by Anne StClair

Created on: September 11, 2009   Last Updated: October 20, 2009

Every small and medium enterprise (SME) must find an advantage of some kind over its competitors if it is to succeed and thrive. Technology can give you the competitive advantage you need by streamlining processes, improving profitability and retaining your customers, but only if it is carefully selected and appropriate for your business.

Having a competitive advantage means the SME is able to perform at a higher level than its competitors and therefore becomes the preferred provider of its goods or services. Competitive advantage can mean, for example, creating a lower cost product, or the company differentiating itself from its competitors in some way, so consumers see the SME as different (and better).

There are many ways of developing a competitive edge, such as being more innovative than competitors, forming better relationships with customers, and building a strong reputation. Competitive advantage can also come through producing goods at lower cost or higher quality (or preferably both), developing a great service, and ensuring staff are trained to maximize customer satisfaction. The location of the business can also give a company an advantage, as can the type, location and visibility of advertising. The technology adopted and used by the business is also vital in securing an advantage.

If the SME is to retain a high position relative to its competitors it is vital that the competitive advantage is sustainable over the long term. This means finding a way to create value for the customers that no other competitor has found or can duplicate easily. One of the best ways to do this is by intelligent adoption of the technological advances now available, including ERP applications, On the Cloud Computing, and Smart Mobile Devices, among others. Early adoption of these technologies can give an SME a competitive advantage that is sustainable.

ERP Applications

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) applications are basically software packages that collect financial information and other key data from different departments or sections of an organization and store it on a central computer. ERPs are often used by large organizations to monitor data such as sales volumes, invoices and so on, but SMEs can also use ERP applications to get the same level of control of their operations, and vastly improve their efficiency.

ERP systems allow people in different parts of the organization to view exactly the same information, and this ensures every interaction is based on

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• Next Page >>