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How to Write Competitive Analysis in a Business Plan (w/ Examples)

Free Competitive Analysis Kit

• Vinay Kevadia
• January 9, 2024

14 Min Read

Every business wants to outperform its competitors, but do you know the right approach to gather information and analyze your competitors?

That’s where competitive analysis steps in. It’s the tool that helps you know your competition’s pricing strategies, strengths, product details, marketing strategies, target audience, and more.

If you want to know more about competitor analysis, this guide is all you need. It spills all the details on how to conduct and write a competitor analysis in a business plan, with examples.

Let’s get started and first understand the meaning of competitive analysis.

What is Competitive Analysis?

A competitive analysis involves collecting information about what other businesses in your industry are doing with their products, sales, and marketing.

Businesses use this data to find out what they are good at, where they can do better, and what opportunities they might have. It is like checking out the competition to see how and where you can improve.

This kind of analysis helps you get a clear picture of the market, allowing you to make smart decisions to make your business stand out and do well in the industry.

Competitive analysis is a section of utmost value for your business plan. The analysis in this section will form the basis upon which you will frame your marketing, sales, and product-related strategies. So make sure it’s thorough, insightful, and in line with your strategic objectives.

Let’s now understand how you can conduct a competitive analysis for your own business and leverage all its varied benefits.

How to Conduct a Competitive Analysis

Let’s break down the process of conducting a competitive analysis for your business plan in these easy-to-follow steps.

It will help you prepare a solid competitor analysis section in your business plan that actually highlights your strengths and opens room for better discussions (and funding).

Let’s begin.

1. Identify Your Direct and Indirect Competitors

First things first — identify all your business competitors and list them down. You can have a final, detailed list later, but right now an elementary list that mentions your primary competitors (the ones you know and are actively competing with) can suffice.

As you conduct more research, you can keep adding to it.

Explore your competitors using Google, social media platforms, or local markets. Then differentiate them into direct or indirect competitors.

Direct competitors

Businesses offering the same products or services, and targeting a similar target market are your direct competitors.

These competitors operate in the same industry and are often competing for the same market share.

Indirect competitors

On the other hand, indirect competitors are businesses that offer different products or services but cater to the same target customers as yours.

While they may not offer identical solutions, they compete for the same customer budget or attention. Indirect competitors can pose a threat by providing alternatives that customers might consider instead of your offerings.

2. Study the Overall Market

Now that you know your business competitors, deep dive into market research. Market research should involve a combination of both primary and secondary research methods.

Primary research

Primary research involves collecting market information directly from the source or subjects.  Some examples of primary market research methods include:

• Purchasing competitors’ products or services
• Conducting interviews with their customers
• Administering online surveys to gather customer insights

Secondary research

Secondary research involves utilizing pre-existing gathered information from some relevant sources. Some of its examples include:

• Scrutinizing competitors’ websites
• Assessing the current economic landscape
• Referring to online market databases of the competitors.

Have a good understanding of the market at this point to write your market analysis section effectively.

3. Prepare a Competitive Framework

Now that you have a thorough understanding of your competitors’ market, it is time to create a competitive framework that enables comparison between two businesses.

Factors like market share, product offering, pricing, distribution channel, target markets, marketing strategies, and customer service offer essential metrics and information to chart your competitive framework.

These factors will form the basis of comparison for your competitive analysis. Depending on the type of your business, choose the factors that are relevant to you.

4. Take Note of Your Competitor’s Strategies

Now that you have an established framework, use that as a base to analyze your competitor’s strategies. Such analysis will help you understand what the customers like and dislike about your competitors.

Start by analyzing the marketing strategies, sales and marketing channels, promotional activities, and branding strategies of your competitors. Understand how they position themselves in the market and what USPs they emphasize.

Evaluate, analyze their pricing strategies and keep an eye on their distribution channel to understand your competitor’s business model in detail.

