Never ignore your competitors.
Certainly your primary focus should be on your own business, but you must always keep track of your competitors. Pay attention to where they are, what they're offering, and how they're marketing.
- Study their ads.
- Periodically visit their websites.
- Read what's written about them in trade publications and other media.
- “Secret shop” them to find out how they sell.
When it comes to your competitors, you must figuratively sleep with one eye open. Do your best to stay ahead of them, to change your strategy and prevent them from copying you, to stretch and reach so they can't catch you.
Do your best to win every round, but know that you won't always. Sometimes you'll just have to clean up the mess after the fact and move on.
Just like you can take market share away
from someone else, someone can do it to you as well. Be vigilant. Know who your competitors are–both old and new players in your market.
Remember that the closer you are to the top, the further you have to fall–and the bigger the crash you'll make if you hit the bottom.
If you're successful, you're going to have competition. If you're making money, somebody else is going to want a piece of your action. So be prepared for it.
Let your competitors push you to be the best you can be.
Jacquelyn's latest book is Christian Business Almanac: The Ultimate Daily Guide for Kingdom-Driven Entrepreneurs and Leaders.
She is the author of the nonfiction books Simple Facts About Self-Publishing (Second Edition), Words to Work By: 31 devotions for the workplace based on the Book of Proverbs and Finding Joy in the Morning: You can make it through the night as well as the novel Choices (A Joyful Cup Story). With her husband, she is the co-creator of several coloring books for adults and the novelty My Book About series.
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