To help you stay ahead of the curve in your industry, we reached out to 17 successful business leaders to share their top strategies for staying up-to-date with industry trends and changes. From utilizing CRM software to leveraging Reddit for industry insights, discover the diverse methods these experts use to stay informed and competitive in their respective fields.
Use CRM Software for Decisions
Monitor Competitor Job Postings
Curate Industry News Sources
Explore Diverse Learning Methods
Attend Trade Shows for Insights
Seek Contrarian Views
Create an Idea Bank
Engage in Online Community Groups
Join Industry Associations
Connect With Industry Peers
Subscribe to Automated Updates
Stay Plugged in With Social Media
Follow Industry Thought Leaders
Develop a Daily Reading Habit
Embrace Continuous Learning
Schedule Team Trend Discussions
Leverage Reddit for Industry Insights
Use CRM Software for Decisions
With evaluating new products or choosing to market strategies, small businesses have a little leeway. Data-driven decisions are used in this situation. Consider using CRM software to gather and analyze crucial information about your business.
Mobile devices can easily access these customer relationship management tools. These applications allow staff to record significant client interactions regardless of their location, which not only helps business owners maintain thorough records.
While working from home, your sales team might take a customer call and use an app to record it in the CRM. They provide clear data so you can track sales trends and decide on marketing strategies or other business-related matters.
John Willis, Founder, Convertfree
Monitor Competitor Job Postings
To stay up-to-date, I view job postings from competitors and businesses in my industry regularly. This provides clues about what expertise is in demand, technology advancements, and business priorities. The roles companies are hiring for can also provide clues about their strategic direction and priorities. For instance, if multiple competitors are hiring engineers in a specific field, it may show a shift that we need to adapt to.
Jeremy Reis, Founder, Million Tips
Curate Industry News Sources
As a Venture Studio Leader, staying up-to-date with industry trends and changes is essential for success. One tip we give our entrepreneurs for staying informed is to create their own curated list of industry-related news sources and regularly scan them for relevant information. This can include industry-specific publications, blogs, podcasts, and social media accounts.
By filtering out the noise and focusing on high-quality sources, they can quickly identify emerging trends, changes in consumer behavior, and new technologies that could affect their business. Joining relevant professional associations or groups can provide access to valuable resources and networking opportunities.
By staying informed and connected, entrepreneurs can stay ahead of the curve and position their businesses for success.
Sam Johnston, CMO and Cofounder, nth Venture
Explore Diverse Learning Methods
There is so much you can do to keep up with industry changes. Attend conferences and seminars to learn new skills, meet people, and explore new ideas.
You can even read professional journals such as Entrepreneur Magazine, Hoovers, and Inc Magazine. These are all free.
Meet professionals by going to business incubators or other events where like-minded entrepreneurs gather to network, share ideas, and make connections.
You can also do this digitally by joining LinkedIn Groups that focus on specific topics like entrepreneurship and social media marketing, etc.
Becky Moore, Founder, Global Grasshopper
Attend Trade Shows for Insights
In my field, attending industry events such as trade shows is an effective way for me as an entrepreneur to stay up-to-date with industry trends and changes. These events provide opportunities to meet like-minded individuals, network, and gain invaluable insights into the latest food industry developments. I hardly miss industry trends and changes because I make it my mission to attend trade shows.
Eran Mizrahi, CEO and Founder, Ingredient Brothers
Seek Contrarian Views
While it can be tempting to only seek information that confirms your existing beliefs and assumptions, seeking contrarian views can provide valuable insights into emerging trends and changes.
It will help challenge the status quo and your biases. For instance, if most industry experts seem to gravitate toward one particular strategy, it’s worthwhile to evaluate alternative strategies as well.
This can help you develop a more comprehensive understanding of the industry, as well as better expect future developments. Listening to different views can also help you develop a more innovative approach to your own business.
Marcus Fernandez, Attorney and Co-owner, KFB Law
Create an Idea Bank
Creating an idea bank can help you stay organized for new trends and changes in the industry. This means making a list of ideas that fit your business model, as well as keeping track of potential resources for future reference.
This will allow you to access material quickly that could help you stay competitive. As a best practice, I would recommend adding new resources to the idea bank regularly, once or twice per month, so you can stay informed and up-to-date with the latest trends.
Share this information with your team, as it could help them spark creative solutions for improving their work or creating innovative products.
Ryan Mckenzie, Co-founder and CMO, Tru Earth®
Engage in Online Community Groups
In the digital world, there are forums on every conceivable topic and industry, and that is why I visit online community groups to keep up with industry trends. Though there are articles that appear in newsletters and other types of publications covering industry news, they are generally done from observation rather than involvement, and almost always after the fact rather than in real-time.
Online community groups and discussion boards provide access to valuable data, opinions, and ideas that place your digital finger on the pulse of your industry while showing you the trends as they are happening. In addition, by paying attention to the queries, you can gain new ideas to solve pain points. Online community groups offer some of the best insights into your industry and will help you learn the trends before they are reported as second-hand information.