This information allows you to make informed decisions about your strategies, helping you identify opportunities for differentiation and improvement.

5. Perform a SWOT Analysis of Your Competitors

A SWOT analysis is a method of analyzing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of your business in the competitive marketplace.

While strengths and weaknesses focus on internal aspects of your company, opportunities and threats examine the external factors related to the industry and market.

It’s an important tool that will help determine the company’s competitive edge quite efficiently.

It includes the positive features of your internal business operations. For example, a strong brand, skilled workforce, innovative products/services, or a loyal customer base.

It includes all the hindrances of your internal business operations. For example, limited resources, outdated technology, weak brand recognition, or inefficient processes.

Opportunities

It outlines several opportunities that will come your way in the near or far future. Opportunities can arise as the industry or market trend changes or by leveraging the weaknesses of your competitors.

For example, details about emerging markets, technological advancements, changing consumer trends, profitable partnerships in the future, etc.

Threats define any external factor that poses a challenge or any risk for your business in this section. For example, intense competition, economic downturns, regulatory changes, or any advanced technology disruption.

This section will form the basis for your business strategies and product offerings. So make sure it’s detailed and offers the right representation of your business.

And that is all you need to create a comprehensive competitive analysis for your business plan.

Want to Perform Competitive Analysis for your Business?

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How to Write Competitive Analysis in a Business Plan

The section on competitor analysis is the most crucial part of your business plan. Making this section informative and engaging gets easier when you have all the essential data to form this section.

Now, let’s learn an effective way of writing your competitive analysis.

1. Determine who your readers are

Know your audience first, because that will change the whole context of your competitor analysis business plan.

The competitive analysis section will vary depending on the intended audience is the team or investors.

Consider the following things about your audience before you start writing this section:

Internal competitor plan (employees or partners)

Objective: The internal competitor plan is to provide your team with an understanding of the competitive landscape.

Focus: The focus should be on the comparison of the strengths and weaknesses of competitors to boost strategic discussions within your team.

Use: It is to leverage the above information to develop strategies that highlight your strengths and address your weaknesses.

Competitor plan for funding (bank or investors)

Objective: Here, the objective is to reassure the potential and viability of your business to investors or lenders.

Focus: This section should focus on awareness and deep understanding of the competitive landscape to persuade the readers about the future of your business.

Use: It is to showcase your market position and the opportunities that are on the way to your business.

This differentiation is solely to ensure that the competitive analysis serves its purpose effectively based on the specific needs and expectations of the respective audience.

2. Describe and Visualise Competitive Advantage

Remember how we determined our competitive advantage at the time of research. It is now time to present that advantage in your competitive analysis.

Highlight your edge over other market players in terms of innovation, product quality, features, pricing, or marketing strategy. Understanding your products’ competitive advantage will also help you write the products and services section effectively.

However, don’t limit the edge to your service and market segment. Highlight every area where you excel even if it is better customer service or enhanced brand reputation.

Now, you can explain your analysis through textual blocks. However, a more effective method would be using a positioning map or competitive matrix to offer a visual representation of your company’s competitive advantage.

3. Explain your strategies

Your competitor analysis section should not only highlight the opportunities or threats of your business. It should also mention the strategies you will implement to overcome those threats or capitalize on the opportunities.

Such strategies may include crafting top-notch quality for your products or services, exploring the unexplored market segment, or having creative marketing strategies.

Elaborate on these strategies later in their respective business plan sections.

4. Know the pricing strategy

To understand the pricing strategy of your competitors, there are various aspects you need to have information about. It involves knowing their pricing model, evaluating their price points, and considering the additional costs, if any.

One way to understand this in a better way is to compare features and value offered at different price points and identify the gaps in competitors’ offerings.

Once you know the pricing structure of your competitors, compare it with yours and get to know the competitive advantage of your business from a pricing point of view.

Let us now get a more practical insight by checking an example of competitive analysis.

