A competitive landscape analysis shows you who your competitors are, what they're doing, and how you can beat them. This guide walks you through creating a complete competitive analysis that actually helps your business win.

Here's how to do competitive analysis the right way, with tools and templates you can use today.

⚡ Quick Steps to Competitive Analysis

Identify competitors - Direct, indirect, and substitute competitors
Gather competitor data - Products, pricing, marketing, strengths/weaknesses
Analyze market positioning - Where you and competitors sit in the market
Find opportunities - Gaps you can fill and advantages you can build
Create action plan - Specific steps to outperform competitors

What is Competitive Landscape Analysis?

Competitive landscape analysis is the process of researching and evaluating your competitors to understand the market, identify opportunities, and improve your business strategy.

Why Do Competitive Analysis?

Business Benefits:

Identify market gaps and opportunities
Understand customer needs better
Improve your value proposition
Set realistic pricing strategies
Spot industry trends early

Marketing Benefits:

Find messaging that works
Discover untapped audience segments
Improve your content strategy
Identify partnership opportunities

Step 1: Identify Your Competitors

Types of Competitors

Direct Competitors: Same products/services, same target market

Example: If you sell email marketing software, Mailchimp is a direct competitor

Indirect Competitors: Different products/services, same target market

Example: Social media management tools competing for marketing budget

Substitute Competitors: Different solutions to the same problem

Example: Email marketing vs. social media advertising for customer outreach

How to Find Competitors

Google Search Method:

Search for your main keywords
Note who appears in top 10 results
Search for "alternatives to [your product]"
Check "People also search for" suggestions

Customer Research Method:

Survey existing customers about alternatives they considered
Ask lost prospects what solution they chose instead
Check customer review sites for competitor mentions

Tool-Based Research:

SimilarWeb - See competitor traffic and audience
SEMrush - Find competitors ranking for your keywords
Ahrefs - Discover competitors getting your target traffic
Google Alerts - Monitor competitor mentions

Step 2: Gather Competitor Information

What Data to Collect

Basic Company Info:

Company size and revenue (if public)
Years in business
Funding status and investors
Leadership team background
Geographic presence

Product/Service Analysis:

Full product lineup
Features and functionality
Pricing models and costs
Product positioning and messaging
Customer support options

Marketing Analysis:

Target audience and customer personas
Marketing channels used
Content strategy and messaging
Social media presence
Advertising approach

Sales Process:

Sales funnel and process
Free trial or demo offerings
Sales team size and structure
Partnership and channel strategies

Data Collection Methods

Website Analysis:

Study their homepage and product pages
Check their about page and team info
Review their blog and content strategy
Analyze their pricing page
Look at customer testimonials and case studies

Social Media Research:

Follow their social accounts
Note posting frequency and content types
Check engagement rates
See what customers say in comments
Monitor their social advertising

Customer Feedback:

Read reviews on G2, Capterra, Trustpilot
Check complaint sites and forums
Look for customer feedback on social media
Analyze what customers love and hate

Content Analysis:

Subscribe to their email list
Download their free resources
Attend their webinars or events
Read their case studies and whitepapers

Step 3: Organize Your Competitive Data

Competitor Profile Template

For each competitor, create a profile with:

Company Overview:

Name, size, location
Years in business
Key leadership
Mission/vision statements

Products/Services:

Main offerings
Unique features
Pricing structure
Target customers

Marketing Strategy:

Key messages
Content themes
Marketing channels
Social media presence

Strengths:

What they do well
Competitive advantages
Customer praise points

Weaknesses:

Areas they struggle with
Common customer complaints
Market gaps they miss

Competitive Analysis Framework

SWOT Analysis for Each Competitor:

Strengths - What advantages do they have?
Weaknesses - Where do they fall short?
Opportunities - What trends could help them?
Threats - What could hurt their business?

Competitive Positioning Map: Plot competitors on two key dimensions:

Price (low to high) vs. Features (basic to advanced)
Market focus (broad to niche) vs. Company size (startup to enterprise)

Step 4: Analyze Market Positioning

Market Position Categories

Market Leaders:

Largest market share
Strong brand recognition
Set industry standards
Premium pricing ability

Challengers:

Growing market share
Competitive pricing
Innovation focus
Attacking leader weaknesses

Followers:

Smaller market share
Copy leader strategies
Focus on specific segments
Competitive pricing

Nichers:

Serve specific market segments
Specialized expertise
Higher margins possible
Limited growth potential

Your Position Analysis

Questions to Answer:

Where do you currently sit in the market?
What position do you want to occupy?
What would it take to move to that position?
Which competitors are in your way?

