to-date competitive overview, we can work with that. However, we’ve found that many companies just don’t have the time to keep track of their competitor’s marketing and advertising. They should, but they don’t. A competitive overview is their one chance to get a clear snapshot. Sound familiar?
Along with a competitive overview, you’ll also want to do a content inventory. Read why.
