5-Steps to the First Clues

“Keep Your Friends Close…and Your Enemies Closer”

So, what does this saying have to do with advertising? Absolutely nothing. But it has a lot to say about how you should view your competition. Many of our clients play in highly competitive categories...and need to monitor the competition constantly. For these clients, we offer a detailed analysis, assessing the motivation and potential strategy behind a competitive move. We advise these clients to know their own products well, but that of the competition even better.

One great way to gather competitive intelligence is by checking out what is readily available – ADVERTISING! This can be television, print, or cover the multitude of social media options. However, if well constructed, they should all aim to send a singular message to their target consumer. Here are some of the tips we provide our clients to objectively evaluate the competition:

Preparation: Gather as many examples of a competitor’s advertising as possible. Make sure that the time period and category are the same.

1. GIVE IT THE “GUT CHECK” – Does the advertising seem to work? Can you decipher what their key message is? Is it single-minded? Make a list of perceived strengths/ weaknesses.
2. DECODE THEIR STRATEGY – Superior advertising allows you to figure out the brief pretty easily. What was their marketing objective? What issues are they trying to address? Who is their target?
3. DESCRIBE IN LESS THAN 30 SECONDS – Articulate in 30 seconds or less what the campaign idea across the various media is. Does this link to what you think their marketing objective was?
4. EVALUATE STAYING POWER – First, is the key message easily identifiable? Secondly, a key message, supported by strong content, has staying power if it is unique, ownable, and memorable. Does your competitor’s advertising possess these qualities? An easy test …wait a few hours, then try to describe the campaign to your roommate, partner, or spouse. Do they have any idea what you’re talking about? Can you bring the campaign idea to life in words?
5. EXAMINE IMPLICATIONS- If this campaign is effective, how will it affect your business? How might consumers now view your product offering? Ask yourself – why is the competition spending time and money on this campaign?

By using the above checklist, you will not only decipher your competition’s motivation…but also bring the evaluation of the creative from the subjective (Yuck! I don’t like it.) to the objective (The competition is trying to position itself as…).

Want more tips on how to analyze your competition OR have any great ads that you would like to share, contact me at Annette@compassmarketinginnovation.com