Derek Flanzraich, Founder and CEO, Ness
Join Industry Associations
Joining industry associations is one of the most effective ways to stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends and changes. By participating in industry events, meetings, and discussions, entrepreneurs can gain valuable insights into the prevailing industry practices and upcoming trends.
These associations also offer access to invaluable networking opportunities, which can help budding entrepreneurs establish professional relationships with other industry experts. Joining an industry association can also offer access to informative publications and research papers, which can help entrepreneurs stay ahead of their competitors.
Anirban Saha, Founder, MrPlanter
Connect With Industry Peers
Connecting with fellow entrepreneurs and industry peers helps me stay abreast of the latest developments in the industry. Rather than relying solely on books or blogs for information, I actively engage with fellow entrepreneurs, clients, and industry experts.
By participating in online forums and conversing with people in the automotive industry, I get real-time feedback and advice on how to best stay in tune with the changing industry trends.
I’ve found it incredibly useful since I get direct insights into what’s working, what isn’t, and how to improve my business. It has also enabled me to form partnerships with like-minded individuals. This has helped me to build my business faster and more efficiently.
Nick Rivadeneira, Founder, Racebuilds
Subscribe to Automated Updates
Subscribe to Google alerts, subscribe to a relevant channel on YouTube, follow the relevant hashtag(s) on LinkedIn, and subscribe to a few niche industry website emails. These will automate you staying updated. Even if you do not always open the updates you receive, you will still have info on your mind from reading the titles.
Patricia Bardin, Global SMB Content Strategy Manager, Lexmark International, Inc
Stay Plugged in With Social Media
Social media isn’t just recreational to me—it’s a crucial tool to stay plugged into my industry. Recruiting is a fast-paced sector and staying on top of trends is necessary to compete, especially in the executive specialty.
By carefully curating a social media feed that includes industry leaders, top talent, and companies I admire, I stay connected to the people that matter. Advancements in tech, sourcing, and processes are at my fingertips, so long as I follow the right people.
Information has been democratized in the Internet era. Think of social media as your access to everything you need to know.
Travis Hann, Partner, Pender & Howe
Follow Industry Thought Leaders
One tip to stay up-to-date with industry trends and changes is to follow and engage consistently with industry thought leaders and influencers.
Entrepreneurs can keep up to date with the latest news and trends in their industry by subscribing to blogs, podcasts, or newsletters and following them on social media. This helps them stay informed, make data-driven decisions, and maintain a competitive edge in their respective markets.
Matthew Brandenburg, CEO, Brandendo
Develop a Daily Reading Habit
Staying up to date with trends and changes is crucial for success. So one tip I have for entrepreneurs is to make it a habit of reading relevant articles and publications daily.
For example, subscribe to reputable newsletters or use news aggregator services like Feedly to collect content tailored to your interests. This way, you’ll have curated updates in your inbox each morning.
Engage with peers through online forums or social media platforms like LinkedIn that focus on your niche. Not only does this keep you informed about current discussions related to technological advancements, but it also provides opportunities for networking within the industry.
Last, attend conferences or other events regularly while taking advantage of virtual options if necessary due to travel constraints—these gatherings offer insights from leading experts who share new ideas affecting businesses today.
Embrace Continuous Learning
Entrepreneurs can stay updated with industry changes by attending events, following industry leaders, subscribing to newsletters, joining associations, and doing market research. Being curious and continuously learning is important for staying ahead in business.
Brittney Simpson, HR Operations Manager, Walker-Miller Energy Services
Schedule Team Trend Discussions
As a super busy CEO, I know how hard it can be to stay up-to-date with industry trends and changes. Years ago, it was us reading trade magazines and attending trade events and conferences to see the newest manufacturing innovations; now, with tech developments at an all-time high, we have this information at our iPhone fingertips.
And while that seems easier on the surface, I have often found myself further behind the times than ever before.
To combat this, we have set aside a 30-minute window and called it Tech Treats Tuesday: where all five heads of departments and I have to talk about a new trend, hot news, or something that has come up on the radar.
My tip is don’t make time for it, schedule it in, and make your team accountable, which makes you accountable. Like a gym or carpool buddy, if you miss work, they miss work!
Lots of things we don’t need now, or maybe never, but it means we are always in the know and never miss something important.
Kathy Bennett, CEO and Founder, Bennett Packaging
Leverage Reddit for Industry Insights
In today’s fast-paced world, it’s crucial to stay up-to-date with industry trends and changes. Reddit, with its vast network of subreddits, can help you stay ahead.
Start by identifying relevant subreddits related to your industry. Engage with other users by asking questions, sharing insights, and taking part in discussions to gain a better understanding of what’s going on.
Follow thought leaders in your industry and track their comments or posts. Sort by “Hot” and “Top” to identify popular and relevant information.
Set up alerts to get notified of new posts or comments using tools like IFTTT or Zapier.
Leverage Reddit to stay informed, connect with thought leaders, and take part in valuable discussions. Revamp your industry insight and stay ahead of the curve.
Tanya Shah, Brand Director, Ayumi Naturals
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