Are we losing share? Revenues are down. Future prospects are gloomy. Is the market down as much (or more) than we are? If we could actually gain share during this recession, it could have exponential benefits when the economy turns around.
Unfortunately, senior-decision-makers often place too much emphasis on the simple market share number. Suppose your market share slips from 34% to 31% in a year. Now what? What is the actionable step your company will take to rectify the situation?
Unless you have a solid understanding of where the pockets of unhappy customers are, and what their unmet needs are, it will be difficult to take action. And, unless you know where the competitors are heading, and why, you won't know if you are fighting an uphill battle against a better-equipped enemy or seeing opportunities to take share from a clueless competitor that is driving itself off of a cliff.
While it is important to detemine market share, the exercise should take place in a broader context. At the same time you hire a consulting or research firm to establish market share breakdowns, consider the following issues, as well:
- Market trends and dynamics
- Market opportunities and threats
- Market size and growth
- Market segmentation
- Customer unmet needs
- Customer (and competitors' customer) loyalty
- Customer purchase decision behaviors
- Competitor capabilities and changing competencies
- Competitor perceptions of opportunities and threats
- Competitor intentions to seize these opportunities (or not)
By gathering all of these insights, you will be much better-equipped to make rational decisions on concrete actions to take, given your changing market share numbers.
Thank you for all you tips.
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