Gone are the days when a set of rules would produce results and help you survive in the market over time. Today’s market is volatile, cruel, and ever-changing. As inflation continues to put constant pressure on businesses, the number of bankruptcies in the United States has increased. It has grown from 12478 companies in the second quarter of 2022 to 13125 companies in the third quarter of 2022.
(Source: Administrative Office of the US Courts)
COVID-19 has exacerbated the situation over the last two years. According to a report, the bankruptcy level in the US corporate sector has been the worst in the last 10 years. However, there are plenty of options for you to consider to survive in the market.
To capitalize on this, any business today must first identify its potential. They should be aware of their organization’s resources, strengths, and weaknesses. When done correctly, you can use those resources to analyze the market, determine consumer behavior, and identify trends to define your next-term plan.
Here, we have identified some of the best ways for you to find new market opportunities for your business.
Tip 1: Analyze customer beliefs and behavior shift
Customer attitudes and behavior change over time. For example, approximately 75% of US consumers tried a new store or brand due to limited shopping options during the pandemic. As a business, you must understand when a customer purchases your product, how they use it, and your key advantages/ weaknesses compared to your competitors.
You can also analyze customer feedback and your product’s social media status and choose to follow hacks to learn how consumers are using your products to find more product-related ideas.
Tip 2: Identify innovative processes/ product ideas
Another way to exploit market opportunities is by identifying innovations. Take note of the innovative startups in your domain and the key idea behind them. You can also take the help of artificially intelligent solutions to harvest existing innovative ideas that you can work on. These machine learning models can help you identify the pattern that usually goes hidden and can help you save time by providing you with useful insights.
Tip 3: Adapt sustainability
The modern-day mantra for successful organizations is sustainability. With the right sustainable strategies, you ensure less waste and a lower debt and equity cost. As a result, it is critical that you use sustainable materials in your manufacturing process, optimize existing processes, and reduce emissions.
According to the McKinsey Global Survey, 83% of experts and executives believe that long-term programs will increase shareholder value in 5 years. Furthermore, according to a recent study, companies with high ESG (environment, social, and governance) ratings have 3.7 times higher operating margins than those with low ESG ratings.
Tip 4: Improve the existing framework
It is unnecessary to seek new avenues for better opportunities, survival, and growth. One important aspect of market survival is continuous improvement. Identify the phases where the wastage is maximum, be it production, packaging, digital, or transportation. There can be a reduction in energy, waste, emissions, natural resources, improved processes, and even better training of your workers. For example, robots and automation are preferred in areas of repetitive tasks.
Tip 5: Direct competition analysis
Analyzing your supply chain is critical knowledge to have when scaling your business. The process will assist you in determining the market performance of your products, target market, price comparison, pain points, gaps you can fill, and the advantage you have over your competitors. For example, McDonald vs. Burger King rivalry is a very great example of direct competition analysis.
Tip 6: Analyze complementary products and services
Analyzing products that compliment your goods and services is always a good idea. These products help you get to know your customers even better by analyzing their spending habits. This, in turn, can help you with your business’s investment and strategic planning. For example, because many people used to eat right after seeing a movie, movie theaters added dine-in options to ensure customer satisfaction.
Tip 7: Indirect competition analysis
You can also find new market opportunities for your business by researching domains that are similar to yours. They might not be your direct competitors but may serve the same consumer in a different way. For example, one flight company may compete with another in the transportation industry. Other modes of transportation, such as roads, seaways, and so on, can provide answers to many questions. They can tell you which routes are frequently taken, what the minimum and maximum price a consumer is willing to pay, how you can gain an advantage over these indirect competitors, and so on.
Tip 8: Environment analysis
We live in a world that is constantly changing. These changes contribute to new opportunities and ideas for potential businesses. For example, only 20% of total phone users had an internet subscription last year. However, this figure reached 53% in 2016 and is undoubtedly higher now. Despite the pandemic, the number of businesses in IoT, Mobile Care, AI, and Energy has increased significantly.
According to one report, the global IoT market is expected to grow to 24.1 billion devices, which is nearly three times the current population. The market is expected to generate $1.5 trillion in annual revenue. That is enormous. Isn’t that right?
Tip 9: Foreign market analysis
Different geographies and demographics have different growth paces. Reasons might be stability/ instability, development, economic disparity, weather conditions, and local behavior. If your industry has been going through saturation for a long time, you can also analyze other geo markets. This may help you keep your business one step ahead of others. However, don’t give your complete hope to this one, as it is not necessary that the strategies working well in one geography would work the same for you.
Apart from these ideas, you can explore a few more. However, the best one we found helpful was to start afresh. Give your business a good and fresh thought. Undoubtedly, the pandemic has changed the world. But it’s getting back to a new normal for good. This is the best time to use this opportunity for your benefit and to figure out how to grow your business with all the resources at your hand. Connect with the community online and figure out more about the same.