Attaining a Competitive Advantage: 8 Tips for Success

Are you trying to stay one step ahead of the competition? In business, even the slightest advantage can make or break your company. But just how do you get that all-important competitive advantage?

In a crowded marketplace or fast-moving industry, it can be extremely hard. Below, we give you our must-know tips on how to get a competitive advantage. 

1. Speak at Industry Events

Either as an individual or as a business, speaking at events can enhance the image of your organization greatly. It gives the appearance that you are an authority on a given subject, and have enough confidence to talk openly about it and take questions. 

If these events are used as wider promotional material or placed online like a TED talk, your influence increases even further. While they may not link directly to sales, your brand awareness will go through the roof. In addition, any other media outlets looking to talk about your industry will be sure to make you their first stop. 

2. Show Your Competitive Advantage

Once you have a competitive advantage established, don’t just use it. Show it, and let people know about it. This includes competitors, investors, but most of all, your customers. 

Great ways to show competitive advantages are through statistics and numbers, or any survey data that can prove your superiority. Social proof such as testimonials and customer feedback also works well. All of this can carry through to any presentations or pitches you may give on the company. 

3. Up Your Prices

While dropping prices may attract be tempting to attract extra business, is it really the image you want for your company? When you think of defining brands, such as Mercedes, Rolex, and Gucci, are any of them benefiting from pricing themselves lower than others? Of course not, because the price tag is part of the attraction. 

This is known as prestige pricing. It can boost your image, attracting wealthier clients and customers. In addition, it will bring you an increase in profit margins. 

The only downside is that you must always deliver on the high quality you promise. You will be far less likely to get away with any mistakes or errors that may impact this. 

4. Take Customer Relationships Even Further

Your greatest source of information is your customers. They know what makes you work, and what can make you even better. All of the answers given can divulge the keys to gaining a competitive advantage. 

When many businesses try to take these relationships one step further, their efforts often come off as impersonal. Offering a discount or holding a competition may attract people, but they inevitably benefit you more than your customer base. 

Try to build the relationship without the reciprocal agreement in place. Invite customers and clients to an event that you pay for. Think about holding a party where they can have a drink and chat with you one to one. 

5. Up the Adaptability Quotient in Your Workforce

Measurements and predictions of success have always changed. IQ used to be the go-to and showed how intelligent a person was perceived to be. After this it was emotional intelligence, that told us how well a person was at building relationships. 

With the dawn of the digital era and the rise of automation, the adaptability quotient has become the new measure of how successful a person may be. It measures a person’s ability to adapt to different tasks and jobs, which is certainly going to be brought in front of them in a constantly changing environment. 

Get a mix of people who embody IQ, emotional intelligence, and adaptability in your workforce. This balance will set you up with a business competitive advantage that can take on any changes or problems that will arise. 

6. Use New Technology Wisely

Using technology that others do not yet have gives an excellent business competitive advantage. It allows you to do things other cans not. This might be creating a product or speeding up delivery and manufacture times.

Staying ahead of the technological curve is one thing, but using it wisely is another. Some purchases and additions can lead down blind alleys that cost you money. Always assess the value technology is adding to your customers or production before investing in it. 

7. Get a Niche

An interest in everything is as good as an interest in nothing, and so it can be with a business. If you try to appeal to everyone, you just end up giving half measures to a lot of people and not really excelling for anyone. This is when it pays to find your niche. 

This comes back to asking and knowing your audience. See what their demographic is and how they like to interact. Then capitalize on it, amping up the tone and communication in a way that will seem personal to them. 

8. Influence Online

Being an online influencer does not have to involve posting TikTok videos and doing makeup tutorials. Influencers come in all shapes and sizes, from professionals to amateurs, from serious to fun. If you have a niche that has a valid audience, then why are you not an influencer already?

Think about starting up videos and podcasts on your niche. Invite guests to the chosen medium to talk about the topic or industry. You will soon have a following that views you as an expert, giving you a competitive advantage. 

Pushing Further

Once you have a competitive advantage, you should not stop. The further you push yourself ahead of the competitors, the more stability you add to your organization. Keep adding elements that always keep you one, two, or three steps ahead of the others. 

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