Frederick the Great'It is pardonable to be defeated, but never to be surprised'
COMPETITORS
- Other organizations offering the same or similar products or services.
- Organizations that could offer the same or similar products or services in the future.
- Organizations that could remove the need for a product or service.
Competitor intelligence focuses on competitors, their capabilities, current activities, plans, and intentions.
Competitor intelligence usually helps you answer a wide variety of key business questions
- Who are our competitors right now?
- Who are our potential competitors?
- How do our competitors see themselves?
- How do they see us?
- What are the track records of the key people at our competitors?
- What are their personalities?
- What is the environment in their own company?
- How and where are our competitors marketing their products⁄services?
- What new directions will they probably take?
- What markets or geographic areas will (or won’t) be tapped by our competitors in the future?
- How have our competitors responded to the short and long-term trends in our industry in the past?
- How are they likely to respond to them in the future?
- What patents or IP have our competitors or potential competitors recently obtained or developed?
- What do those changes and innovations mean to us?
- What are our competitors’ overall plans and goals?
Competitor intelligence‘s time horizon typically runs from 6–12 months in the past to 1–2 years in the future.