Competition is healthy for any business to grow. But most businesses shy away from the thought of competing with much bigger companies. They would rather compete with their fellow startups or other companies on the rise. What business owners don’t realize is that there are some advantages lost by big companies as they grow, that small and medium sized businesses have.

Customer Service

One great advantage to being an SMB is the ability to directly interact with customers as compared to the bureaucracy present in the bigger businesses. Cultivating customer relationships is valuable to a company as it can understand the customer needs better and meet or even exceed their expectations. SMBs are in a much better position to listen to the customers and deliver exactly what the customers want. You will see your business grow and expand through positive reviews and word of mouth marketing.

Niche Product/Service

Large companies have a wide array of products and services, therefore, numerous operations in different sectors. What this means is that they are juggling different products and giving them some attention. SMBs have the upper hand in this as they can opt to specialize in a specific niche and expand later when they grow.

Give all your undivided attention to one area and win at it. If you feel like you are in the market with well-established competitors, dig as deep as untapped sub categories, establish yourself, then start expanding. That way, you will have both the credibility and the audience to compete at a much higher level.

Flexibility

Unlike big companies, smaller companies can move faster or change direction promptly to suit a certain trend. It is much easier for a small business to tune itself to customer preferences, a trending topic, sudden waves or events. They respond promptly and will even run promotions and come up with new products to suit the season.

Large companies, on the other hand, take a bit more time to redirect operations. Their bureaucracy means they are slow. They often have to table several meetings, conduct studies, cast votes, etc. They profit better from upcoming events where they have ample time to prepare and promote the product or service.

Evaluate Competitors

Large companies have their shortcomings which you can come up with after a proper analysis. You can look at their customers, pricing, marketing strategies, competitive advantages and their strengths and weaknesses. It will help you identify areas in which you are slightly ahead or how you can use a different approach from theirs to scale. This is not to say that you should obsess over them. Create your own strategies and innovate whenever you can.

Choose your battles wisely to save your company on time, money and effort. You should never engage in fights you are bound to lose. An example is on pricing. Some big companies have the benefit of discounted prices which you may not be able to compete with. Instead, focus on other competitive advantages you might have other the big companies and capitalize on that.

Use Available Resources

Big companies are way ahead of you in terms of resources and equipment. They spend a fortune in advertising and marketing, unlike SMB. Thankfully, social media has risen rapidly as a tool to get information across to thousands of people at a low budget. Content marketing and social media platforms are an indispensable tool if used smartly.

Big companies sure have their numerous advantages such as a recognizable brand, they can outspend on advertising, a huge client base, etc. However, you shouldn’t be intimidated as an SMB because there are some upsides to it that you can focus on and outshine your big competitors.…