Competitive Analysis Example in a Business Plan

Here’s a business plan example highlighting the barber shop’s competitive analysis.

1. List of competitors

Direct & indirect competitors.

The following retailers are located within a 5-mile radius of J&S, thus providing either direct or indirect competition for customers:

Joe’s Beauty Salon

Joe’s Beauty Salon is the town’s most popular beauty salon and has been in business for 32 years. Joe’s offers a wide array of services that you would expect from a beauty salon.

Besides offering haircuts, Joe’s also offers nail services such as manicures and pedicures. In fact, over 60% of Joe’s revenue comes from services targeted at women outside of hair services. In addition, Joe’s does not offer its customers premium salon products.

For example, they only offer 2 types of regular hair gels and 4 types of shampoos. This puts Joe’s in direct competition with the local pharmacy and grocery stores that also carry these mainstream products. J&S, on the other hand, offers numerous options for exclusive products that are not yet available in West Palm Beach, Florida.

LUX CUTS has been in business for 5 years. LUX CUTS offers an extremely high-end hair service, with introductory prices of $120 per haircut.

However, LUX CUTS will primarily be targeting a different customer segment from J&S, focusing on households with an income in the top 10% of the city.

Furthermore, J&S offers many of the services and products that LUX CUTS offers, but at a fraction of the price, such as:

• Hairstyle suggestions & hair care consultation
• Hair extensions & coloring
• Premium hair products from industry leaders

Freddie’s Fast Hair Salon

Freddie’s Fast Hair Salon is located four stores down the road from J&S. Freddy’s has been in business for the past 3 years and enjoys great success, primarily due to its prime location.

Freddy’s business offers inexpensive haircuts and focuses on volume over quality. It also has a large customer base comprised of children between the ages of 5 to 13.

J&S has several advantages over Freddy’s Fast Hair Salon including:

• An entertainment-focused waiting room, with TVs and board games to make the wait for service more pleasurable. Especially great for parents who bring their children.
• A focus on service quality rather than speed alone to ensure repeat visits. J&S will spend on average 20 more minutes with its clients than Freddy’s.

While we expect that Freddy’s Fast Hair Salon will continue to thrive based on its location and customer relationships, we expect that more and more customers will frequent J&S based on the high-quality service it provides.

2. Competitive Pricing

John and Sons Barbing Salon will work towards ensuring that all our services are offered at highly competitive prices compared to what is obtainable in The United States of America.

We know the importance of gaining entrance into the market by lowering our pricing to attract all and sundry that is why we have consulted with experts and they have given us the best insights on how to do this and effectively gain more clients soon.

Our pricing system is going to be based on what is obtainable in the industry, we don’t intend to charge more (except for premium and customized services) and we don’t intend to charge less than our competitors are offering in West Palm Beach – Florida.

3. Our pricing

• Payment by cash
• Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
• Payment via online bank transfer (online payment portal)
• Payment via Mobile money
• Check (only from loyal customers)

Given the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will help us achieve our payment plans without any itches.

4. Competitive advantage

5. SWOT analysis

Why is a Competitive Environment helpful?

Somewhere we all think, “What if we had no competition?” “What if we were the monopoly?” It would be great, right? Well, this is not the reality, and have to accept the competition sooner or later.

However, competition is healthy for businesses to thrive and survive, let’s see how:

1. Competition validates your idea

When people are developing similar products like you, it is a sign that you are on the right path. Having healthy competition proves that your idea is valid and there is a potential target market for your product and service offerings.

2. Innovation and Efficiency

Businesses competing with each other are motivated to innovate consistently, thereby, increasing their scope and market of product offerings. Moreover, when you are operating in a cutthroat environment, you simply cannot afford to be inefficient.

Be it in terms of costs, production, pricing, or marketing—you will ensure efficiency in all aspects to attract more business.

3. Market Responsiveness

Companies in a competitive environment tend to stay relevant and longer in business since they are adaptive to the changing environment. In the absence of competition, you would start getting redundant which will throw you out of the market, sooner or later.

