Step 4. Determine your position
Once you figure out what your competitors' strengths and weaknesses are, you need to determine where to position your company vis a vis the competition. Some of this may be obvious from the results of your analysis, but it also pays to take a hard look at how your business operates.
One of the most effective ways to do this is to create a strengths/weaknesses opportunities/threats analysis of your business. Rank your company in the same categories that you ranked your competitors. This will give you an even clearer picture of where your business fits in the competitive environment. It will also help you determine what areas you need to improve, and what characteristics of your business you should take advantage of to gain more customers.
Active Words and Phrases:
| competitive analysis | аналіз конкурентноспроможності | rate | визначати категорію, класифікувати |
| small business | мале підприємство | regulatory or legal action | контролюючий або правовий механізм (справа) |
| strengths & weaknesses | сильні і слабкі сторони | advent | поява |
| identify | визначати, з’ясовувати | digital photography | цифрова фотографія |
| dominate the market | панувати на ринку | gain | завоювати, здобувати |
| vulnerability | уразливість |
Ex. III. Give your own examples of Steps 1-4 Analysis.
Ex. IV. Imagine you're working on your Competitive Analysis with a subordinate. Play out a dialogue using the terminology from the above text.
Ex. V. Translate from Ukrainian into English:
1. Ви повинні знати про свою компанію стільки ж, скільки ви знаєте про ваших конкурентів.
2. Аналіз конкурентноспроможності дозволяє вам визначити конкурентів і дати оцінку їх сильним та слабким сторонам.
3. Ви будете мати кращу уяву, як продавати свій продукт або послугу.
4. Аналіз конкурентноспроможності – це безперервний процес.
5. Виясніть, які у вашого конкурента вразливі сторони.
Part II
Ex. I. Pre-reading questions:
Do you have any idea how Internet appeared? What is the country of origin?
Ex. II. Read the text.
Internet Facts
The prototype for the Internet was created in the sixties by the US Defense Department. To ensure that communication could be kept open in the event of a nuclear attack, it created a computer network known as Arpanet — the Advanced Research Project Agency Network.
The first attempt to connect two computers and allow them to communicate with one another was made by researchers at the University of California in Los Angeles and the Stanford Research Institute on 20 October 1969.
The first people to coin the term "Internet" were two scientists, Vinton Cerf (known as "farther of the Internet") and his collaborator, Bob Kahn, who in 1974 devised a means by which data could be transmitted across a global network of computers.
An Oxford graduate, Tim Berners-Lee, set up the first "www server" (a server receives and sends messages) to store the archive of the European Particle Physics Laboratory in Switzerland.
The first e-mail ever sent was in 1972 between computers in two American universities. It said "qwertyuiop" (the top line of the computer keyboard).
The most frequently used search word on the net is "sex", typed in 1,550,000 times every month.
The most mentioned male on the Internet was President Bill Clinton, whose name was linked to 1,842,790 sites.
The most mentioned female on the Internet is the actress Pamela Anderson, whose name is linked to 1,542,282 sites.
Active Words and Phrases:
| coin | створювати (слово) | store an archive | створити архів |
| collaborator | співробітник | search word | слово-пошукач |
| devise a means | винайти засіб | link | сполучати, зв’язувати |
| server | сервер |
Ex. III. Complete the sentences using the text:
1. The prototype for the Internet was created by …
2. The first attempt to connect two computers was made by …
3. The first people to coin the term “Internet” were…
4. Vinton Cerf’s collaborator was … who …
5. The first “www server” was set up to…
6. The first E-mail ever sent was between…
7. The most mentioned male on the Internet was…
Ex. IV. Use the text to restore the situation for each verb form:
1. … was created…
2. … was made…
3. … devised …
4. … set up …
5. … created …
6. … said …
7. … is …