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    • Action plan

    Leveraging research to understand the business landscape

    Low effort

    Medium impact

    Staying relevant in a crowded sector is tricky, particularly if you don’t know how direct competitors are faring and where your business stands in comparison. Without this knowledge, it can be hard to assess your performance and identify your competitive advantage. Leveraging different types of research is a useful way for leaders to build a better understanding of what’s going on in their sector.

    • We’ve designed our action plans to be completed in the order of steps laid out and explained why each step is important
    • Customising your action plan lets you set your own completion dates, assign tasks to others and get notifications
    • Helpful tools are provided for certain steps while a tracking metric at the end will help you determine the long-term success of your effort
    • A downloadable PDF version of each action plan is available if you’d like to compete it offline
    What's involved? Ways to use this action plan Measuring impact
    1

    Subscribe to industry research or follow key figures in your sector to stay up to date with important trends

    Impact: low

    Why will this help?

    Keeping track of the latest developments will make sure you’re prepared for any changes that could affect your business – and help you spot opportunities to help your clients.

    2

    Spend some time looking at social media profiles of both competitors and companies you admire to see what other people are doing to attract and engage their customers

    Impact: low

    Why will this help?

    Looking at how other businesses communicate with customers online is an easy way of finding small areas for improvement.

    3

    Speak to peers in your network to learn more about what kind of issues are affecting other businesses or sectors

    Impact: medium

    Why will this help?

    Checking in with peers will keep you informed of what’s happening in the wider business community.

    Building a network from scratch

    Building a network allows you to access advice and guidance from other business leaders and experts. Use our checklist to get started.
    4

    Use a SWOT analysis to map the strengths and weaknesses of your business and find opportunities you can build on

    Impact: medium

    Why will this help?

    Conducting a SWOT analysis helps you to understand where your business stands in comparison to the competition.

    Creating a SWOT analysis for your own business

    Use our free SWOT analysis template to define your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
    5

    Leverage your research to map out where your business sits in the current landscape

    Impact: high

    Why will this help?

    Compiling your research should give you an in-depth understanding of where your business stands in relation to others.

    What can I do with this Action Plan?

    Start this Action Plan

    Add some extra information to this plan and we’ll help you get it done.

    • We’ve designed our action plans to be completed in the order of steps laid out and explained why each step is important
    • Customising your action plan lets you set your own completion dates, assign tasks to others and get notifications
    • Helpful tools are provided for certain steps while a tracking metric at the end will help you determine the long-term success of your effort
    • A downloadable PDF version of each action plan is available if you’d like to compete it offline

    Download and print

    Get a printable template for this Action Plan, fill it in with some target dates, and share it with your team. Pin it on the wall where everyone can see it.

    Get the printable Action Plan

    Learning Groups

    We also run Learning Groups on these topics where you can join other leaders tackling the same challenges.

    Find a Learning Group

    How will I know if my action plan is working?

    Customer survey results

    Customer surveys provide feedback on your offering

    Why this metric?

    Customer feedback surveys help you gather more information about which customers are buying from you and why.

    How do I start tracking?

    Include a short online survey in a follow-up email that thanks them for buying from your business. Collect the responses over six months to examine how customers view your business.