If you can't answer that question, you're missing a vital part of your marketing plan. And thanks to the Internet finding out what others are offering your potential customers is easier than ever.

Let's use interior design as an industry example. Go to www.google.com and type in interior designers and the town where your business is based. The size of your community will largely determine how many of your competitors' web sites show up. Start clicking on each one and check out some of the following features-

First Impressions
What did you think when the first page came into view? Was it organized, easy to read and navigate? Was finding a way to contact this business easy to locate on the page? If you have a web site, how does yours compare, could you stand to make some improvements?

Testimonials
What are people saying about your competitors? Do they offer great prices, a money back guarantee? Would your customers say similar things about you? What can you do to make yourself stand head and shoulders above these competitors?

As business owners every single one of us has competition, the key is to find out how to make your business the most attractive to your customer.