Tweeting the competition

Try not to ignore your competitors on social media. You might just miss a thing or two that could give you the edge.

Ignoring the competition on social media is a great way to miss valuable insights that can help your company remain a step ahead of everyone else.

Just as your business is continuously improving and evolving, other companies in your industry are doing the same. Ignoring their online and offline activities can have a negative impact on your brand in a number of ways, so try to keep your finger on the pulse with these three tips:

1. Acknowledge your competitors’ successes

Any self-assured person wouldn’t necessarily feel threatened by another’s achievements, so a competent company shouldn’t either. Don’t be scared to acknowledge your competitors’ achievements, but do ensure you use their success as opportunity to differentiate yourself or improve.

Tweeting your direct and indirect competition will bolster your industry relations and let you highlight your unique selling point as a company.

You could give a shout out to a competitor for winning a certain award, and then add a few posts to your queue that recognises your product/service for doing something different. Just make sure you are not saying how you are better than your competitor – be polite.

2. Listen and learn

You will most likely already know that you can gain a great deal by listening to what your customers are saying on social media – so why don’t you apply that to your competitors’ blogs, tweets, posts and so on?

For this you will need a strategy just for your competition. Checking social feeds at random intervals throughout the week is better than nothing, but to fully reap the benefits of social listening it’s best to get the information in real time.

3. Find allies within the industry

Indirect competitors usually target a different consumer base than you do, so any customer insights and relevant industry information you can share will be mutually beneficial.

You can start these relationships via social media and then develop them offline to strengthen both businesses. If you are a small company, target one that’s bigger than yours. Then your expertise in the smaller markets might be beneficial to them. They also might refer clients to you if they don’t have the specific resources that cater for your niche.

Overall social media can tell you a lot about the competiton. It can display their actions, their client base and their own strategy. Try to use all of the social platforms to your advantage.

Read and comment on the original Entrepreneur article.