Identifying your competitors in retail

In the world of retail, it is important to know who your competitors are. Identifying your competitors can help you understand the market you operate in and how you can position yourself within it. Product-based businesses should look at their competitors’ strategy regarding their product, assortment, price and terms of delivery. For retailers and manufacturers, this task may seem daunting, especially in the ever-growing e-commerce landscape. However, with the right tools and strategies, identifying your competitors can be a straightforward process that yields important insights for your business.

In this article, we will explore what a retail competitor analysis in the ecommerce field entails and have a look at the competitors’ key information which aim to provide an extensive customer journey.

What is a competitor analysis?

A retail competitor analysis is a thorough investigation and evaluation of the various businesses that offer similar products in the same market as your retail company. The goal of a competitor analysis is to gain insights into how you can differentiate yourself.

Analyzing the competitors’ success factors

Analyzing competitor success factors in retail is an essential part of developing and executing a successful business strategy. Through the following factors, retailers and manufacturers can gain insight into their competitor’s crucial strengths and weaknesses and their resulting impact on customers' purchasing decisions.

Product offerings and availability

Recording product and related information is crucial for competitiveness. Understanding competition's product descriptions and availability can satisfy customer needs and may affect pricing strategies.

Assortment development

Assortments are dynamic entities that change over time. New products and product variants are added to the assortment, while other products are temporarily or permanently removed. 

Price

Since the purchase prices of the competition cannot be viewed or read out, the focus of competitive analysis is on recording sales prices, special prices, price changes, base prices and price levels.

Terms of delivery 

Getting an overview of delivery costs and delivery conditions can help to classify your own shipping strategy and make it more plausible..

The automated competitive analysis as an extension

The reasons why a retail company is successful in the market are often many and varied. Therefore, it is essential for the success of any business to keep a close eye on the competition - especially in today's digital age, where companies are just a click away from each other. Data collection as part of comparing one's ventures to the competition can also be automated. With its SaaS products, oraya offers comprehensive service packages to retailers, manufacturers and SMEs, enabling them to obtain up-to-date information about the competition on online stores, market places and price portals. After all, a continuous analysis of the competition helps your company to view it transparently and stay ahead of the game.