When you do your competitive analyses, are you thinking about what you are competing with in your customers brains? Companies that compete in the same category “on paper” often don’t compete with each other in the brain. Think Starbucks vs. Dunkin’ Donuts. Through the Vital Indicators process, participants will do a deep dive into the minds of their segments to determine exactly who and what their brands are competing against, and what to do about it.
This takes into account direct competition, expanded/new competitors, industry/category issues, and news/events. Our process uses some high profile companies to demonstrate how this discipline can provide an element of clarity and simplicity relative to the complex challenges all brands face. Virtually every brand, large or small will be met with survival challenges… VitaL Indicators will provide a snapshot for you relative to your situation, what you can immediately leverage, or focus you on for immediate corrective action:
Sample approach… for the Quick Serve Restaurant category, participants used this model to determine which of the following brands were better positioned to continue to grow and build an “advocacy bond” with their customers, especially in a turbulent operating environment. How would you assess the future for the following brands based on these categories… it would be fun to share our findings with you!
