Making the most of your competitors

Starting a business in itself is a very risky venture, scary to say the least.
In a world right now, where start-ups appear faster than mushrooms on a rainy day, how does one distinguish itself from the next door vendor, trying to sell the same thing as you, only promising to do it better?
While you plan your next big move to introduce in the market, or look to expand your client base, here is how your competitors can bring you more good news than bad.
Most small business entrepreneurs and start-up heads dream of having a business market all to themselves. Research however indicates that you’re probably be better off with some company. Professor Michael Porter of Harvard Business School has written extensively about industry “clusters” and has shown the benefits that competition brings to similar businesses within an industry. The reason why these so called ‘clusters’ area good thing is because they make your business, the talk of the mainstream industry. One needs a large group of people to validate and legitimize your activity. Your competitors are doing that or you already.
As a matter of fact, Markets are hardly ever crowded, as long as you are not one those ‘me too’ services, you are in a safe place. Most successful businessmen, will ear mark this for you, know your rivals’ products, market positioning, and financial status, and how they engage users, but don’t constantly react to every move they make. They help you understand your own product, and find alternate ways to find your place in the market. It breaks the norms, pushes teams out of the comfort zone and prompts better performances—within the company and outside into the world.
Competition also, most certainly guarantees to bring out the best of innovation. Being the only person in the market (an isolated incidence, or perhaps a rarity), or being the leader in the industry, leaves very little place for companies to reinvent and improve. When there is a positive competition in the market, more often than not, you are prompted to look at technology to improve, customer engagement and experience enhancement strategies or perhaps improvements for your services.
Market leaders and experts have deemed the year 2016, to be a year of collaboration for the world of business. Is definitely applies to small businesses and start-ups too. If your business exists in a large market space, chance are, there is a way for businesses to join forces to drive sales. In such a case however, the collaborations work with businesses that are a smaller competition.
Remember one thing— saturated markets too can be highly profitable. Businesses must focus on doing what they do best—doing it harder and better than the others on your watch. Competition mustn’t scare you, but drive you.
Steer on Folks! There is a lot of work to do!