Market Analysis for Entrepreneurs

Market Analysis

What We’ll Cover Today

Understanding your market

Analyzing your competitors

Defining target markets

Pricing strategies

Positioning





Pricing strategies

Positioning

Questions to ask

Is your market growing or shrinking?

Is there room for one more company?

Will you be bringing something different to

the market?

Do a BROAD search

Do a more specific search

Google Consumer Surveys

Google Consumer Surveys

What are industry blogs

talking about?

Conduct primary researchInterview potential customers, vendors, association leaders, related businesses

Use your own knowledge of

your industry

Trends?

Pricing?

Competitors?

New technology?

2006 – How I did it then

Personal knowledge of industry,

competitors and pricing

I knew website sales would continue

to grow in industry

I knew I had an innovative product

I didn’t aim too high

2016 – How I do it now

Industry data through associations

Constant asking/pulsing customers,

prospects, and others

Regular monitoring of competitors

Collaborative learning/sharing with staff

Annual SWOT and strategic planning





Pricing strategies

Positioning

Spy on your competitors: What do they say about themselves?

How are you different?

Where can you research them?Websites

Google

Press Releases

Social Media

Networking Events

Ask mutual contacts

The more you understand

your competitors,

the more effectively you can

position your company!

Competitive analysisYOUR COMPANY COMPETITOR 1 COMPETITOR 2 COMPETITOR 3

Overview

CompetitiveAdvantage

Target markets

Market share

Marketing Strategies

Products/Services

Pricing/Costs

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats





Pricing strategies

Positioning

Who buys from you?

Do they all look alike?

Or are they all a bit different?

The more you understand

your different target markets,

the better you can structure

your products, services and

marketing efforts.

Target market examples

Men who like to go fishing

and live in Alabama,

Tennessee, or Georgia

and make at least $60,000

per year


Women between the ages

of 25 and 65 who live

within 30 miles of Decatur,

Alabama


Small businesses with at

least 5 employees and

revenue of at least

$500,000 per year


The HR Directors at major

industries in Decatur such

as BP and 3M


Government Contractors

in Huntsville

Understand the value and potential

of each of your Target Markets. Which are the easiest to sell to?

Which are the most profitable?

Prioritize your target markets

1 2 3 4 5

What resources should you put into servicing or

growing each target market?

Establishing target markets

is the most efficient way

to maximize your

sales and marketing.

Should your services be packaged or marketed a bit

differently for different markets?

Define your services &

message for each market

AUDIENCE PRODUCT/SERVICE MESSAGE

General Business Branding, print design, web design, marketing & social media consulting

We can help you be more strategic with your marketing so your business grows

Economic & Community Development Organizations

Web design, retail recruitment guides, presentation materials

We can help your community attract the attention of site selectors and retailers

Existing Customers All services – with a focus on new services

Don’t forget we can help you with a wide range of services

List each

Audience…

…and the

service/product you

want to provide each

…and the

message you

want to tell each

Do this in Excel

AUDIENCE PRODUCT/SERVICE MESSAGE BEST WAY TO REACH

General Business Branding, print design, web design, marketing & social media consulting

We can help you be more strategic with your marketing so you get results

Networking, public speaking, sales reps, referral program, social media

Economic & Community Development Organizations

Web design, retail recruitment guides, presentation materials

We can help your community attract the attention of site selectors and retailers

Industry Tradeshows, sponsorships, referral program, e-newsletters, blog

Existing Customers All services – with a focus on new services

Don’t forget we can help you with a wide range of services

Social media, Direct mail, referral programs, e-newsletters, calls

List each

Audience…

…and the

service/product you

want to provide each

…and the

message you

want to tell each

…and the

best ways to

reach each

Next, determine the best way to reach each market

Research your options

Are there industry associations that allow

networking, tradeshows or advertising?

What local events do women go to and

what local groups do they belong to?

What magazines or newspapers do my

customers read?

What websites do my customers visit?

How do you choose?

What can you afford?

Spread out your visibility over time

What can you consistently deliver? Is a

monthly e-newsletter realistic?

Biggest rule: Have a presence in as

many places as possible within your

budget: a small ad four times is better than

a big ad once

Develop your 12 month plan and budgetDo date/pricing research for print ads, events. Then plug in around those.

Develop your 12 month plan and budgetDo date/pricing research for print ads, events. Then plug in around those.

Build in Structure and

Accountability with Monthly

Marketing Meetings

What happened last month? Did it yield results?

Should we do anything different?

What is coming up? What do we need to

prepare?

Anything anyone is seeing in the industry as an

opportunity or threat?

Any customer feedback on products or services?

How I identified my

target markets

- then and now -





Pricing strategies

Positioning

Factors to consider

Amount of competition

Typical price ranges for your industry

Cost of your materials or supplies

Lower overhead as a startup could enable

lower penetration pricing to gain market

share, or keep pricing competitive and

build more revenue to finance growth

What goes into cost model

Direct labor Direct Materials

Factory Overhead Sales, General, Admin

What the market will

bear

2006 – How I did it then

I knew most industry pricing

I belonged to an industry that provided

annual pricing surveys by market size and

size of agency

I knew what the market would bear

I used standard pricing out the gate for

design, penetration pricing for web.

2016 – How I do it now

All of the above plus

Direct analysis of all rates and pricing

based on current data

Adjustments based on internal analysis of

profitability by service and industry + what

the market will bear





Pricing strategies

Positioning

How can you differentiate to stand

out in your markets?

Define your brand identity. Get

beyond your services list to what

makes you different – an elevator

pitch could capture this.

Focus on talking about WHY

you are a better choice

We can help you grow your business

We can help you streamline operations

We can help you expand your capabilities

We can help you make better products

We have the best customer service

We have the most experience

We have the lowest price (be careful with this)

We are local

Factors to consider

• strengths

• competitor

weaknesses

• innovation

• target market

• price

• Industry trends

• experience

• customer

service

• reliability

• customer

feedback

• sales requests

How I did it

2006 - 2009/10 - 2016

Positioning needs to be

revisited regularly!

Rule #1:

Regularly

pulse your

company with

market

research –

PAY

ATTENTION!

RESEARCH

Customer Surveys

Industry Sources

Competitor Research

Internal Data

Google Research

Social Media

Rule #2:

ADAPT

QUICKLY!

RESEARCH

Customer Surveys

Industry Sources

Competitor Research

Internal Data

Google Research

Social Media

• New services

• New products

• New marketing

strategy

• New positioning

statements

Bottom Line:

You don’t have to be perfect.

You just have to be better

than your competitors.

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