Competition in the recruitment space is fierce. Recruiters do everything they can to know what each other are up to, but sometimes it feels like the best information is hidden. These days however, there is a wealth of information available to you as long as you know the right place to look. To help you continue to compete, and save money, we’ve put together a list of ways you can consistently gather useful intelligence for free.
1: Competitor websites
If a competitor is offering a new product or service then the chances are that at least some of the information about it will be available online, either through their website, or social media channels. If you find that you often lose business to a particular agency, take a look at the services they mention on their site and compare them candidly with your own. Does anything stand out which would make them a better fit for your target clients?
2: Linkedin
Recruiters practically live on LinkedIn, so naturally a lot of useful information can be found on them there. Specifically, watch for new hires being made by an agency for an insight into the direction they’re taking their company. Recruitment agencies trade on the people they have, if they make a senior appointment then look at that recruiter’s previous work history. You’ll likely get a good insight into what kind of a direction that company is looking to go.
3: DueDil.com
This is a great site that provides detailed information on the directors and financial standing of a company. Signing up for an account is free, and gives you useful insight into a business’ ownership and history. These are useful pieces of information to anyone looking to predict future strategy for a competitor. For example, if a business has just secured some investment then you can expect to see them scale up, and if they’ve just changed owners then you can research how that new owner has run their previous businesses.
4: Review lost deals
If you’ve lost a deal, whether it’s an RPO contract, a tender, or just one placement, this can be one of the most valuable pieces of intel you can get. Clients and candidates have full visibility of your service, your competitor’s service, and other third parties that you don’t even know about. They are the ultimate decision maker, and know exactly why they chose someone over you.
It’s difficult, but if someone decides to go with another agency, take the time to ask them why, and don’t have them pull any punches:
- Is there anything your competitor did very well
- Was there anything you could have done better?
- How does the client view the relationship with you & your agency? How does that compare with your competitor?
This approach can have mixed results. If it’s a tender to a large organisation, the procurement team are usually more than happy to provide detailed feedback on why they didn’t choose you, because they want to see the best bids possible next time. Key differentiators for any business could be:
- How pricing was structured
- What the price was
- What the client liked about the competitor
- What they didn’t like about your bid
Get as much information as you can. Review it, learn from it, and come back stronger
5: The competition’s current customers
Rather than trying to batter your way through the door to a new client and overcoming all their objections, stop and take some time to speak to people who are using your competitor. Ask them why they like using them, and try to pick up some in-depth feedback about where they succeed, and where they feel let down.
This kind of information is often consistent throughout an entire business, so you don’t need to go to the HR director to get it. Speak to someone lower down the totem pole and get the scoop on what your competitors are and aren’t doing well. If you do manage to get information from someone working at a lower level, this can also serve as an ideal tool to pitch their decision makers with. E.g. ‘your subordinates don’t like using ‘competitor’ and here’s why.
There you have it, 5 ways to gather intelligence on your competition in a way that is informative, efficient, and completely above board. Got any of your own methods that you’d like to share with us? post them in the comments below!
