(1) Grey information supports enterprise management decision. From a rational point of view, each enterprise's ability to acquire and process white information is mostly close, and major business opportunities are often found in government reports, trade fairs, information release and other zero information. Therefore, grey information plays a very positive role in the strategic decision-making of senior managers such as enterprise merger and acquisition, investment and competition field selection. Enterprise managers can discover market changes and competitors' action trends in time, so as to formulate effective competitive strategies, and adjust strategies in time according to market changes, making enterprise decisions more scientific. For example, in customer relationship management, by analyzing and mining the historical data of enterprises, we may find some behavioral characteristics of users, thus classifying users, which not only helps enterprises to improve products reasonably according to customer needs, but also enables enterprises to identify high-quality customers and earn more profits by meeting the needs of high-quality customers.
(II) Verification and Supplement of Gray Information to White Information When collecting competitive intelligence, it is very important to identify the fairness of data. Because enterprises will intentionally disclose some information in the process of management and market competition, for example, many enterprises often exaggerate the data when introducing their market share in order to promote consumers to buy. Only by comprehensively comparing and analyzing the data obtained from multiple channels can we grasp the market more accurately. In this way, grey information becomes a good verification and supplement of white competitive intelligence. When we want to know the information of an enterprise in the market, we should not only analyze the publicly released data of the enterprise, but also find the relevant information of the enterprise through the Internet and other channels. When the multi-channel information is consistent, the information can be basically confirmed, otherwise it needs to be further understood and analyzed through other channels.
(3) Early warning function of grey information One of the most important functions of competitive intelligence is to analyze and identify future opportunities and threats on the basis of investigating the competitive environment, competitors and themselves, so as to give themselves more time and space, protect enterprises from sudden attacks and gain competitive advantages. Generally speaking, the greater the threat, the more hidden it is. This requires enterprises to effectively collect grey information, not only about competitors, but also including potential market entrants and possible substitute manufacturers. Only in this way can we not be at a loss in the fierce competition and change.
(IV) Learning function of grey information Every industry has some enterprises or enterprise groups with independent intellectual property rights, outstanding industries and strong core competitiveness. Competitive intelligence can not only help enterprises learn, compare and learn from their more scientific management ideas and choose more advanced management methods, but also provide the best experience, lessons and the most specific management standards for enterprises through understanding and analyzing competitors, so that enterprises can enter the international market and participate in international competition. The competitor is always the best teacher, and the analysis of him will provide the best experience, lessons and the most specific reference standards for enterprises, and the focus of the analysis is the gray information about the competitive advantage of competitors.