Using secondary research as a launching pad, we add unique value through intensive primary research. We creatively identify and interview a variety of industry participants—including direct competitors—to provide a well-rounded, corroborated view of the salient competitive issues. We use ethical means to gather hard-to-find information on markets and competitors. Our vertical industry specialists then analyze the findings, add insights, demonstrate clear implications to the client, and work with decision makers to develop action plans and strategies.
In a fast-moving competitive environment, stale information produces stale ideas. The information Fuld provides is timely and relevant, enabling you to stay a step ahead of the competition, drive growth, and boost profits.
- Benchmarking/Cost Studies
Fuld will gather highly detailed information about your competitor's operations—its production costs, its distribution and logistics, its IT investments or other aspects—that you can use as a basis for comparison with your own operations. With a clear understanding of competitors' processes, best practices, costs, and metrics, Fuld will work with you to identify gaps, identify areas for improvement, and capitalize on competitive advantages.
- Strategic Analysis
Developing a long-term strategy and carving out a unique leadership position in a marketplace are activities that cannot be taken lightly. Fuld will work with you to truly understand the implications that competitor strategies and actions will have on the execution of your stated strategies. Detailed competitor analysis will highlight your competitive blind spots and enable you to take proactive steps to defend market share, erect barriers to competition, and seek new and innovative paths to growth and profitability.
- Acquisition Studies
Before entering into any merger, acquisition, or strategic alliance, it is routine for companies to perform rigorous financial due diligence. In addition to understanding the numbers, however, prudent companies also examine the softer side of possible deals. Fuld & Company provides two types of critical intelligence in support of these important M&A or partnering decisions: 1) candidate identification and 2) candidate investigation. With the former service, we help you build a richer list of candidates, find lesser-known firms, and ensure that all viable players are on your list for consideration. With the latter service, we help you mitigate risk associated with an impending deal by ensuring that the candidate you’ve chosen is accurately representing itself, its reputation, and its position in the market.
- New Product Introductions
When a competitor is nearing the launch of a new product or service, it inevitably leaves clues scattered throughout the value chain. Fuld & company is expert at dissecting the value chain and the product launch process in order to find those clues and piece together a clear picture of competitor intentions and timetables. In many cases, we are able to pinpoint the timing of a competitor’s new product introduction, enabling you to prepare a market share defense plan, consider a preemptive product launch, or erect barriers to entry for the competitor’s new product.
- Win-Loss Analysis
Traditional win-loss analysis delivers unquestionable benefits. But Fuld’s unique take on win-loss adds another dimension to the analysis. Instead of simply uncovering customer opinions about your firm and the competition, Fuld helps you understand how the competitor achieved a better process, why its product is judged better, how its innovative technology works, or some other insight that customers alone cannot offer. In-depth win/loss interviews, in combination with competitive intelligence research, provide the whole picture in a competitive marketplace.
- Bid Support
For companies that compete in high-stakes bidding situations, the sales cycle can be long, complicated, and costly. As such, having details about rival bidders--their strengths, weaknesses, capabilities, history with the client, pricing, and more--can make the difference between a successful proposal and a costly piece of lost business. Fuld & Company can help you dig into these areas before you submit your “best and final” bid and proposal, so your chances of winning the deal are as good as they can be.
- Make or Buy Decisions
It is not uncommon for visionary strategic executives to have great ideas but little sense of how to turn those ideas into reality. And even with great concepts, poor execution leads to poor results. Fuld & Company can help mitigate this risk by fully exploring the best, most cost-effective ways to convert great ideas into great businesses. We explore and weigh the relative advantages of starting a new operation versus acquiring, merging with or partnering with an existing entity. Our clients are thus armed with a range of options with clearly articulated trade-offs and pay-offs before they risk valuable capital in new business venture.
- Market Entry Studies
Entering a new market, whether through a new line of business or in a new geographic area, is a massive and potentially risky undertaking. To lessen that risk, Fuld delivers comprehensive landscape studies outlining the competitive dynamics, opportunities, and dangers of the targeted market.
- Pricing Studies
Regardless of the industry, most companies today devote an enormous amount of energy to setting prices for goods and services. The holy grail in this arena: achieve the best margins possible, but remain price- competitive. But because so many factors are considered, when firms compare their own prices to those of competitors, the comparison is rarely apples to apples. A thorough competitive pricing investigation makes such a side-by-side comparison possible. Instead of just comparing the final “price tag,” Fuld’s research in this area enables clients to look at all of the underlying factors that determine the final price. Such studies often reveal that a so-called “low-priced competitor” is actually just offering an inferior product at a lower price. This information becomes invaluable as firms rationalize their existing prices and as they develop marketing and positioning messages to support and justify those prices.
- Market Monitoring
In highly dynamic and fluid markets, it is often necessary to conduct intense ongoing monitoring to stay on top of a situation as it unfolds and evolves. Companies with active internal CI programs are typically able to cover developments that receive press attention, but may be challenged to identify less public developments. Fuld is often called on to provide a regular stream of updates on these competitive situations. In some cases, the monitoring activity will encompass an entire marketplace (usually one undergoing dramatic change and innovation), and in others, the scope is very narrowly focused on a particular product, technology, or market opportunity. Regardless of the structure of the program, the goal is to ensure that the client is not caught off-guard by market developments.
- Conference Monitoring
Fuld & Company’s analysts are expertly trained in congress attendance and we have covered 800-plus congress in the healthcare arena alone. Medical and scientific conference coverage provides a very effective means for gathering timely and otherwise unobtainable competitive information. At a congress there is the opportunity to learn about competitor strategies, customer needs, emerging products and technologies, government directions, how to compete in specific markets and more. Please use the convenient calendar links on this page to download to your personal calendar as a reminder of critical upcoming congresses. In addition, click on the button below to download a short guide and checklist that will help you make the most of any scientific congress you attend.
Click for more information on Fuld's conference monitoring.
Advantages of using Fuld’s Research & Analysis Services
- Unbiased examination of the competitive environment
- World-class primary and secondary research skills
- Proprietary database of sources
- Experienced industry teams bring the requisite knowledge to both gather better information and to develop more insightful conclusions and recommendations
- Solid analysis built on credible, real-world data for critical decision support
- Unwavering commitment to the highest ethical standards