4. Eases Consumer Education

Since your target market is already aware of the problem and existing market solutions, it would be much easier to introduce your business to them. Rather than focusing on educating, you would be more focused on branding and positioning your brand as an ideal customer solution.

Being the first one in the market is exciting. However, having healthy competition has these proven advantages which are hard to ignore.

A way forward

Whether you are starting a new business or have an already established unit, having a practical and realistic understanding of your competitive landscape is essential to developing efficient business strategies.

While getting to know your competition is essential, don’t get too hung up in the research. Research your competitors to improve your business plan and strategies, not to copy their ideas.

Create your unique strategies, offer the best possible services, and add value to your offerings—that will make you stand out.

While it’s a long, tough road, a comprehensive business plan can be your guide. Using modern business planning software is probably the easiest way to draft your plan.

Use Upmetrics. Simply enter your business details, answer the strategic questions, and see your business plan come together in front of your eyes.

Build your Business Plan Faster

with step-by-step Guidance & AI Assistance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swot analysis a competitive analysis.

SWOT analysis is just a component of a competitive analysis and not the whole competitive analysis. It helps you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business and determine the emerging opportunities and threats faced by the external environment.

Competitive analysis in reality is a broad spectrum topic wherein you identify your competitors, analyze them on different metrics, and identify your competitive advantage to form competitive business strategies.

What tools can i use for competitor analysis?

For a thorough competitor analysis, you will require a range of tools that can help in collecting, analyzing, and presenting data. While SEMrush, Google Alerts, Google Trends, and Ahrefs can help in collecting adequate competitor data, Business planning tools like Upmetrics can help in writing the competitors section of your business plan quite efficiently.

What are the 5 parts of a competitive analysis?

The main five components to keep in mind while having a competitor analysis are:

• Identifying the competitors
• Analyzing competitor’s strengths and weaknesses
• Assessing market share and trends
• Examining competitors’ strategies and market positioning
• Performing SWOT analysis

What is the difference between market analysis and competitive analysis?

Market analysis involves a comprehensive examination of the overall market dynamics, industry trends, and factors influencing a business’s operating environment.

On the other hand, competitive analysis narrows the focus to specific competitors within the market, delving into their strategies, strengths, weaknesses, and market positioning.

About the Author

Vinay Kevadiya

Vinay Kevadiya is the founder and CEO of Upmetrics, the #1 business planning software. His ultimate goal with Upmetrics is to revolutionize how entrepreneurs create, manage, and execute their business plans. He enjoys sharing his insights on business planning and other relevant topics through his articles and blog posts. Read more

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Start » strategy, sizing up the competition: how to conduct competitive research.

Competitive research can reveal trends in the marketplace and gaps in your own business plan.

Competitive research is a crucial part of any good marketing plan. This term may elicit some negative images but competitive research has nothing to do with spying. It has everything to do with paying attention to your competition and what they are doing.

Many people will lose out on business to competitors they have never even heard of simply because they’ve never taken the time to do competitive research. Understanding what your competition is doing will help you position yourself, and your product or service, within the market.

What is competitive research?

Competitive research involves identifying your competitors, evaluating their strengths and weaknesses and evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of their products and services. By looking at your biggest competitors, you can see how your own products and services stack up and what kind of threat they pose to your business. It also helps you identify industry trends you may have been missing.

