How Competitive Intelligence Helped a Household Name Decide Its Future Direction. A Competitive Intelligence Case Study

How Competitive Intelligence helped a household name decide its future direction. A Competitive Intelligence case study

This is a case study where we looked at two new potential markets for an online household name. They got an excellent insight and more certainty to base to decide which direction to take.

You know how

You know how you are an established company known for a particular well-known product? Your brand adorns the advertising hoardings around Premier League football teams pitches. But you realise that there is so much more you can do with your tech and financial resources. Perhaps in a less competitive environment?

What we did

This was the first time the company had used a Competitive Intelligence advisor. So, they did not know what to expect. They had written a good market research brief and selected us because we challenged them. We suggested alternative areas, questions and ways of thinking. Others just put a standard price breakdown into a document and agreed to the brief.

We had discussions with their senior product managers. They could see opportunities for their talented software development teams to expand. Moving into unrelated areas with a strategic connection with what they were doing. A shortlist of five potential sectors was created. And then it was drilled down to three markets they wanted us to investigate. Together we then defined a set of tight questions to answer.

This is what they got.

They got a clear set of recommendations of what to do. And what not to do. Creating an understanding of the range of product possibilities and thus realising the potential for an existing player capable of taking on a new vast market.

The targeted marketplaces are segmented by:

• Product
• Demography
• Physical presence (UK/European/Global)
• Pro/Am status
• By UX (linked to Pro/Am)

Realising the need to be prepared to spend bigger on market presence with higher stakes, doing so invokes a massive potential.

Isolating an opportunity provides continued differential by providing advisory educational and easy access learning materials.

There is also a likelihood of an in-depth understanding of the potential market size and associated growth figures, enhanced knowledge of the key players in the market, and their marketing spend in this sector.

Plus insight into current customer platform churn rates, market demographic breakdown and analysis of the split between web and app usage.

The knowledge of these developments within associated value chains and the vital importance of trust and convenience in these marketplaces supports the realisation of the level of sector regulation and anticipated changes and, what’s more, delivers a flavour of the current VC investment in the markets.

And the result was

So the result was that it was clear that our client had many advantages. They would add substantial value as a new market entry, especially over tech investor-driven start-ups. We found that it would be strategically viable to enter these sectors as long as they could be as agile, fresh and open-minded as a start-up.

An understanding of the key message to consider for entry. A realisation of their potentially unique advantage. The strength of being a substantial existing organisation with compatible architecture. Playing on their current customer demographics and growth management expertise.

The company now understands three alternative markets that they could move into. They have vastly experienced software developers primed to create something. Now it is up to them if they stick or twist. Stay where they are doing well in a very mature market or expand into new fertile fields.

So watch this space.

How Competitive Intelligence helped a household name decide its future direction. A Competitive Intelligence case study

This was a case study where we looked at two new potential markets for an online household name. They got an excellent insight and more certainty to base to decide which direction to take.