--By Harendra Jung Thapa

Businesses are always striving to improve on the previous financial bottom line and are competing with peer groups to emerge as a market leader. For this, achieving better financial results in each passing year becomes crucial for the management team. In such a scenario, meeting the ever growing business targets is by no means  achievable unless you put in some extra effort. So, the senior management should focus on forming a strategy that drives the business to a very sustainable mode with organic growth in order to gallop ahead of the competitors.

To reach a stage where the company’s goodwill alone creates a people’s choice brand and achieves a sustainable momentum to lead competitors, your business’s strategic move should incorporate some of the vital considerations mentioned below.

Always do research on the competitors and make a comparison with the competitors who are rated high in the market. For this, allocate some time for exploring what your competitors are doing through mystery shopping and surveys. Self-evaluate your business with a SWOT analysis to see where your strength lies, lookout for further improvisation and be spontaneous to cash in on opportunities.

Explore joint initiations with other companies to come up with promotional schemes to add salability value to your product or service. Such tie ups will also enable you to advertise your product/service to a wider group of people then would have been possible with your solo advertisement campaigns.

Unless you are an established brand, your market presence tends to be overshadowed by the bigger brands. So to establish your market presence and have your presence felt, you have no option other than to advertise your product/services. According to your budget, you may go for printed advertisements, digital advertisements in the popular websites or television channels, or circulate/distribute attractive leaflets at regular intervals. Seeing your brand name frequently in advertisements will involuntarily associate the product with your brand name in the minds of people. Furthermore, the name of your product or service will keep lingering in the minds of people and will have a preferential edge over other products of the same genre.  

While making an entry into the virgin market do make sure that you do a big buzz entry. Launching your products/services should be done through certain kinds of promotional activities or events as  creating a sensation is a must to attract new buyers. Also giving away inexpensive souvenirs bearing the company’s logo during such promotional events could be an impressive way of creating a vibe for your product or service.

As with any business, an increase in cost of production/services with time compels you to review your pricing. At such times, your decision on price increment becomes vital. It is advisable that your price increment stays nominal so that your existing customers do not feel the price burden. Price burden could compel the existing customers to try out other similar products or services.

Your being innovative in differentiating your product/services should be a continuous process. How to package your product/service, how to further improve the quality and how tie your product/services with freebies, is where your focus should be to retain your existing customers and attract new ones. To reach out to a wider range of customers, do categorize your products/services to suit the purchasing power of different segments of customers. 

Active participation in social causes will elevate the esteem of your business brand. So doing CSR and contributing to the welfare of victims of natural calamities can create a revered social respect for your business which will ultimately benefit your product/services. 

Last but not the least, stay vigilant about customer feedback, complaints and reaction to your product or services. As businesses must be customer-centric in their approach for long term sustenance, the changing demand of the customers, their behaviour and their change of interest should also be researched well to be ahead of the competitors.

The writer is Operations Head at Surya Power Company.