Using linked in for competitive intelligence
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The document explains how to use LinkedIn for competitive intelligence by analyzing company pages and employee data to gain insights into competitors. It highlights the importance of tracking employee turnover, departmental growth, and individual LinkedIn usage to infer business strategies. Utilizing this information alongside other data sources can enhance competitive analysis and help identify opportunities for gaining an advantage.
Using linked in for competitive intelligence
- 1. USING LINKEDIN FOR COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE For additional information about Competitive Intelligence please visit www.Intelligence2act.com
- 2. www.Intelligence2act.com THERE ARE PLENTY OF DATA THAT IS AVAILABLE ON LINKEDIN THAT CAN GIVE YOU VALUABLE INSIGHT INTO THE ACTIONS AND STATE OF YOUR COMPETITION. 2
- 3. www.Intelligence2act.com Viewing and analyzing their company page is a great place to start but this information is only as thorough as the company is willing to be. Taking the competitive intelligence (CI) gathering a step further you can view and analyze all of the people that are affiliated with company and track the progression of the past and present employees to infer business information. You can also use the forum to reach out to and talk to the ex-employees directly and they may be willing to tell you more information than you realize. Although, direct information is more valuable than the inferences that can be made from scouting LinkedIn, when you add this data into all of your other competitive intelligence it can fill in the gaps. 3
- 4. www.Intelligence2act.com The first step when using LinkedIn for competitive intelligence is to directly analyze their company page. This will give you a great starting block as to how much information that they are sharing online and their general state of adoption of LinkedIn, which will usually correlate with their adoption of all social media. Once you have this general impression you can start doing more advanced searches to see all of the people that currently work for them, as well as any ex-employees. 4
- 5. www.Intelligence2act.com Watching key management positions as they change or become vacant will give you an idea of how they are working as a team. If there is frequent turnover then you can assume that there is a problem. In the same token if you notice that one of the key managers started with a new company without a replacement showing up, this may indicate that they left on bad terms or that your competitor is struggling to fill this position. 5
- 6. www.Intelligence2act.com Watching the growth or decline of the number of employees in various departments can also give you an idea of the strategies that they are trying to execute, or the troubles that they are facing. By tracking these numbers you can be aware if your competition is investing in research and innovation or trying to expand their market share with an increase in their sales force. 6
- 7. www.Intelligence2act.com Remember that these are just indicators and as with any competitive intelligence gathering it is best to corroborate your data with information from multiple sources. Tracking not only the departments but then drilling down into the specific involvement of each individual will give you an idea of their knowledge and use of LinkedIn. As a general rule anyone with less than one hundred connections is not using it effectively, and anyone with more than 500 connections is a pro. 7
- 8. www.Intelligence2act.com Using the information on that is freely available on LinkedIn will supplement your competitive intelligence efforts by filling in the gaps. The information over time will provide you with invaluable insight into what the company is trying to accomplish and help you to leverage their shortcomings. Use LinkedIn as a free way to round out your overall CI strategy so that you can gain a competitive advantage. 8
- 9. For additional information about Competitive Intelligence please visit www.Intelligence2act.com