The ultimate guide to competitor benchmarking: Best practices and timing

Competitor benchmarking is an essential process for businesses of any size to analyze their performance and gain a competitive edge in the market. Through performance reviews, product validation, and other sources of competitive data, businesses can identify areas of improvement and develop strategies to outperform their competitors. In this article, we will provide an overview of the best practices for competitor benchmarking and discuss various performance metrics that can be used to measure success. We will also explore some of the publicly available sources of competitive analysis data and the importance of leveraging insights from this data to achieve a competitive advantage.

Best practices for competitor benchmarking

  1. Identify the competitors you want to benchmark. Top 5 hotel booking apps in the US: 1. Expedia 2. TripAdvisor 3. Airbnb 4. Hotels.com 5. Booking.com
  2. Set realistic goals and objectives for your benchmarking process. An example goal and objective for competitor benchmarking could be to assess the performance of your competitors in order to gain an understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Your objective could be to identify areas of improvement that can be addressed to gain a competitive advantage for your business.
  3. Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors to assess what areas you should focus on for improvement. One strength of the Expedia app is its user-friendly interface, which makes it easy for customers to view available hotels and book their stay. However, one weakness that the Expedia app currently has is its limited customer service options, making it difficult to receive assistance with problems or inquiries.
  4. Collect data from publicly available sources such as websites, social media, financial reports and other channels. Financial report data on Expedia:
  • Revenue for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2020 was $4.4 billion, up 15% compared to the prior year quarter.
  • Gross bookings for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2020 was $21.4 billion, up 10% compared to the prior year quarter.
  1. Analyze and compare performance metrics and measure the results against your own goals and objectives. Performance metrics for Expedia app:
  • Number of app downloads
  • Number of active monthly users
  • Average session length
  • Customer satisfaction rating
  • Conversion rate
  • Average booking price
  • Revenue per user
  • Revenue per booking
  1. Monitor changes in competitor activities and adjust the benchmarking process accordingly. 22.44.1 | Nov 7, 2022 Thanks for exploring the world with Expedia as your on-the-go travel companion. Have you seen the new voice supported feature under Stays? Tap the circular blue icon next to the search box in Stays to use voice-based search. In this release your preferred property filters will be displayed as part of your voice-initiated search query. Bon voyage, traveler!
  2. Track the effectiveness of your competitors' marketing and pricing strategies.
  3. Leverage insights from competitive analysis to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
  4. Always take into account your own resources, capabilities, and market conditions when benchmarking.
  5. Utilize market research and customer surveys to get a better understanding of the competitive landscape. Here are some good websites to find market research and customer survey data for free:

When is the best time to carry out competitor benchmarking?

Competitor benchmarking is the process of comparing a company's performance against that of its competitors in order to identify areas for improvement. Knowing when is the best time to carry out competitor benchmarking is essential in order to maximize the effort. Here we look at five key times when competitor benchmarking can be beneficial.

Before Launching a New Product or Service

Benchmarking competitors' products or services can help a company identify gaps in the market and ensure that their own offering is competitive. A comprehensive review of competitors' products and services should be done to get a better understanding of the current state of the market.

During Market Research and Product Development

Benchmarking can help a company understand how their competitors are positioning their products and services, which can inform their own product development and marketing strategies. It's important to look at the features, pricing, and positioning of competitors in order to develop a comprehensive understanding of the current market and what competitors are doing to succeed.

Before Entering a New Market

Benchmarking competitors can help a company understand the existing market conditions and competition in a new market, which can inform their entry strategy. A thorough competitor review should be done in order to develop a comprehensive understanding of the market, including competitors' strengths and weaknesses.

When Developing a New Marketing Strategy

Benchmarking competitors' marketing efforts can help a company understand what is working well for their competitors, and identify areas where they can differentiate themselves. Companies should review competitors' marketing strategies in order to understand what techniques are working well and which strategies may need to be improved.

Periodically

Benchmarking should be done periodically to update the understanding of competitors' performance in the market. This can be done quarterly, biannually or annually depending on the industry and the company's needs. Companies should regularly review and update their competitor benchmarking to stay informed about the competitive landscape.

Conclusion

In conclusion, competitor benchmarking is an essential part of business strategy and should be done at key times throughout the year. Benchmarking competitors' products, services, and marketing strategies can help a company identify gaps in the market and inform their own strategies. Companies should regularly review and update their competitor benchmarking to stay informed about the competitive landscape.