A competitor analysis the whole business could use
When I joined a B2B technology company as its sole marketer, one of my first jobs was getting to know the market. I built a competitor analysis covering Australia and overseas, recorded how each business presented itself and who its clients were, and kept it up to date for the rest of my time there.
From the whole market to direct competitors
Challenge
The business didn’t yet have a competitor analysis, and I needed to understand the market as I started in the role.
What I did
Built a competitor analysis of around 200 businesses, found through the searches our buyers actually used, then narrowed it to about 10 direct competitors of a similar size, age, and location.
Result
A workbook marketing and sales kept going back to, updated whenever a new competitor came up.
The challenge
The business didn’t yet have a competitor analysis, and I needed one for the business and for my own work. The competitor landscape was a big part of learning the business when I started. We were also working out our USP and core messaging, and I wanted to know who buyers were weighing us against, how those businesses described themselves, and what they offered to get someone to make contact.
The category was crowded, and a long list of competitors on its own wouldn’t tell us much. A business with hundreds of staff and decades of reviews isn’t a fair comparison for a smaller team, and a business that started a year ago isn’t the bar to beat. We needed a wide view of the market and a short list of the businesses we were actually up against.
Buyers in B2B services usually compare providers. Crayon’s 2025 State of Competitive Intelligence report found sellers face a competitor in 68% of deals.
My approach
I found competitors the way our buyers would. I searched Google using the keywords from our Google Ads account that were bringing in leads, because that was the language our prospects used to find us. That covered both service searches and industry searches.
The search terms report added more. Using broad match modified keywords meant our ads sometimes showed up when people searched for a competitor by name. My daily search terms review picked these up, and each new name went into the analysis.
Whenever we lost a deal to a competitor, or a prospect mentioned one, I added them. Later, I also used AI tools to find businesses I’d missed.
The analysis was one input alongside our CRM data, client interviews, and search data. For each new piece of work, I went back to the parts that applied, such as the LinkedIn ad library links before planning a LinkedIn campaign.
What I built
One workbook, four views. The workbook held every competitor on one sheet, with separate sheets for Australian competitors, international competitors, and direct competitors.
- Australian competitors showed who we were up against and where we needed to stand apart. The larger, established businesses had likely tested their websites and content over many years, so I looked at what we could learn from them and then make our own, in our own tone of voice and for our own clients.
- International competitors were a source of ideas, especially where they served clients like ours, without us competing for the same deals.
- Direct competitors were about 10 businesses founded within five years of us, within 20% of our headcount, and based in the same state. They were our closest comparisons.
| Competitor and H1 | Founded | Headcount | Location | Sheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Example competitor A | Within 5 yrs | Within 20% | Same state | Direct |
| Example competitor B | Within 5 yrs | Much larger | Same state | Australian |
| Example competitor C | Much older | Within 20% | Overseas | International |
| Example competitor D | Within 5 yrs | Within 20% | Same state | Direct |
What I recorded for each competitor.
- Positioning: homepage H1, meta description, main claims, and USPs, and pricing where it was published (it rarely was)
- Conversion: the main call to action on the homepage, such as a contact form, a free consultation, or an audit
- Proof: star ratings and review counts on Clutch, G2, Capterra, Google, Trustpilot, and Glassdoor, plus the clients named on their site, social media, and review profiles
- Content: links to their blog and case studies, and a separate document of the downloadable resources and lead magnets I found by searching for file types by company name
- Advertising: links to their Meta and LinkedIn ad libraries, with active advertisers highlighted. In the LinkedIn ad library, I noted which ads showed a competitor’s skills well and which had problems, and used those notes when designing and writing our own ads
- Size and reach: employees, location, year founded (mostly from LinkedIn), and estimated traffic and ranking from Similarweb
- Channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook pages, and a sign-up to every newsletter they offered so their emails came to me
- My assessment: a score out of 10 for how well I felt their marketing was working, based on their website, social media, clients, size, and age
Patterns across the market. I used AI tools to analyse every H1 and meta description together, looking for the words and themes most businesses used to describe themselves. That showed us where the market sounded the same. When we explored new H1s for our own website, any option that overlapped too closely with a competitor’s was flagged and reworked.
A SWOT and a “So what” column. For direct competitors, I summarised their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relative to us. Every competitor also had a “So what” note: why it was important and how we might use it. Those notes pointed to gaps in the market, claims we needed to answer, and objections sales should be ready for.
Kept up to date. Every new competitor got the same research when it was added.
Results
Where the analysis was used
One input alongside CRM data, client interviews, and search data
- Messaging. Alongside client interviews, the competitor research pointed to a clearer message: a secure, local team with healthcare experience and an understanding of regulated organisations.
- Industry campaigns. Very few competitors’ ads focused on a single industry. That supported our move to industry campaigns, led by healthcare. Across the Google Ads program, closed-won revenue came to 5x ad spend.
- How sales used it. Sales referred to it regularly, mostly for competitors’ clients. When a competitor shut down, we added its clients to our advertising campaigns, because they might need a new provider.
- Lead magnets. Competitors’ downloadable resources and case studies gave us ideas for our own.
- AI search. Our answer engine optimisation work started from the competitor list, tracking how often AI tools recommended us compared with competitors.
Want a clearer view of who you’re up against?
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What I’d do next
The first change I’d make is a required competitor field on every deal in the CRM. Competitors reached the analysis when a prospect or salesperson happened to mention them, so some would have been missed. A field on every deal would show which competitors we met most and how often we won against each. Crayon found 44% of companies lack competitor visibility in their CRM.
I’d also turn the direct competitor rows into one-page cards for sales to use during a deal, and check the direct competitors every quarter.
Source: Crayon, “2025 State of Competitive Intelligence”.
FAQs
How do you find your real competitors?
Start with the searches that bring you leads, because that’s where buyers compare you. Add the businesses prospects mention during sales and the ones you lose deals to. Then narrow the list to businesses of a similar size, age, and location for a fair comparison.
How do you use competitor research without copying competitors?
Use it to see what the market already says and does, then decide what’s true and different about you. Larger competitors show what has likely been tested. Your own clients, data, and tone of voice decide what you do with it.
What should a competitor SWOT cover?
Write it relative to your own business. Strengths and weaknesses describe the competitor compared with you. Opportunities are the gaps you could fill, and threats are where they could win deals from you. A “So what” note turns each one into an action.