About the competitive analysis template
You cannot assume that your product is the best on the market — you need to plan for it to be. This competitive analysis template helps you gauge what the rest of the market is doing and set strategies to better address customers' needs. Highlight key observations about your competitors' missions, pricing, top features, strengths, weaknesses, and differentiators without having to track their every move.
Included in the competitive analysis template
This template includes everything you need to understand your top competitors more deeply:
Customizable table for organizing insights by competitor
Interactive scorecard for rating competitors' capabilities
Example for inspiration
Tailor the competitor analysis template to match your needs. Then, share your whiteboard with as many people as you want to streamline collaboration. This template also includes the following capabilities to help you identify competitor insights:
Use sticky notes to summarize learnings
Add emojis to highlight key information
Invite stakeholders to provide input and comments
Make your analysis available as a shared webpage
Share with unlimited guests for free
Overview of competitive analysis
Competitive analysis is the process of assessing the strengths and weaknesses of companies that offer products similar to yours. Conduct a high-level competitive analysis on a regular basis to stay up to date on market trends and competitor activities. Perform a more detailed analysis to inform major strategic decisions such as product launches or plans to address significant market changes.
Focus on gathering details that will help you answer these questions: How do our products and services compare to the alternatives? And how can we better differentiate what we offer? Then, discuss these opportunities as a team and use the insights you gathered to provide unique value for your customers. This is how you deliver a product that truly delights.
How to use the Competitive analysis template
Know who you are up against and create a strategy that sets you apart from the competition.
Focus your research Ideally you can explore all of the alternative solutions that are available to your customers — including direct and indirect competitors. Start with direct competitors, those who offer a similar type of product within the same market. Later, you can add indirect competitors, those who offer a different type of product that serves the same need.
Capture and organize information The template is built with columns for six areas: mission statements, pricing, top features, strengths, weaknesses, and differentiators. Of course, you can add columns to include other details (e.g., company size, revenue, website).
Give access Share what you have compiled with other groups, such as sales, marketing, and leadership. Discuss what you have learned and how you can make your own offering stand out against the alternatives. Schedule time to revisit and refresh your analysis on a regular basis.
FAQs about the competitive analysis template
Why is competitive analysis important?
A strong competitive analysis gives you insights into the market landscape and helps you identify ways to better meet customer needs. When the entire team has a deep understanding of alternative solutions, you can all work toward finding ways to innovate and deliver a more lovable product.
What are some best practices for completing a competitive analysis?
Start by making a list of direct and indirect competitors. Research their websites, read customer reviews, and test their products (if you can). Many teams use a competitive analysis template to record and organize thoughts in one place. Document your learnings, discuss them with the rest of the team, and come up with a plan for how you will continue to differentiate your product moving forward.
Who is this competitive analysis template for?
This competitive analysis template is for product managers and product marketers looking to capture information about competitors. Be sure to also invite cross-functional teammates from product, marketing, and sales to contribute to help you uncover insights into how you will solve customers' problems.
Is this template free to use?
To use this competitive analysis template, sign up for a free 30-day trial of Aha! Whiteboards. (You can also try this template in Aha! Roadmaps if you need a
