Using Social Media to Gain the Competitive Edge

The old adage is certainly true – the best defense is a good offense. In other words, have a killer product, an easy-to-navigate site, and an entertaining blog to attract and keep customers. But it doesn’t hurt to practice some defensive moves as well, in the form of checking out your competition. See what’s out there. What are your competitors doing? Is it something you should be doing? What kinds of services are they offering? How are they interacting with their customers? Thanks to social media, this information is as close as your Google Search Bar. Use Facebook, Twitter, and the blogosphere to tap into what your competition is doing – and use that information to your advantage.

Listen and Learn

The most important thing to remember as you embark on your “guerilla marketing” campaign is that you are simply gathering information. You want to find out what else is out there in your niche market, and how you can gain the edge. You are not there to slam your competitors or steal customers. Not only is this unethical and well, simply not nice, but in the viral word of social media marketing, it can come back to bite you in a big bad way. So listen and learn. Gather information and analyze. Are other sites offering a free trial of their product? Maybe you should too. And if no other sites are doing that…even better! You’ve found a service that is lacking, which you can step in and provide.

Follow the Tweets

Following your competitors on Twitter is probably the fastest and easiest way to find out what’s going on in your market – and the news comes directly from the Tweeter’s mouth. Your competitors are using Twitter to promote their product, so you have first-hand knowledge of new features and promotions. Go to http://search.twitter.com to find Tweeters in your market, and follow them. In addition to reading their Tweets, visit their Twitter homepage to glean as much information as possible about what they are offering.

Facebook Fans

Facebook fan pages are a quick, easy way to promote your own business, and to search out someone else’s. Search Facebook fan pages using keywords relating to your product. If no fan pages exist, congrats! You get to be the first to create a fan page for your business! If pages do exist, it’s another great opportunity to research how your competitors are promoting their product and interacting with their fans.

Enter the Blogosphere

Blogs are a really in-depth way to get to know how the other guys are doing it. In addition to reading up on their product, seeing what features and services they’re adding, you can also examine how they interact with their customers. Do they encourage feedback? Do they respond quickly? If a customer uses the blog to lodge a complaint, does the blogger work to remedy the situation? The blog is a more personal insight into your competitors’ products and methods.

A Unique Conduit

If your competitors are smart like you and have a Conduit Community Toolbar on their site or blog, how is it set up? Is it easy to access from their site? What kinds of widgets do they use? Which pages from their site are they highlighting or featuring? You want your toolbar to be distinct and unique, so take what you like, and then make it your own.

Staying as well-informed as possible helps you keep your competitive edge. You subscribe to industry newsletters and read up on the newest and latest technology in your market. Keeping an eye on the competition is another way to strengthen your knowledge and increase your understanding of the industry. Remember – a little defense makes your offense even stronger.