Developing a winning strategy is all about creating a reliable actionable plan for business objectives. And so, it is more important than simple market research. Particularly due to its better application.
Winning strategy induces market research, internal and external analysis as well as injection of intelligence to aid strategic planning. On the other hand, market research is all about collecting relevant market information.
Market research from competitive intelligence consultants helps highlight opportunities. Informs about changing market trends and improves market understanding. Market research allows you to know the needs and wants of your customers so that you can improve customer acquisition and customer loyalty.
Market research can be integrated into decision making processes to develop winning strategies. This strategy is inline with businesses strengths and often aims to eliminate weaknesses in order to accomplish main objectives.
These objectives may be long term according to the vision and mission of the business. Secondly the winning strategy encapsulated market research as it uses the information gathered from research to integrate it into an actionable plan.
This means that market strategy is more important than market research. So even if information gathered through research is not too detailed. It can be manipulated and exploited usefully through a smart strategy.
Moreover, the winning strategy takes into account other factors while market research is primarily market focused. For example, strategizing involves taking into account organizational capabilities, budget, risks and rewards.
Moreover, strategizing often involves developing market intelligence in order to plan more effectively. Market intelligence gives a deeper, more complex perspective of the market. As it focuses on not just what and how but also on why.
On the other hand market research only addresses how things are instead of giving a reasoning as to why so and so exists.
Winning strategy
Firstly, gain in profitability and performance while improving the financial strength of the company. Secondly, it must improve competitive strength and markComing up with a strong, well thought winning strategy should be the backbone of your business plan. Winning strategy varies from business to business and industry to industry. However there are certain things that are consistent regardless of the nature of business.
The winning strategy focuses on developing and understanding intelligence in order to position oneself to achieve strategic objectives. In other words, winning strategy focuses on developing, deploying and defining strategic capabilities.
The end goal is primarily to establish competitive advantage over the competitors. Competitive advantage is an unfair advantage that a business may have over its competitors. This value cannot be replicated or is at least difficult to replicate.
So winning strategy is developed by binding competitive intelligence, internal and external analysis of the organization. Thus establishing a strong understanding of one’s own capabilities, factors in the outside environment and details of competitors market strategy.
And this is what differentiates a winning strategy from any other strategy. In order to be called a winning strategy, it must match the factors in the company’s internal and external environment.
The company must be fully aware of the outside competition. And its strategies must be tailored to fit the companies competitive resources and capabilities. Thus ensuring complete effectiveness of the strategic performance of the business.
Secondly the winning strategy must help the businesses achieve competitive advantage over its competition. These are the two major characteristics of a winning strategy that must be true.
Moreover, winning strategy enables you to advance further in your objectives as well as improve your company’s standing. In fact you can judge the effectiveness of your strategy by two key metrics.
et standing.
Market research
Market research is performed in order to understand opportunities in the market as well as identify the needs and wants of customers. So market research is a practice primarily in marketing.
Market research from competitive intelligence services provides you information so that you can reposition your branding and value communication. So that you could have greater convincing power for customer acquisition as well as develop customer retention ability.
Sometimes it is better to focus on customer retention than customer acquisition. So you may focus on building customer loyalty instead of dealing with competitors. This could only be determined by conducting market research and then weighing the pros and cons.
Information gathered through research influences market positioning and brand building. These are the key activities that establish a good customer base and relationship. In Fact they are crucial for communicating value to customers.
Moreover, market research allows you to develop strong value propositions for your customers. Developing value is one aspect of marketing yet delivering value is another key aspect that ensures customer satisfaction.
Marketing helps businesses understand the best means to deliver value. This may include improving channels, developing close relationships with the customers and collecting feedback regarding your products and services.
Market research includes primary market research as well as secondary market research. Primary research is the research that you conduct in order to deduce or gather information about your target market.
Whereas secondary research includes collecting data from third party sources. Primary data is often more relevant but is time consuming. And there are often difficulties in performing your own research.
On the other hand, secondary research is readily available data. Yet it may be expensive, irrelevant and not up to date. Moreover, you must rely on a third party to provide you with accurate information regarding the market.
Winning Strategy vs Market Research
Winning strategy and market research are both useful for business to move forward and thrive in the market conditions. However, there are key differences between the two that must be thoroughly understood.
Winning strategy influences a company’s major strategic decision-making processes. And it uses intelligence as well as detailed internal and external analysis to improve competitive advantage.
On the other hand, market research influences marketing objectives and strategy. It is developed through primary and secondary data collection in order to meet the needs of customers as well as position their company to acquire new customers.
