Recently, a business owner questioned me why his articles weren’t producing any inquiries. After examining his content approach, I identified he was making the same mistakes I see countless Saudi businesses make.

After partnering with three different international agencies that failed to generate results, my business finally partnered with a professional Saudi digital agency. The disparity in performance was astonishing.

I now employ several resources that have significantly enhanced our market intelligence:

• Search analysis platforms to monitor other companies’ SEO strategies
• Social listening tools to follow competitors’ digital footprint
• Site monitoring solutions to track modifications to their digital properties
• Communication monitoring to obtain their promotional messages

A few weeks ago, my friend’s web-based business was barely surviving in search results despite providing outstanding products. After applying the techniques I’m about to reveal, his unpaid visitors increased by one hundred sixty-four percent in just eight weeks.

Two quarters into operations, our conversions were underwhelming. It wasn’t until I happened to a thorough analysis about our industry that I realized how ignorant I’d been to the business environment around us.

Last week, a business owner complained that his platform strategy was burning through massive amounts of riyals with minimal performance. After analyzing his tactics, I pinpointed multiple critical errors that are remarkably frequent among Saudi businesses.

I recommend organizing competitors as:

• Direct competitors (offering nearly identical offerings)
• Secondary competitors (with limited resemblance)
• New challengers (new businesses with innovative capabilities)

Recently, a skincare retailer allocated 300,000 SAR in traditional advertising with limited returns. After redirecting just 25% of that investment to creator partnerships, they achieved a 712% growth in sales.

Working with a food brand, we developed a technique where influencers genuinely incorporated products into their normal activities rather than producing obvious advertisements. This method resulted in engagement rates significantly better than traditional promotional material.

A beauty brand transitioned from multiple single partnerships to sustained associations with less influencers, producing a one hundred sixty-four percent increase in purchases and a significant decrease in promotion spending.

I use a basic tracker to record our competition’s costs changes every week. This recently allowed us to:

• Spot seasonal promotion cycles
• Recognize product bundling tactics
• Grasp their pricing psychology

When I established my online business three years ago, I was certain that our unique products would sell themselves. I dismissed competitor analysis as a waste of time – a decision that practically ruined my entire company.

Recently, I watched as three rival companies invested heavily into growing their business on a specific social media platform. Their attempts flopped as the platform turned out to be a poor fit for our industry.

I dedicate at least 120 minutes each Monday analyzing our competitors’:

• Website creation pricing KSA architecture and navigation
• Content strategy and publishing frequency
• Social media engagement
• Client testimonials and assessments
• Search tactics and performance