alexe-ev Analyze Competitive Landscape
Purpose
Help teams build a structured, objective view of the competitive landscape — who the competitors are, how they compete, and what it means for product and strategy.
Skill type
Conceptual skill
Use this skill when
- A team lacks a current, structured view of competitors
- The competitive landscape has shifted and needs re-assessment
- A new product area requires competitive analysis before investment
- Positioning or strategy work requires a competitive foundation
Do not use this skill when
- The goal is producing a differentiation statement (use frame-competitive-differentiation)
- The goal is customer-facing competitive messaging (use develop-positioning-messaging)
Required inputs
- Product area and target segment
- Known competitors (at least partially)
Optional inputs
- Recent competitive moves or news
- Win/loss data
- Customer feedback on alternatives
- Industry or market reports
Upstream context
Works best when:
- Target segment is defined
- Product capabilities are known
If upstream context is missing
Produce a competitive analysis framework with the dimensions to assess, and flag that competitor identification must precede analysis.
Downstream handoff
Output can feed:
- frame-competitive-differentiation (landscape → differentiation choices)
- define-strategic-positioning (competitive context informs positioning)
- plan-product-launch (competitive context informs launch strategy)
Instructions
- Identify all competitors: direct (same category), indirect (different category, same job), and status quo alternatives.
- For each competitor: describe their target segment, key value proposition, key capabilities, and apparent strategy.
- Map competitive dimensions relevant to the target segment.
- Identify where the market is commoditizing and where differentiation remains possible.
- Identify competitive threats and opportunities.
- Assess competitive dynamics: is the market growing, stable, or consolidating?
Output
Provide:
- Competitor inventory: direct, indirect, status quo
- Competitor profiles (segment, value prop, capabilities, strategy)
- Competitive dimension map
- Areas of commoditization vs. differentiation opportunity
- Competitive threats (short and long term)
- Strategic opportunities surfaced by the analysis
- Confidence level and data currency
Risks / caveats
- Competitive analysis based only on public marketing materials is shallow — triangulate with customer feedback
- Don't over-index on visible competitors — indirect and emerging competitors often matter more
- The landscape changes; set a review cadence