competitive-analysis

# Competitive Analysis Skill

Frameworks and methodologies for researching competitors, comparing positioning, and identifying market opportunities.

## Competitive Research Methodology

### Research Sources

Gather intelligence from these categories of sources:

#### Primary Sources (Direct from Competitor)
- **Website**: homepage, product pages, pricing, about page, careers
- **Blog and resource center**: content themes, publishing frequency, depth
- **Social media profiles**: messaging, engagement, content strategy
- **Product demos and free trials**: UX, features, onboarding experience
- **Webinars and events**: topics, speakers, audience engagement
- **Press releases and newsroom**: announcements, partnerships, milestones
- **Job postings**: hiring signals that reveal strategic priorities (e.g., hiring for a new product line or market)

#### Secondary Sources (Third-Party)
- **Review sites**: G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, Product Hunt — customer sentiment themes
- **Analyst reports**: Gartner, Forrester, IDC — market positioning and category placement
- **News coverage**: TechCrunch, industry publications — funding, partnerships, narrative
- **Social listening**: mentions, sentiment, share of voice across social platforms
- **SEO tools**: keyword rankings, organic traffic estimates, content gaps
- **Financial filings**: revenue, growth rate, investment areas (for public companies)
- **Community forums**: community forums (e.g. Reddit, Discourse), industry chat groups (e.g. Slack communities) — user sentiment

### Research Process
1. **Set scope**: define which competitors and what aspects to analyze
2. **Gather data**: systematically collect information from sources above
3. **Organize findings**: structure by competitor, then by dimension
4. **Analyze patterns**: identify themes, strengths, weaknesses, and trends
5. **Compare to your position**: map findings against your own positioning and capabilities
6. **Synthesize insights**: extract actionable takeaways and