Step 5: Identify Opportunities and Threats

Opportunity Analysis

Market Gaps:

Unserved customer segments
Missing product features
Underserved geographic markets
Price points nobody targets

Competitor Weaknesses:

Poor customer service
Outdated technology
Limited features
High pricing

Emerging Trends:

New customer needs
Technology changes
Regulatory shifts
Market disruptions

Threat Assessment

Competitive Threats:

New competitors entering market
Existing competitors expanding
Price wars starting
Feature battles escalating

Market Threats:

Shrinking market size
Changing customer preferences
New substitute solutions
Economic downturns

Step 6: Develop Your Competitive Strategy

Strategic Options

Differentiation Strategy:

Offer unique features or benefits
Focus on superior quality or service
Build stronger brand identity
Target underserved segments

Cost Leadership:

Achieve lowest costs in industry
Offer competitive pricing
Focus on operational efficiency
Serve price-sensitive customers

Focus Strategy:

Concentrate on specific market niche
Become the expert in that area
Build deep customer relationships
Charge premium for specialization

Action Planning

Immediate Actions (0-3 months):

Fix obvious weaknesses
Match competitor features you're missing
Improve messaging based on what works
Address customer complaints

Medium-term Actions (3-12 months):

Develop competitive advantages
Enter new market segments
Launch new products or features
Build strategic partnerships

Long-term Actions (12+ months):

Establish market leadership
Create barriers to entry
Build switching costs
Expand into new markets

Tools for Competitive Analysis

Free Tools

Google Tools:

Google Search - Basic competitor research
Google Alerts - Monitor competitor mentions
Google Trends - Compare search interest
Google Analytics - Track competitor referrals

Social Media Tools:

Facebook Ad Library - See competitor ads
LinkedIn - Research competitor employees
Twitter - Monitor competitor conversations
Instagram - Analyze competitor content

Paid Tools

SEO/Marketing Tools:

SEMrush - Competitor keywords and traffic
Ahrefs - Backlink and content analysis
SimilarWeb - Website traffic and audience data
SpyFu - Competitor AdWords research

Social Media Tools:

Hootsuite Insights - Social media monitoring
Sprout Social - Competitor social analysis
BuzzSumo - Content performance tracking

Common Competitive Analysis Mistakes

1. Only Looking at Direct Competitors

Mistake: Ignoring indirect and substitute competitors Fix: Include all types of competitors in your analysis

2. Focusing Only on Large Competitors

Mistake: Missing smaller, agile competitors Fix: Monitor both established players and emerging threats

3. One-Time Analysis

Mistake: Doing competitive analysis once and forgetting it Fix: Update your analysis quarterly or after major market changes

4. Not Acting on Insights

Mistake: Collecting information but not using it Fix: Create specific action plans based on your findings

5. Copying Instead of Differentiating

Mistake: Just copying what competitors do Fix: Use insights to find ways to be different and better

Presenting Your Competitive Analysis

Executive Summary Format

Market Overview:

Market size and growth
Key trends affecting industry
Major players and market share

Competitive Landscape:

Number and types of competitors
Market positioning of key players
Competitive intensity level

Key Findings:

Biggest opportunities identified
Main threats to watch
Competitor strengths to respect
Weaknesses to exploit

Recommendations:

Strategic priorities
Immediate action items
Resource requirements
Expected outcomes

Monitoring and Updating Your Analysis

Ongoing Monitoring

Monthly Tasks:

Check competitor websites for changes
Monitor their social media activity
Track their content publishing
Watch for new product launches

Quarterly Tasks:

Update competitor profiles
Analyze their marketing campaigns
Review customer feedback trends
Assess market position changes

Annual Tasks:

Complete comprehensive analysis refresh
Update competitive strategy
Identify new competitors to track
Revise market positioning

Staying Alert to Changes

Set Up Monitoring Systems:

Google Alerts for competitor mentions
Social media monitoring for brand mentions
Newsletter subscriptions from competitors
Industry publication subscriptions

Conclusion

Competitive landscape analysis isn't a one-time project - it's an ongoing process that helps you stay ahead in your market. The key is collecting the right information, analyzing it systematically, and acting on what you learn.

Start with identifying all your competitors, gather comprehensive data about their strategies, find opportunities they're missing, and create specific action plans to outperform them.

Remember: the goal isn't to copy your competitors, but to understand the market so well that you can find unique ways to serve customers better than anyone else.

TL;DR - Quick Answer