Have you done your market analysis?

How many bodyshops do market analysis?
Large corporations will spend huge amounts of effort on market analysis. For the smaller businesses that Numina Consulting works with this is clearly impractical. However, there does need to be an understanding of the key parts of the market, the customers served and the position of your business within this mix. Much of this you may feel you know instinctively but it is worth revisiting to ensure you haven’t made any assumptions that may catch you out later.
As a minimum you should understand:

Are the markets in which your products are offered growing or shrinking? If so by how much?

Are there any major (potential) customers for your firm who dominate the market? Who are the top 5 or top 10 players in the market and what market share do they represent?

Who are your competitors on each of your products? What market share do they enjoy for these products?

Do you have the same competitors on all your products? Do you have the same customer groups for all your products?

Where is the money coming from? Which of your customers and products generate what proportions of your revenue?

Where is the money going to? Which areas of your business absorb the most of your revenue?

Where’s the profitability? Which products and areas of your business are most profitable?

How strong are you relative to your competitors?

The information you gather here is important because it shows you where you are strong in the market, with customers and with products and profitability. These are the areas to focus on and strengthen. Areas where you are weak are where you should consider an exit strategy or, if you have to, fix them.
Now you should look back at your vision and make sure that it is still good in the light of the market information that you have determined. Have you positioned yourself correctly with customers? Are your staff going to be enthused and motivated by the vision of where the business is headed? Are you going to get out of bed every day with a real energy to take your company to the heights of your vision?

Conclusion
You need an awareness of the market and where your organisation and your competitors sit in the market to make strategic decisions. You cannot make an area of your business the strategic differentiator for your organisation without understanding where it is placed commercially. Ensure you have key, relevant and up to date information to hand ready for your strategy development.

If you’d like some help or advice on building and implementing a strategy for your organisation get in touch
http://numinaconsulting.co.uk/inscontact.html

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