Tracking and monitoring competitors’ operations can help businesses develop their own successful marketing efforts and strategies.  It’s important to look at their clients, new products/services being offered, and keep up with price fluctuations and demands within a specific market.

1. Review How Your Competitors are Reaching Consumers
“Review… the media your competition is using to reach consumers… where they are advertising and what offers are being leveraged… [for] insight on how to plan your own marketing efforts.”   — Mike Tinz, VP-Money Mailer

2. Review Competitors’ Websites
Look on competitors’ websites to see what products/services they offer, which might be different  from those your own business offers.

3. Compare Your SEO Efforts
To move your company higher in search rankings and generate more business, make sure your website keywords are current. Search Google using the keywords your customers are likely to use and note where you and your competitors are ranking.

4. Check Out Customer Review Sites and Speak to Your Own Customers
Check what others are saying by looking at review sites in your industry.  Ask your customers what they like and don’t like to learn how to improve your own business.

5. Understand Pricing and Special Offers
“Understanding the pricing and special offers that your competition is advertising will… create a compelling proposition to drive traffic [to] your business [and] help you better understand if you are under-priced or… overpriced.” — Mike Tinz, VP-Money Mailer

6. Use Google Alerts¹ to Your Advantage
Setting up Google Alerts to arrive in your inbox for a specific company/industry will ensure you remain up-to-date on any news stories related to your business.

7. Learn How Internet and Social Media are Being Used to Communicate
Use the Internet to learn how competitors are communicating with consumers.
Follow your competitors on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc., to examine their strategies.

8. Buy From a Competitor
An old-fashioned way to track competition is to buy from them directly. Visit their store or website to learn about their products/services. Utilize this information to advance your business.

It’s important to stay abreast of changes in today’s competitive business landscape.Monitoring your competitors is an integral step to ensure your company progresses.

¹Google Alerts is a content change detection and notification service, offered by Google. The service sends emails to the user when it finds new results—such as web pages, articles, blogs, or scientific research—that match the user’s search terms.

Source:  Small Business Trends, Gabrielle Pickard-Whitehead; Mike Tinz, VP-Money Mailer

“The power of online is in the hands of the searcher.
When someone lands on a page, they should be satisfied with the result.”
– SearchDex CEO David Chaplin

Search is important to a business’ overall success, and an essential part of the “consumer behavior funnel” Awareness-Research-Purchase-Customer Loyalty:

A SearchDex study reveals that marketers believe search is a key business strategy:

• 93% said it was “extremely” or “very” important to have high search rankings.
• 96% said an automated solution may help them keep track of their search program.
• Lack of SEO strategy may negatively impact consumer interest, loyalty, trust, and profits.

Following are 3 tips to help make search programs more valuable:

1) Recognize the customer journey. 

• Search is a top-of-funnel activity – a consumer may not purchase immediately after a search result, so it’s important to have other secondary campaigns.
• If top-funnel consumers like where the search click takes them, they’re likely to bypass the search bar and go directly to your website to purchase.

2) Maintain your brand. 

• Consumers can find whatever they’re looking for and can compare prices in an instant, so the real value a company has is its brand.
• Searchers who have an unsatisfying post-click experience may not return to make a purchase.

3) Keep content updated.

• Search is no longer simply a keyword game — Google’s algorithms are getting more sophisticated, giving more weight to valuable content.
• Whatever you put on the Internet should be useful to the consumer transaction, with content that is informative, valuable and current.

Given the importance marketers have placed on search for a company’s overall performance, it’s clear that search is still vital to any business.

Source: MediaPost-SearchInsider, Aaron Baar; SearchDex; Cahner’s Magazine

Claiming and optimizing your Google My Business listing has proven to be a good way to raise your local search ranking.

Google My Business (GMB) is a free tool for businesses to manage their online and mobile presence in Google Search, Maps, Reviews and Knowledge Panel (see graphic). By verifying your business information, you help prospects and customers find you and get vital information about your business. Most importantly, businesses that verify their information with Google My Business are twice as likely to be considered reputable by consumers.1

Benefits of Using Google My Business

1. Raise Local Search Ranking
Google ranks GMB-verified businesses higher in local search, allowing small businesses to better compete with national brands.

2. Manage Your Business Information
Manage the information that online and mobile users see when they search for your business, or the products and services that you offer.

3. Interact with Customers and Prospects
Respond to reviews, post daily specials/promos, promote events and create a one-click path for purchases, reservations or other important activities.

4. Understand and Expand your Online Business Presence
Google provides insights on how people search for your business, and information about how many people called your business or received directions.

5. Mobile Enable Your Business
People searching from a mobile device can tap directly on your phone number to call,
get directions to your business, or connect to your website.

If you’re like most businesses and looking to raise your online business presence, there is no better way to start than claiming and optimizing your Google My Business listing.

¹Google/Oxera, The Benefits of Complete Business Listings.
Article Information Source: Google