#6 — Sustainable Competitive Advantage
There are 2 things that investors always want to know when looking at your company:
- Who are your competitors?
- What are your competitive advantages?
Of course, every company has competitors. Don’t be a naive entrepreneur by stating that you don’t have any competition. Whether it be direct competition or indirect competition, there must be a way that your customers are currently fulfilling that need. Also, having competition validates your space for sophisticated investors.
Once you have accurately identified your competition and their strengths & weaknesses, now it is your job to boast your competitive advantages. Do you have unique access to resources that your competition does not have? Here are a few examples of appealing competitive advantages:
- A signed contract with a large distribution partner that gives your company exclusive rights to sell your product or service
- A patent on your technology
- Other intellectual property that maintains your advantage (trade secrets, etc.)
- Exclusive relationship with an expert or celebrity
(There are many more, but that starts to give you an idea)
