Advanced Market Intelligence for a Competitive Edge

What is Market Intelligence?

Market intelligence can be defined as the data or information that is obtained by a company from the market it operates or wishes to be a part of, in order to aid in determining market size, penetration, segmentation, opportunities, and other market indicators. Market intelligence is an essential aspect of understanding the market's state, and also helps gather competitors’ intelligence which helps in achieving profitability.

Market intelligence is not equivalent to business intelligence. While business intelligence concentrates on internal aspects like billing rates, processes, and headcount, market intelligence collects information from outside, providing an overall view of the market as a whole and not just your business. Incorporating market intelligence into business intelligence procedures will allow an organization to gain an entire view of the continuous performance of its business in certain market circumstances.

How do Companies use Market Intelligence?

Market intelligence is inextricably linked with market research. It can be described in three parts:

1. Competitor Intelligence

It is described as the collection of information about your competitor by using methods that are ethical, such as public records and databases maintained by the government. For instance, Japanese automotive companies were capable of capturing US markets and even taking over by using information about competitors. Recognizing the necessity for top-quality and fuel-efficient cars, they were able to plan and enter the US market with success.

2. Product Intelligence

This is the process of gathering information about competitors' products or similar products in the market. For instance, a Telecommunications company has to keep track of the price of competitors’ mobile phones within the same market. Price drops in the competitor's model could indicate that companies are introducing a brand new model to the market. The knowledge gained from this can help companies to launch their products at the right time and appropriate cost.

3. Market Understanding

Market understanding involves knowing what market share you hold for your business, changes within the marketplace, the magnitude of your market, and which market is your primary target. Understanding the demand in the market, and customer needs can help a company tremendously increase its revenues and market share.

Related: Why Businesses Should Prioritize Market Research?

Types of Market Intelligence

• Surveys
• Analysis
• Reports and Presentation

1. Surveys

A survey study comprises a series of questions arranged in a short method to gather information from the market you want to target and examine the results to provide useful market research. The greater the size of the group of respondents that participate, the more reliable the outcomes. There are many ways that surveys are conducted, based on the type of information that needs to be gathered.

• Online surveys: These are the most effective and affordable ways to gather information quickly. Surveys like these have been linked to unreliable data however with the introduction of newer software on the market, this strategy has grown in popularity and is reliable, allowing you to access immediate data. Additionally, the majority of people who are interested in the survey already use the internet for communication, which is why internet-based surveys can be the most effective method of gathering market information.
• In-Person Surveys: These surveys are interviews conducted one-on-one that can be conducted in high-traffic areas like malls or shopping centers to gather the information needed. It also lets you collect feedback from customers since you can enjoy the benefit of showcasing your product, or comparing it with other products and obtaining valuable data.
• Phone/Mail Surveys: These are relatively less expensive contrasted to in-person surveys however they are more expensive than postal surveys. While, several firms use telemarketing, which means consumers do not react well to constantly requesting Information.

2. Analysis

Intelligence is different from information. Information isn't useful until there is a meaning to it. Information is nothing more than knowledge about a certain subject or product, whereas intelligence is the process of gathering information that can be utilized to make a decision. To convert the information gathered into useful intelligence, an analysis needs to be conducted on the data.

3. Reports and Presentation

Market intelligence is only possible through presentations and reports. Reports and visual infographics can help companies understand markets better and answer questions such as what the metrics are. This step is crucial in market intelligence. A company can be exposed to danger if they interpret the data incorrectly. A reliable and powerful market intelligence program has made the entire market intelligence process much simpler. Market intelligence can be used effectively to enable companies to penetrate markets successfully and effectively, understand competition, and understand the market overall.

Advantages of Market Intelligence

• Customer Retention: can be increased by the monitored and analyzing customer’s needs and making them loyal to your product.
• Improve Sales Process: It can help you to determine market segmentation that allows the company to know whether the product will succeed or not.
• Give a Competitive Advantage: It helps you keep a watch on the competition, and the upcoming trends, and gives a complete image of the market, which allows a company to penetrate the market.
• To understand Position: Through various surveys from all channel of the market understands the competition of the market and tell you the rank of your company then make strategies accordingly.
• Target Audience The gathering of market data will enable companies to know the preferences of the customers and through surveys, businesses can identify their ideal customers for specific products or services.

Market Intelligence Tools

Here are some of the market intelligence tools you can use to research and analyze Market Intelligence:

• Visualping
• Prisync
• Semrush Eyeon
• G2 Crowd
• Social Searcher

Get in touch with us to learn more about RationalStat's offerings.