Why Your Competition Makes You Better

NASCAR MEDIA COMMERCIAL 2013: RIVALS

NASCAR's latest commercial highlights the need for competition to become better in business

As a business owner competition is a double-edged sword. Competition means that you have a market that is viable and hopefully profitable. There is no rest for the weary in a competitive environment though. You can never let your guard down and rest on what is currently working. Your competitors will leap ahead of you if you do.

Being aware of your competition means that you need to devote time to learning what your rivals are doing to grow their businesses. Time is often a business owner never has enough of. There are is a simple, quick way to keep tabs on your competition through social media. It doesn't involve lurking in the shadows, outside of their business, to see what is going on. The trick? Engage them!

Subscribe to your competition's social media channels like Twitter, Facebook, and such.

Not only will you see what they are doing, but you can use their efforts to piggyback your posts. You can spark conversations, comment on posts, RT and quote posts from them. Sure, it would seem that you are promoting your competitor. The reality is that you start to position yourself as an expert in the field and a hub of authority. People will start turning to you rather than doing the work of skimming through all of the material they are given to get those golden nuggets of information.

Seeing what your competition is talking about will also give you ideas about what you can share. Note what topics they are discussing. How are they distributed? Are they just promoting their own products? Do they RT the competition as well? Do they use a lot of media, like photos? Are they sharing testimonials?

Examine the feeds of your competitors at least once a week to stay on top of the trends in your industry. Your competition does not need to be in your local area. Anyone who is doing social media in your field can be part of your competitor analysis. In fact, following others who may be doing it better than you are currently is a wonderful social media mentor for your own efforts.

Social media provides an interesting mix of competition and cooperation. The spirit of social media is about sharing information. Your task is to learn how to balance sharing with promoting.

David vs Goliath Marketing Insights is a program from Jalbert Mobile Solutions which focuses on helping small to medium-sized businesses use the strategies and tools big business uses.