Competitive Analysis
Work through these five steps in order. Each builds on the previous one.
Step 1 — Identify Competitors
Sort every competitor into one of three buckets:
| Type | Definition | How to find them |
|---|---|---|
| Direct | Solves the same job with a similar product | Search the category name, check review sites, ask users "what else did you consider?" |
| Indirect | Solves the same job with a different approach | Ask "how did people do this before products like ours existed?" |
| Substitutes | Competes for the same budget, time, or attention | Ask "what would they do instead of solving this job at all?" |
Include "do nothing" as a substitute — it is always the strongest competitor.
List 3–7 competitors. More than that dilutes focus.
Step 2 — Feature Comparison Matrix
Build a table. Rows are capabilities that matter to the job. Columns are competitors. Score each cell.
| Capability | Us | Competitor A | Competitor B | Competitor C |
|------------------------|----|-------------|-------------|-------------|
| [capability 1] | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| [capability 2] | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| ... | | | | |Scoring:
- Strong — does this well, customers recognize it as a strength
- Adequate — does it, no complaints, no praise
- Weak — does it poorly or partially
- Missing — doesn't do it at all
Pick capabilities from the user's perspective, not the feature list. "Quickly see what changed since yesterday" beats "activity feed" or "notification system."
Step 3 — Positioning Analysis
Plot competitors along the two dimensions that matter most for this market. Pick dimensions from the job, not from product attributes.
[Dimension A — high]
│
│ ○ Competitor B
│
[Dimension B — low] ───────┼──────── [Dimension B — high]
│
○ Competitor A │
│ ○ Competitor C
[Dimension A — low]Call out:
- Clusters — where multiple competitors sit on top of each other (crowded positioning)
- Gaps — empty quadrants or open space (potential opportunity)
- Movement — where competitors are heading based on recent releases or messaging shifts
Step 4 — Strengths and Weaknesses by Job
For each competitor, answer two questions through the lens of the jobs customers hire them for:
| Competitor | Jobs served well | Jobs served poorly |
|---|---|---|
| Competitor A | [list jobs where they excel] | [list jobs where they fall short] |
| Competitor B | ... | ... |
Don't assess competitors against your priorities — assess them against what their own customers hire them to do. A competitor can be "weak" at something that doesn't matter to their audience.
Step 5 — Opportunities
Synthesize the previous steps into a short list of opportunities. Each opportunity should be:
| Opportunity | Evidence | Who it serves | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Underserved segment or unmet need] | [Which steps above revealed it] | [Who benefits] | [What could go wrong] |
Look for:
- Underserved segments — groups whose job is poorly done by every current option
- Unmet needs — specific needs in the job that no competitor addresses well
- Over-served segments — groups paying for capabilities they don't need (room for a simpler/cheaper entry)
- Shifting context — changes in technology, regulation, or behavior that invalidate current positioning
Output Format
Deliver the analysis as a single structured document containing:
- Competitor list (with type labels)
- Feature comparison table
- Positioning map (text diagram)
- JTBD strengths/weaknesses table
- Ranked opportunity list
Keep each section tight. The value is in the structure and the gaps it reveals, not in lengthy descriptions of what each competitor does.