HI: Spotlight

Our blog shines a spotlight on different topics of interest to our community, including how we approach questions from clients, research tips and tricks, celebrating HelloInfo milestones, and more!

Making the most out of Google for CI research

When I was first introduced to Google’s search engine (way way back in 2004), all my peers and teachers at library school said it was no good for business-related research. They insisted databases like Factiva, ProQuest, or Dialog were the only way to go.   Times...

Using radar charts effectively

Have you ever been asked to compare multiple competitors, across multiple criteria? Perhaps you have needed to compare multiple products across varying functionalities. Radar charts, otherwise known as spider charts, can be useful tools for visualizing this type of...

Level up your launches with product benchmarking analysis

Product benchmarking can help your company become more competitive by improving feature sets and customer satisfaction levels, understanding relative price position, and gaining strategic advantage.

My experience as an Analyst at HelloInfo

My experience as an Analyst at HelloInfo

All good things must come to an end, and at HelloInfo, we proudly support our colleagues in all their life transitions. Our Analyst Matthew is headed to work in research security at the University of Calgary, and we are proud to have been a part of his career growth....

Say Hello to Nancy!

Say Hello to Nancy!

HelloInfo is proud and excited to announce that we have added a new member to the team! Nancy has over 6 years of experience in market intelligence and has joined HelloInfo as a Consultant. She has primarily worked with B2B technology customers delivering research...

We say Hello to Regina!

We say Hello to Regina!

June is one of our favorite months at HelloInfo, and that's because we have made it our tradition to hold an annual company onsite this time every year! The purpose of the onsite meeting is to connect as a team, bridge the virtual gap (we are a 100% remote company),...

What does HelloInfo do?

What does HelloInfo do?

Maybe you’ve seen our blogs, maybe you’ve had a peek at our website. Perhaps you’ve caught Tanya or Nicolle posting on LinkedIn, or seen one their presentations at AIIP’s 2022 conference or with the SLA’s Competitive Intelligence Community. But because our work is so...

A day in the life of an Analyst at HelloInfo

A day in the life of an Analyst at HelloInfo

Chances are, you know an Analyst, have met one, or have noticed one talking on television, being interviewed in newspapers, or authoring articles in industry sources online. Individuals can be Business Analysts, Systems Analysts, Data Analysts, Financial Analysts,...

Level up your SWOT – consider TOWS instead!

Level up your SWOT – consider TOWS instead!

Whether you are a small start-up or a corporate enterprise, strategic research and intelligence can support your company in maintaining market competitiveness and reaching long-term objectives. There are several intuitive frameworks that are useful to support your...

How to implement a Blue Ocean Strategy

How to implement a Blue Ocean Strategy

When competition in a market is fierce, it can be difficult to differentiate your company. When this happens, companies often consider tweaking their products and/or establishing new markets in an attempt to create new demand and open up opportunities. This strategy...

Using Porter’s Five Forces in strategy development

Using Porter’s Five Forces in strategy development

When surveying an industry, it can be difficult to understand where to start, and what to focus on. The Porter’s Five Forces framework is a useful macro framework that can be used to develop corporate strategy within an industry. This framework helps companies...

Word clouds: The great debate

Word clouds: The great debate

Doing a quick Google search on the topic of word clouds results in some very negative blog posts such as “Word Clouds are Lame,” “Why Word Clouds Harm Insights,” and “The Problem with Word Clouds.” This negativity is absolutely warranted – word clouds are very limited...

PESTEL Analysis for strategic planning

PESTEL Analysis for strategic planning

How should we plan for the future? In which country should we invest? Which country poses the highest risk to our business? These are only some of the questions that a PESTEL analysis framework can answer. Related closely to a PEST analysis or a STEEP analysis, the...

Deploying a Counter-CI strategy

Deploying a Counter-CI strategy

Competitive Intelligence (CI) is a company’s tool to gain insight into a competitor’s strategy, product, priorities, strengths, and weaknesses. However, CI can also be used by competitors on your own company to allow them to compete more effectively. Defending against...

A day in the life of a Consultant at HelloInfo

A day in the life of a Consultant at HelloInfo

When I am asked what I do for a living, and I reply with “Consultant,” my response is typically met with a friendly, sometimes puzzled nod which is often accompanied by a variety of follow-up questions that require me to provide further insight. To the non-business...

Using radar charts effectively

Using radar charts effectively

Have you ever been asked to compare multiple competitors, across multiple criteria? Perhaps you have needed to compare multiple products across varying functionalities. Radar charts, otherwise known as spider charts, can be useful tools for visualizing this type of...

Say Hello to Irida! 

Say Hello to Irida! 

HelloInfo is proud and excited to announce that we have a new team member joining us.  With 8+ years of extensive experience in market intelligence and strategy, Irida Koco is joining HelloInfo as a Senior Consultant. She has worked primarily with B2B customers,...

What is a bubble chart and how do I use one?

What is a bubble chart and how do I use one?

When asked to list examples of traditional charts and graphs, most people will name bar, line or pie charts. Rarely do people list radar charts, histograms, or bubble charts, but these types of charts can be exceptionally useful when needing to visualize data with...

The love / hate relationship with pie charts

The love / hate relationship with pie charts

Introduced in 1801 by Scottish engineer, William Playfair, pie charts are a very common, but controversial way to visualize data. While pie charts are often depicted as simple and easy to create statistical tools the pie chart has become a divisive tool that many...

War Gaming as a tool to predict competitor actions

War Gaming as a tool to predict competitor actions

In a competitive marketplace, knowing your competition’s next move can give your organization an advantage. War gaming is an effective means to establish how your competitors will react to changes in the market. When conducted properly war gaming can deliver insights...