How To Cope With Business Competition In Nigeria: You Can Be Ahead
Business competition has driven many entrepreneurs out of business and you must do everything within your power to stay afloat. You should know that business competition is part of every business and there is no business without at least a competition. In fact, rather than seeing your business competitors as a hindrance, you should see as motivators.
Take, for example, Apple wouldn’t be breaking boundaries if it was the only company in that niche. Business competition is good but it can also crash your business when you fail to handle it properly. Many “big” businesses see competition from the angle of those that render the exact same service as them. Business competition can also come from a small business establishment that render a fraction of the service that big businesses provide.
Also read: How to scale your startup in Nigeria
For instance, if you are in the auto care business and your service ranges from car repairs, detailing, and washing; you will be amazed at the amount of money you lose to the roadside mechanic by the corner. The major question is, how do you cope with all these business competition and come out unscratched?
This article hopes to provide effective and direct answers to the questions above.
Tips On How To Cope With Business Competition
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You Must Be Flexible To Re-strategize
In business, you should never let emotions get the better of you when it comes to decision making. This might not be the most enticing advice you have heard but it is definitely what you need to hear. To cope with your business competition in Nigeria, there is a need for you to always re-evaluate your business strategy.
If you know those your business engagements that are not yielding profits, cut them off. This will allow you to be more focused on those aspects which are more profitable. The approach is called corporate refocusing. Don’t go into business doing many things at the same time. You need to scale your business and expand gradually.
Business specialization is something that is really underrated, especially in Nigeria. Let your business be known with a particular product as its front liner. It is better to cut off those business services that very few people are paying for and invest more into the ones with bigger patronage.
I am in no way saying that your business cannot render multiple services. The point here is that you must know when cutting off from a subsidiary business that is sapping your money but no returns. You should rather reinforce the one that is bringing in the money.
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Have A Healthy Relationship With Your Competitions
Businesses are not a do or die engagement, you should see the competitions as human beings and relate with them as such. It is by building such a relationship that you can enter into a beneficial and mutual agreement. For example, in the car services cited above, you can reach a mutually beneficial agreement with the roadside mechanic to refer people to you while you also do the same.
In this manner, both you and your competitor will engage in a symbiotic relationship that increases specialization and profits. Very few people consider this option a good way to do business, but it is always a very potent option. The only separation here is that you can’t cooperate with your direct competitor.
Also see: How to solve the Nigerian startup growth problem
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You Should Never Ignore The Competition
You should never ignore your business competition, no matter how small they seem at the moment. These small businesses have nothing to lose and you shouldn’t ignore them for any reason. Provided you don’t play “dirty”, take decisions that favor your business. You can take the lateral employment route, enter into necessary agreements, but whatever you do, don’t ignore the competition.
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You Can Use The Lateral Employment Weapon
To cope with your business competition, you can consider the prospect of lateral hiring. Take a look at what Opay is currently doing in Nigeria; it is a good way to cope with business competition in Nigeria. Some believe that poaching your competitor’s employees is unethical, well I can only say that if you have the money to do that then there is no issue. In doing this, you should be very careful so as not to shoot yourself in the foot.
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Take Very Good Care Of Your Employees
As a business owner, your first customers are your employees and you must take good care of them. To cope with business competition, you need to ensure your employees are very loyal to you. A good way to ensure your employee’s loyalty is to treat them better than any competitor would. By so doing, you won’t have to bother about your competitors poaching your employees.
Conclusion
Business competition is what every entrepreneur and business owner must come to terms with at all times. You must know that there are people who want to do exactly what you are doing. So, make it your point of duty to always be at the top of your game when it comes to rendering services or selling your products.
