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Text Bridges
Conjunctives link unconnected ideas together.
They are also a sign that the person you are speaking to may be not telling you everything and possibly lying to you.
They are a great way omit key facts.
Conjunctive words include - Finally, also, again, moreover, therefore, thus, furthermore, then, besides, however, accordingly, consequently and otherwise.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Smashed with a Left Hook
"The ground plan called for moving VII Corps several hundred miles in a wide arc to the west of Iraq. It would amount to a gigantic left hook. Massive, swift, crushing tank attacks were central to the plan” - General Schwarzkopf
Rather than just wait and see, understand what your competitors may do before making a move.
Is your strategy very easy for a rival to copy or easily countered with a simple defensive manoeuvre?
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Take it or Leave it
“Problem with quotes and unverified information on the internet is that it's rarely accurate" - Winston Churchill
Always verify information.
This is especially important if the information only appears on a single website, unnecessarily terminology is used, or the tale tale signs of exaggerated statements such as "I am told this is not a joke or "Take it or leave it" or "This is the real deal"?
Check with an expert in the field for their opinion, decide if the author has a motive to tell you information and any names, locations, companies, acronyms mentioned can be confirmed.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Do you know how your competitors plan to compete for the future?
"Communications without intelligence is noise. Intelligence without communications is irrelevant" - General Alfred Gray US Marine Corps
How committed are they to achieving their declared strategic objectives and how may they conflict with yours?
Does their performance and activities match the mission? If not, why not? How does this conflict, if at all, with your own company's ambitions.
How do you differentiate yourself?
Our clients are constantly surprised by the answers we find for them.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Will you still be on the battlefield?
"No battle plan has ever survived contact with the enemy"
- Field Marshall Graf von Moltke
What is the long term viability of your industry, what trends could change the rules of the game and what developments (during the battle) could allow a rival to change the rules of the game?
Who are the industry leaders? What are they doing and why? What are the key success factors in your industry?
What is the reward (and cost) of being a winner/loser within your industry and in five years from now, what will the industry winners look and act?
Will you still be on the battlefield?
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Wind of Change
"Without perestroika, the cold war simply would not have ended. But the world could not continue developing as it had, with the stark menace of nuclear war ever present" - Mikhail Gorbachev
The fall of the Berlin Wall to the strains of "The Scorpion's - Wind of Change", accompanied by two Presidents coming together for peace talks is how the general public perceived the end of the Cold War.
The reality was that the USSR could not afford to carry on and their military hardware was falling to bits.
Is your competitor suffering from constrained resources or are they financially strong. Able to outspend to beat you?
Our clients are constantly surprised by the answers we find for them.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Bench Warming
Questions to ask when competitor benchmarking.
Are you doing better than your key competitors in the areas that really matter?
Are there any processes and procedures you want to adopt for yourselves? Will it make you more profitable or competitive?
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Be Prepared
Be clear in what is it you are looking for and what you are looking to ultimately achieve? Create focus by defining the problem you wish to solve. It is not as simple as collecting all the information you have on your rivals. All you get is data (history), snowed under with very little direction as to what to do with it. Questions to answer include: Why do you need to know the intelligence? How will you use the results? Who will use the intelligence? What actions do you want to achieve? When do you want to know the information? Have a deadline. www.castintelligence.co.uk
Mirror Man
When attempting to forecast the actions of your competitor, it is important to avoid the natural reaction of mirror imaging- Assuming they will think and act like you do. If you want to know how your competitor is going to react, try to perceive threats and opportunities as they would see them. To do this you must understand their values, misperceptions, bias, assumptions and, if they are from another country, their culture. A good analysis tool for this is called Red Hat Analysis.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Red Hat Analysis
Gather interested parties in a meeting. Ideally, those who understand the industry, competitor, environment or the target country. Present the situation to the and ask them what their competitor would do. For instance, "We are about to launch a brand new product. How do you think our rivals will react to this?" Then ask them why the competitor would behave that way. What will motivate them to act this way. What are the core assumptions have your panel of experts made? What are your competitors core values that could make them act differently to you? Why will your competitor act differently to you and do they have the same operational capability as you? Once you are convinced your experts understand why your competitor would act in that way, get them to make the same decision but in your competitors' shoes. Build a report on the possible routes your competitor could take when they make a decision, describe the rationale for your decisions and then select the most likely actions.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
LinkedIn Tip
When searching for contacts on Linkedin and you get a 3rd level contact, the person's name is often replaced with "LinkedIn Member".
Simply, copy the line below the "LinkedIn Member" into Google.
This will usually reveal their name and job title. www.castintelligence.co.uk
Research & Analysis Seperate
Anyone can research the net or talk to people to find information*.
However, to make the most of this information, independent analysis is the key. They are not biased and have no problem dismissing "established" information.
When developing Intelligence for your growth, they should work together, but it is critical to separate the research and analysis stages.
* Provided they are prepared to give you the information you need! www.castintelligence.co.uk
This is what happened
When questioning someone who may be lying, listen for phrases like:
Later on..
and the next thing I remember..
I'm not sure about this, but..
Don't hold me to this, but I believe
and we then began..
These are connecting phrases to allow them to think about their perfectly ordered story.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
What Else
When asking anyone you want to get information from, start with a single topic question (Who, what, where, when and why).
To get further information from them and prevent the subject being changed, resist the temptation to dive in with another single topic question.
Ask "What else?"
If you were asking what a terrorist was doing and he stated he was planting a bomb, the temptation is to immediately ask where.
The "What else" line of questioning will deliver a more detailed explanation about he was doing.
It can make a liar stumble too, as they will not be as prepared for your line of questioning.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Blame Game
Operations blamed Marketing, Marketing blamed Operations and Sales blamed everyone except Sales.
They did not expect that competitor move, so it could not happen in their mind.
Early warning is a fantastic aspect of Competitive Intelligence.
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Why do They Choose Your Competitors?
Do you understand what it is like to be one of your competitor's customers? If not, how can you determine why they are not buying from you?
www.castintelligence.co.uk
Non Stop Yapping
Those people who try to control the conversation by not letting you get a word in. They are often on the television or trying to get them to vote for you. These control behaviours are often a sign of dishonesty.
www.castintelligence.co.uk