Res Competitor Research

Competitor Research

Fixed scope

• Limit to 3–5 direct competitors (same segment) + 1–2 indirect competitors (substitutes). Everything else goes in an appendix.
• Fix comparison axes to your own criteria — comparing on the axes competitors publish locks you into their frame.

Collection priority (confidence hierarchy)

1. Competitor's own: pricing page, product docs, job postings (a mirror of strategy), changelog, filings & investor materials
2. Customer voice: 100–200 reviews (G2, app stores, Reddit) — not the star average, but the 3 most-repeated complaints are the real asset
3. Third-party: analyst reports, trade media, partnership pages. Always note the discounted price alongside list price.

Comparison criteria

• Positioning: "what it does not do" (features excluded, segments excluded) is the substance of positioning.
• Moat verdict: which of brand / switching cost / data / network / supply cost it leans on + durability signals (key personnel departures, share of new entrants).
• Price comparison: convert to a common unit (per user, per usage, per transaction). If conversion is impossible, state "not comparable".
• Every figure needs a source URL + verification date. Never promote a competitor's marketing copy into fact.

Output

# Competitor Research — {category} ({date})
## Comparison table (axis × competitor, source & date in every cell)
## Relative position (2 strengths · 2 weaknesses · 1 unoccupied terrain)
## Top 3 competitor complaints (by review frequency) = our opportunity
## Monitoring items (what to watch + cadence)