Tips, tools, and best practices for B2B marketers.

Spend some quality time with your competitors.  You might learn something.

September 23, 2008 | Posted by: Lee

When's the last time you spent some quality time on your competitors' sites?  By regularly visiting your competitors and evaluating them on a few key factors, you can gain some interesting insights that can help you create a better web site and experience for your buyer.

First, you have to get your mind right*.

Before you dive in, you have to have the right attitude.  Specifically:

1.  Look for what they do right, not what they do wrong.

When we visit our competitors' sites it's human nature to look for all the things they do wrong and humph at the claims they're making.  Instead of looking for what they do wrong, look for what they're doing right.  

2.  Don't think like a competitor, think like a buyer.

You'll need to take off your corporate marketing hat and shift your focus to that of the buyer.  Think about what they're looking for, what questions they have, and what pain points they're trying to address.    

Next, review sites for three key factors:  connection, content, and engagement.

Ok, you're ready to objectively look at each of your competitors' sites.  Start by looking at 3 key factors:

1.  How well do they answer buyers' questions?

• Do they connect with buyers by speaking directly to their needs and concerns (versus talking about themselves)?
• Do they have sections that address individual industries or roles?
• How deeply do they delve into technology, pricing, and implementation?
  
• Do they provide lots of information directly on the site, or do they require registration to get at the real meat?

2.  How much educational content do they provide?

• Are they publishing white papers?  How many?  How often?  Are they helpful?
  
• Do they hold webinars?  On what topics?  Do they invite others outside their company to speak?
• Do they provide checklists or other helpful tools such as ROI calculators or vendor comparisons?
  

3.  How are they engaging the buyer?

• Do they have a blog? A community?  A user group?
  
• Do they invite visitors to provide feedback or comment on content?
• Do they include videos, podcasts, or other rich media?
  
• What's the overall tone of their site?  Is it inviting or conversational?
  

Finally, rank competitors on how well they're doing.

Rank competitors in terms of how well they're answering buyers' questions, providing educational content, and engaging the buyer.  Make notes about areas where competitors are doing things you think will connect with buyers.

Now, go back and look at your site in light of what you've seen on your competitors.  How do you stack up against them?  Where are you lagging behind?  Where are you leading the pack?  What small changes can you make to better connect with your buyer? 

*10 points to anyone who can provide the name of the movie I'm referencing.