One of the most common business management tools is to perform a competitor SWOT analysis in order to gauge the competition’s strengths and weaknesses. SWOT refers to strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and is often used within a quadrant, or grid, where one can account for those attributes that fit under each appropriate category.
A competitor SWOT analysis allows companies to pinpoint their competition’s greatest strengths, capitalize on their weaknesses, identify opportunities and be cognizant of the threats posed by the competition’s approach to business. One unique application of a competitor SWOT analysis is to use the information it provides to improve your company’s existing customer service abilities. So, how is this done?
Using the SWOT Analysis to Improve Customer Service
Improving a company’s customer service requires the ability to capitalize on the lack of the competition’s customer service strengths, or more appropriately, to capitalize on the competition’s weaknesses in customer service. The competitor analysis can be used to isolate those issues most important to your customers, issues that aren’t being adressed by the competition.
Identify the competition’s customer service strengths and weaknesses, and improving your company’s customer service becomes that much easier. However, it’s not only about your competition’s strengths & weaknesses, but also about the opportunities and threats posed by what your competition does well, and doesn’t do well, when servicing their customers. So, what are the questions that must be answered within your competitor SWOT analysis and how can you use that information to improve your own customer service?
The above video explains the differences between using a SWOT and TOWS analysis.
Customer Service SWOT Analysis
1. What are Your Competitor's Strengths as Viewed by Your Customers?
Concentrate on how your customers see your competition’s customer service strengths. Don’t focus on what you believe their strengths are. Instead, use real examples directly from your customers. Try and ignore those erroneous statements where your customers were merely trying to get you to capitulate on a concession. You should be able to decipher your competition’s customer service strengths by weeding out those customer claims that you know simply aren’t true. Focus on facts about your competition’s customer service strengths.
2. What are Your Competitor’s Weaknesses as Viewed by Your Customers?
Come up with a list of your competition’s customer service weaknesses from the perspective of their customers. Is there something you know your competition doesn’t do well in customer service? Again, focus on specifics and most importantly, on those statements made by customers. In this sense, it’s important to listen to a customer’s subtle hints about having been let down by your competition. Not every customer will come out and state why your competition disappointed them. Most will be subtle or may even ask leading questions about what your company can offer. These questions offer clues as to how your competition failed to service them.
3. What are Your Competitor’s Opportunities as Viewed by Your Customers?
Understand what opportunities are available to your competition because of how they’ve successfully serviced their customers. Have they recently changed approaches and have these changes resonated with their customers in a way as to give them the first shot at new business? Take the time to write down all the opportunities available to your competition as a result of what they’ve done correctly in customer service. Has your competition suddenly vaulted ahead of your company in the market and become your customers’ vendor of choice – pushing your company further down the line?
4. What are Your Competitor’s Threats as Viewed by Your Customers?
Finally, what is your competition planning to change that might not be welcomed by their customers. This portion of the competitor analysis a little tricky, but focus on something your competition was doing well, that is ultimately thinking of no longer doing. In some cases, a company may have adopted a certain customer service initiative that has ultimately become too expensive to continue providing. The decision to stop providing this kind of service is often a threat to their customers, but an opportunity for your company to capitalize on.
When it comes to using a competitor SWOT analysis to improve your customer service , it really amounts to identifying those strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats as seen by your customers. In this case, focus on how these customers see your competition and their dificiencies in customer service. The information that’s provided from a thorough competitor SWOT analysis can be the foundation for your company aggressively improving your customer service abilities.
The best way to differentiate your company's service offering is to take the time to offer something your competitors simply can’t match. However, to do that means you must understand how your customers see your competition. Use the analysis to answer those questions about how your competition manages their customers.
SWOT is a great brainstorming tool. Aside from using it to improve your customer service, you can also use it to improve your supply chain and inventory management strategies. If you want to see how the TOWS analysis can improve your supply chain, then go here.
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