Using Market Conditions To Benefit Your Business
As entrepreneurs and business owners, it’s great to have robust trading conditions. These help with planning and shipping and generally give us the comfort of consistent margins and controlled costs.
But what happens when things get turned on its head? Well, some businesses prosper, and others fail. In this article, we will investigate how to use market conditions to benefit your business.
What Are Good Market Conditions?
- Market confidence
- Consistent financial markets
- Strong property market
- Robust external trade links
What Are Bad Market Conditions?
- Low market confidence
- Unstable financial markets
- Fluctuating property market
- Challenging trade links
How Can Market Conditions Help Your Business?
Many business owners and businesses are risk-averse, so when there is a market change, they move into protection mode. This approach is often seen with marketing when trading sees a downturn often; marketing and advertising are the first aspects of the business to be pulled and reduced to save income when actually it is more important to drive sales and seize the potentially diminishing opportunity during these times.
Businesses that assess and correctly identify opportunities when others do not are the companies that will prosper and grow when others are in hibernation, attempting to weather the storm.
In the UK, in the last 15 years, we’ve had our share of changes, and some industries have been able to capitalise on this. In the following section, we look at which industries have prospered and why.
Three Examples of Industries That Have Benefited From Adverse Market Conditions
Here are three examples of markets that have benefited during downturns that would otherwise be considered ‘bad’ trading conditions.
2008 – Financial Markets Crash
Believe it or not, some Builders benefited from the recession. Although larger developers were halted by mortgage rates and a stagnant property market, smaller builders were ideally suited to help homeowners to extend and redevelop. More decided to stay and update than move, meaning that smaller building firms were in high demand, giving them ideal market conditions.
2020 – Brexit
The EU had governed farmers in the UK, and this often meant that their trading conditions were not ideal; many UK farmers chose to sell land for development, diversify or put forward a change of use, turning land into campsites, for example. With Brexit came a new opportunity for UK farmers, those left. This was not immediately evident as subsidies were removed and energy prices have not helped, but in 2021, the domestic farming market achieved almost 6 billion.
In 2020, at the point of Brexit, farming was 5.3 Billion of our GDP. While the market is still in flux, this growth is from inward sourcing. Some parts of the meat market still see competition from external countries like Australia and New Zealand exporting to the UK. However, the opportunity is still there for farmers in the UK if they are confident enough to push forward.
2020 – Covid Pandemic
As we went into lockdowns and were only able to work and exercise in our homes, the perfect trading conditions occurred for Gym equipment companies. Gyms were closed, and this only left home gym equipment businesses able to ship and deliver stock to homeowners around the country. The home gym market boomed. Brave business owners in the gym space dug in and stocked products suitable for home users benefiting from the captured market and surge in demand.
Other companies also benefited from this ideal market these were Homeware and furniture suppliers saw a boom in demand for home office furniture and desks. Which again was incredible for companies with the foresight to identify the current and coming market needs.
2022 – Ukraine Crisis
The push for sustainable energy in the UK has ebbed and flowed over recent years. With Brexit came more demand for domestic development, and then with COP27, the need for the UK to prioritise its green credentials became more critical. Then Russia invaded Ukraine, and access to natural resources like oil and gas became more difficult. Companies in the ‘Green Space’ have been given excellent market conditions.
They now have more support from the UK government and subsidies to invest in infrastructure. The market will only grow here as we move to Green Vehicles and self-sustaining properties. New housing requires solar panels in the UK. Energy costs have scared UK homeowners back into action because the nice to have has become more like need to have.
What Can We Learn From This?
What these examples show us is that even with market adversity, there is still opportunity for business. If you can identify an opportunity in your space, whatever that might be, then be prepared to assess the risk and reward. Unlock the benefits of this change to enhance your business sales, profits and success.
It shows us the importance of:
- Identifying key opportunities
- Planning and foresight
- Taking calculated risks
- Choosing a bold approach with Confidence
- Marketing your services well
- Considering the risk of doing nothing
Tips, Takeaways And Final Thoughts
Do your homework, consider the risks of making a move, and consider the risks of not taking the opportunity and how taking no action could benefit your competitors. Be bold, be clever, and you will see the spoils of this calculated risk in an unstable market. Some markets will present better latitude to make a profit.
Tips
Get data, and gather as much information as possible. The correct information ensures that you are ready to take strategic decisions. Take calculated risks to position yourself in the market. Invest in your internal processes to make your business lean and protect your profits.
