Competitive intelligence for Startups

Hello 👋 Marketing Context Fam!! Welcome to this week’s edition.

In todays edition of startup marketing deep dive we unpack a critical startup marketing process of “Competitor Intelligence”. We will cover:

1. Why CI is important

2. Unpack the core concepts

3. Role of a marketer

4. Resources

THE CONTEXT
Why competitive intelligence is important?

Imagine you Dollar Save Club founder, dabbling with the idea of launching your saving range of products.
Your idea is great and you have identified the GAP in the market, but your biggest challenge is taking on Gillette.

As a startup this can be a scary challenge, no matter the opportunity.

So how are you so confident? Intuition is one thing, is there something else in play here?

Dollar Save Club won the battle against Gillette and how, eventually being bought by Unilever for a whooping 1 Billion USD ( Link)

While there is a lot of learning here, lets just focus on one key element, every early founder should invest in.

Dollar Shave Club brand film

The contexts:

Most early startups I have worked with including the one I founded (Awvent), started with personal experience.

That one idea or an observation that every founder thought to be critical enough to solve. While it is great to have an idea, converting it into a viable business is a completely different beast to tame.

Lets look at another example:

Say you're building "BeeFit," an AI-powered fitness app designed for busy professionals. You know there are competitors lurking in the digital gym, but how do you make BeeFit the clear winner?

Here's where Competitive Intelligence (CI) steps in. It's your secret playbook for 

✅ Validating your idea,

✅ Understanding the competition and

✅ Crafting a strategy that gets you noticed.

 (We will use BeeFit as an example to illustrate how to use CI in your early marketing strategy)

THE DEEP DIVE
Unpacking the CI strategy. Key elements?

Think of CI as your research mission. It's about gathering intel on your competitors to

• Identify Your Competitive Anchor: This is your "benchmarked competitor" – the product most similar to yours in terms of features and target audience.

• Uncover Their Strengths and Weaknesses: Analyse their product ( features and benefits), marketing messages, and customer reviews. Where do they excel? Where do they stumble?

• Find Your Niche: Based on your competitor analysis, identify a unique selling proposition (USP). What problem do you solve better than anyone else?

Designing your CI framework: A step by step guide.

1. Identify your competitive hive:

• Start with internal feedback and brainstorming: Being a small outfit, it is critical that internal point of view and feedback are given importance. Brainstorm with your team and list down any company  that potentially fulfil the same user needs as your product.

• Use platforms like online app stores and search engines results to find similar app. You can use free resources to do keyword research.

• For BeeFit, if I were to run a search query, I would look at keywords like "AI Fitness", "workout for busy professionals" etc.

2. Group your competitors group them into two categories:

• Direct Competitors: Products that are closest to filling up the same user needs as yours. Think of apps offering similar AI-powered workouts to busy professionals.

• Indirect Competitors: Look beyond your direct competitors. Taking our previous example of BeeFit, look beyond the apps. Consider gyms with virtual classes, fitness trackers with coaching features, or even YouTube channels offering on-demand workout videos.

3. Invest in social listening and digital investigation

Digging into competitive intelligence does not have to be expensive. There are a lot of free resources available to use and start the process. To begin with:

• Search Platforms: Monitor search and paid campaigns, and content resources and mentions

• Set up a Google Alert for your competitor names, relevant keywords like "AI fitness," and industry publications.

• Free app trials: Download competitor apps and explore their features. Experience the user journey first hand and take notes on their strengths and weaknesses, and identify gaps

• Social Listening: Follow competitor own assets ( blogs, newsletters, webinars etc) and social accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook etc. Look for common user complaints and questions in the comments section.

4. Create a competitive leader-board:

A competitive leader-board is a great way to monitor all your competitors at one place.

• Once you have identified and classified your core competitors, list them down in your leader board in priority.( direct /indirect)

• List all the parameters to monitor ( target market, core features like workout type, personalisation options etc) their pricing model, messaging and value proposition. Key hooks and differentiation ( strengths and weakness)

• Fill out the leader board based on your research. You can assign weightage and points to each  parameter. This will help evaluate your product in relation to your competitor and help formulate your early GTM strategy.

STRATEGIES IN ACTION
How to use the CI findings?

Once you have implemented your CI process and started documenting your findings you should start using it to refine your marketing and positioning strategy

 5. Identify Your Competitive Anchor:

• The leader-board benchmark helps analyse the Competitive Matrix and identify the competitor that occupies the same space in the matrix as you product ( BeeFit)

• Choose the competitor most similar to yours in terms of target market, features, and pricing. This is your "Competitive Anchor."

6. Deep dive into the competitive anchor: Uncover Their Strengths & Weaknesses:

Now that you've identified your key competitor, it's time for a deeper analysis.
How-to:

• Analyse the anchor competitor's app, marketing materials (website, social media), and user reviews.

• Look for their strengths – what are they doing well? Are there specific features users love?

• Identify their weaknesses – what areas could they improve? Are there any user complaints or pain points you can address in BeeFit?

7. Find Your Niche: Your unique buzz

Your competitor analysis approach should be driven to identify and separate your Unique Selling Proposition (USP).  It should help answer key questions like,

• What makes BeeFit stand out? Does your AI offer more personalized workout experience? Are your workouts specifically designed for busy professionals' schedules?

• Identify the gap in the market that BeeFit can fill. This is your USP – the unique value proposition that sets you apart from the competition.

MARKETING MINDSET MOMENT
Role of a marketer: Owning the CI strategy

In early startups, while the founders set the direction, it is the role of the founding marketer to ensure that the strategy I effectively put in motion.

 Be the CI Champion:

• Build the Framework: Craft a simple CI framework (think competitor matrix) to organize your intel.

• Research & Analyse: Leverage free tools like Google Alerts and social media listening to gather intel. Collaborate with other teams to understand your startup's strengths.

• Data Storytelling: Present your findings in clear reports and visualisations to inform strategic decisions.

   

Turn CI into Marketing Muscle:

• Define Your Position: Use CI to define your startup's unique value proposition (USP) and ideal customer profile.

• Targeted Messaging: Craft marketing messages that highlight your USP and resonate with your target audience.

• Stay Ahead of the Curve: Monitor competitor activity and market trends to anticipate challenges and opportunities.

 Limited Resources, Big Impact:

• Free Tools First: Utilize free resources and consider affordable CI tools as your budget grows.

• Focus on Essentials: Prioritize researching key competitors and gathering vital insights.

• Data-Driven Decisions: Use CI data to inform marketing activities, maximising your limited resources.

By championing CI and integrating it into marketing strategies, early-stage marketers become a driving force for startup success.

Remember: CI is an ongoing process. Regularly update your intel and use it to refine your strategy, ensuring your product remains the top choice for users who are seeking a solution for their problem.

Bonus Tip: Don't just focus on weaknesses. Learn from your competitor's strengths too! Can you incorporate those strengths into your product while still maintaining your unique value proposition?

RESOURCES ON SPOTLIGHT
Free resources to start with.

• Free Competitive Intelligence Tools:

  • Google Alerts: [Link to Google Alerts]

  • App Store Reviews: [Link to App Store] & [Link to Google Play Store]

• Competitive Intelligence Frameworks:

  • Porter's Five Forces: [Link to Porter's Five Forces ]

  • SWOT Analysis: [Link to SWOT Analysis ]

  • Competitive benchmark leader board [Link]