5 Ways to Increase Your Market Share (With Examples)

For a company to see a market share increase, it’s usually down to tactics and hard work in tandem.

Kleenex. Band-Aid. Chapstick. What do these terms have in common?

They’re brand names that became the terms for products. Language alone shows that the brands cornered their markets, making it much easier for them to grow their market share.

But most brands can’t achieve this (at least not right away). So, how can you increase your market share and profitability? In addition to quality products, you need a quality market strategy and an accurate market research tool to take a bigger share of the market.

Read on to find out how to assess market share increase potential, and get tips for how to start to increase your market share.

What does growing market share actually mean?

Market share is basically a pie and every company in that market has a slice. As the market grows, companies need to expand with it to keep their share of that pie. So yes, growth is required just to keep what you have in most cases. If you want to increase your market share, it means you are growing faster than average. In other words, you are outperforming the competition.

Here’s the formula: Market share = Your total sales / Entire market total sales *100.

How to increase your market share

When looking at how to do something right, it helps to have examples – companies that actually did it. Here are some of the most successful strategies industry leaders use to grow their market share.  You can pick and choose the strategies that you think make the most sense for your company.

1. Level up your branding and marketing

Brand identity. It’s your personality. If you don’t have one, it’s hard to make an impact. It’s even harder to build a connection with your customers. Market share leaders usually have an X-factor brand identity and marketing edge that makes them stand out. Think: Tesla, Ikea, and McDonald’s. These brands are household names.

What’s important here is developing a holistic brand strategy that embodies your mission, your vision, and your message. When you develop a cohesive design and voice that reflects all these and consistently present it to your audience, you will make a lasting impression.

It’s much easier to grow from a niche market compared to if you try to conquer the entire market from the jump. A classic example is Coca-Cola. This consumer giant didn’t stop after cornering the soft-drink market. The global powerhouse went after a more health-conscious and fitness-oriented market, with hydration and water products like Smart Water, Vitamin Water, and Powerade.

The lesson here: Consider aligning your marketing to target a specific group or market segmentation and build a reputation. Then grow from there.

2. Keep innovating (and not just technology)

To continue to grow your market share, you need new technology. Apple is a perfect example. The iPhone maker practically stands for innovation and sleek design and is constantly releasing new products.

Another example is Google and its ever-changing search algorithms to improve results and meet users’ needs. Google has the largest market share of all search engines, even in regions where you’ll find other prominent search engines like Russia, and not by accident.

Product development is a priority for market leaders. And even if a product itself doesn’t change, you can still innovate. Look at Starbucks and how their marketing constantly draws new attention to different seasonal trends. There’s always a way to innovate. You just need to find it.

3. Add discounts, benefits, and incentives

Review your current pricing structure and compare it to your competitors.

Discounts, bonuses, or extra benefits can provide an additional incentive for consumers to buy. In eCommerce, for example, companies that offer free shipping generally have an advantage, even if it means adding an extra product to your cart to meet the minimum. Find your competitive advantage.

These methods can boost your business when competition is aggressive, or you’re not growing as much as you planned.

4. Cultivate your customer base

Keep your eyes on your customers. Yes, your existing customers.

Your current customer base generates your market share. To maintain that, you need to hold on to it and view each customer as an investment. Turn your target audience into loyal customers by making them feel appreciated, engaging with them, and most of all, listening to them.

Why? Because they will show you where to invest your resources next.

They can tell you what they love about your product and what they are missing.

Use that in your innovation, your marketing strategy, and your pricing policy. Your customers need to keep coming back for more.  When they do, they will bring their friends and families.

Word of mouth is a popular marketing strategy. By nurturing customer loyalty, you’ll naturally bring in new customers, which will lead to a higher market share.

5. Look out for acquisition opportunities

Sometimes the best way to increase market share is by acquiring it.

Instead of putting efforts into developing new products or services that fit their vision, enterprises often buy out smaller companies that have already done that or offer a better product. This option requires financial stability and managerial capabilities.

On the other hand, it keeps competition at bay.

Market share increase starts with growing your traffic share

If you want to grab a larger market share, you should start with traffic share.

Website traffic represents the market volume in the digital world and tells you where you stand in an instant. With tools like Similarweb’s research analytics tools, you can see your own traffic data, traffic data from competitors, and your industry as a whole.

Get a breakdown according to companies and identify top-performing websites and potential threats. See which companies are gaining or losing market share and where you fit into the puzzle.

You can even investigate different traffic sources and dive into engagement metrics for actionable information.

The internet is the first place your audience goes to search and communicate their desires. That’s where you’ll see the first signs of change.

It’s easy to measure your digital impact, monitor and compare digital traffic, engagement, conversions and use digital tools to quantify your audience’s preferences and complaints.

Try Similarweb now for free to find out how you can increase your market share with digital intelligence.

This blog post was written by Ruth M. Trucks.

FAQ

How can you increase market share?

A few good ways to increase the market share include lowering prices, strengthening customer relationships, and advertising.

What does it mean to increase market share?

To increase market share means increasing the effort you put into sales as a business, and using new or additional strategies to help you get there. It means you generate more revenue, sales, relative to others in your market.

What are some strategies to increase market share?

Strategies to increase market share include improving the existing product or service, introducing new products or services, improving customer service, increasing marketing efforts, and expanding into new markets.

by Molly Winik

Senior Content Marketing Manager

Molly has 8+ years of experience in marketing, content creation, and PR. Her work has been featured on Mention, The Times of Israel, and Culture Trip.