Competitor Analysis

Competitor Analysis

Every company has to deal with competitors; rival companies that offer similar products or services, and focus on the same market.

Before the advance of the internet, competitors would often enjoy their own sphere of influence, i.e. in relation to location or tradition. The internet has changed all this, since rival companies now find themselves located side by side on the Web, where the actual battle takes place.


Competitive Analysis

Internet consultants use competitive analysis to assess the web pages of their customers' competitors. That way they define the existing situation and determine how to alter the balance.


By using competitive analysis, internet consultants will suggest ways to make your Web page capable of competing on the market. That process includes the assessmant of the following issues:

• The accessibility of information


• Design and layout of the webpage


• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)


• Internet marketing (SEM)


• How the product or service is promoted


• Updates and additions


• How the webpage reflects the respective company’s image.

In order to succeed, one must know the competitors, the actual opposition. And knowing your adversary is the first step to victory.

Originally written for Econ (2007).