Using your Customers and Competitors to identify business opportunities

Written by Adi Young @ Eight Zero

As savvy business owners, we need to be continually innovating our products and services and looking for new opportunities to grow our business year in, year out.

But how do you find these opportunities to take your business to new heights of growth?

Here are some simple ways to use your customers and competitors to help identify new and untapped business opportunities. 

1. Listen to past and potential customers

When speaking with potential customers; use their knowledge to your business advantage. Listen to their needs, challenges and frustrations within your industry. This will help you to develop more targeted products and services and overcome common objections.

Questions you can ask include: -

• Have they used similar products and services before? If so, who?
• What did they like?
• What did they dislike?
• How did they come across your business?

Payclose attention to customers comments about your business.

2. Listen to your customers

When speaking to your current customers, pay close attention to their comments about your business, products and services.

• What are their frequently asked questions, experiences or frustrations?
• Have they left online positive feedback or made any complaints?

Make notes of these comments in digital format for future reference. This will help you to understand more about your own business.

Customer insights (good or bad) will help you identify key business opportunities.

A great way to collate customers’ thoughts is to create online feedback forms and surveys. The great thing about using these methods is that they are relatively easy to setup and extremely cost-effective. Asking the right questions will prompt your customers into giving you the answers you need to identify business opportunities that you may not have been aware of or have overlooked in the past. 

3. Competitor Research

Just as keyword research is a key element in the world of SEO, competitor research is a key element of spotting business opportunities. It is a great way to learn, discover and grow any business. It allows you to understand where your business currently sits in the market and helps you to learn new ways to serve your customers.

Analysing how and why your competitors do what they do will help you expand your market reach by developing better services.

Some questions to ask may include: -

• Where are they falling?
• What are they doing right/wrong?
• What makes customers go to them over you?
• Is my business sending out correct messages?

Finishing up

Seizing new opportunities is necessary when growing any business. By using the knowledge and wisdom of your customers and competitors you can create new and exciting opportunities that can give your business the competitive edge.


Contact Eight Zero today if your business would like to generate more web traffic. 

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