Competition
- What products and companies will compete with you?
List your
major competitors with names and addresses:
- Do they compete across the board with your entire business, or just for select products, customers, or only in certain locations?
- Are there any important indirect competitors? (For instance, personal chefs compete with restaurants, even though they are different businesses entirely.)
- How do your products or services compare with your competitions?
Below is
a Competitive Analysis table
- Use the table to compare your company with the two most important competitors to your business.
- In the first column of the table, there are some standard competitive factors; of course you may need to customize the list of factors for your unique business.
In the column labeled My Business
- Evaluate how your business compares to your competitor’s to your prospective customer.
- Then consider whether each of these factors are strengths or weaknesses to your business. It may be difficult to evaluate your own business weaknesses but it’s better to be honest than misguided.
- Another option is to consider asking someone outside of your business to help you with the evaluation. The Small Business Administration can help you connect with a business professional to act as your mentor. That person can add invaluable insight into the business planning process. A neutral observer can help you evaluate your business without the emotional attachment you bring to the picture.
- Next, use the table to analyze each of your competitors. Briefly sum up how they compare to your business.
- Finally, think of how your customer will view these factors – how important is each of the criteria to the customer with 1 being critical and 5 being unimportant.
