For anyone trying to grow a business, one of the necessary tasks is to map the competitive landscape and continue to keep tabs on how things develop in it over time.  With a good understanding of the competition facing your business you’ll be able to spot and exploit opportunities as they develop.  Ignoring the competition or letting success lull you into a false sense of security could mean nasty surprises further down the road. The following points can help you start developing a strategy:

• Identify your competitors: Your competition includes anything that could draw customers away from your business. For example, for a movie theater, other cinemas represent a direct competitor. But there are also a number of indirect competitors that need to be outmaneuvered as well. These are businesses after the same customer dollar as you. For the movie theater, cable TV networks, DVD rental stores and even online movies all represent competitors.