Four benefits to doing competitive research are:

• Understanding your market . Competitive research can reveal trends in the marketplace that might have otherwise been missed. The ability to identify and predict trends is a huge asset for any business, helping to improve value proposition for customers. This is an important component of competitive research that you should constantly be doing.
• Improving your marketing . Your customers care about how your product or service is going to make their lives better. If they are leaving to go to one of your competitors, it’s probably because that company does a better job of explaining the benefits to the customer base, or does in fact provide a better product or service. Competitive research helps you understand why customers choose to buy from you or your competitors and how your competition is marketing their products. Over time, this can help you improve your own marketing programs.
• Identifying market gaps . When you do competitive research, you’re analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. You’ll often find that, by looking at the data, there is a segment of the population that is being underserved. This could put your business in a unique position to reach those customers.
• Planning for the future . The most important byproduct of competitive research is that it will help you create a strategic plan for your business. This includes things like improving your product or service, using more strategic pricing strategies, and improving the promotion of your products.

Good competitive research could put your business in a unique position to reach customers who are being underserved.

6 steps to competitive research

It may sound obvious, but the first step is to simply identify who your top competitors are . There are two different types of competitors to identify: direct and indirect.

Direct competitors are targeting the same customer base you’re targeting. They are solving the same problem that you are trying to solve and sell a similar product or service.

Indirect competitors may sell something similar to your product or service but target a different audience, or they may target your same customer base but have a slightly different product or service.

It’s important to understand this segment of your market for two reasons: (1) it could provide you with growth opportunities for your own business, and (2) it could also highlight a threat to your business of which you would otherwise be unaware.

Here are six steps to getting started on competitive research:

Identify main competitors.

The most obvious way to do this is simply by searching your product or service category on the web and seeing what comes up. You can also check websites like Crunchbase or Product Hunt . You may find competitors that you might not have noticed before.

The goal is to cast a wide net and get an idea of who your main competitors are. Another good way to identify direct and indirect competitors is to ask your potential customers what services they are already using.

Analyze competitors' online presence

Once you’ve identified your main competitors, you want to look at their website, the type of content they are publishing, and their social media presence. Then, look for any blogs, white papers, and social media content being provided about their products and how to use them. Ask yourself these questions:

• What is the user experience like on their website?
• Is it easy to navigate?
• Do you clearly understand the products or services they offer?
• Is their website mobile-optimized?
• How often do they blog and most importantly, is the quality of their content good?
• What topics do they blog about most frequently?
• What social platforms are they actively using to talk about their products and services?
• Is this content engaging their target audience?

The answers to these questions show you opportunities where you can outperform your competitors. You will want to pay close attention to anything they are doing well that you aren’t doing. This will help give you a better understanding of where you should be focusing your attention and resources.

Gather information

The best way to gather information about your competitors is by acting like one of their customers. Sign up for their email list so you can get an idea of how they communicate.

Also, follow their blog and social media accounts and watch how they interact with their customers online. What kind of experience do customers have with your competitors?

You should consider shopping from them so you can see what their product looks like and what the experience is like from a customer perspective.

Track your findings

Make sure you track your competitors' findings on a spreadsheet; it will help with ongoing monitoring. This isn’t a complicated process, you just need to keep track of what they are doing over time so that you can see how they change everything from pricing to marketing and promotional activities.

You’ll start by dividing your competitors into direct and indirect customer columns. You’ll then track the following information:

• Company name
• Social media sites
• Unique features
• Pros and cons
• Screenshots and additional links

Check online reviews

Try to find as many reviews of your competitors as possible. Read their social media reviews, comments on their blogs, and case studies on their website. If they offer and present Google reviews, read them as well. It’s a good idea to understand not only the good things that your competitors may be doing, but the bad things as well. Include mentions with the Better Business Bureau about them in your research.

How customer-focused are they? This could be an opportunity for you to stand out. And, if they sell a product similar to yours, this will be a good way to find out if a lot of people are interested in it.

Any negative feedback will help you identify areas where you can improve your own product or service.

Identify areas for improvement

Now that you’ve taken note of some of the biggest differences between you and your competitors, it’s time to think about how you can use this information to improve your own business results.

Your competitive research should reveal at least one area your business can stand to improve in. This will help you learn how to engage better with your customers and online followers.

Keep in mind that competitive research is never a "one-and-done" event. Ongoing monitoring, such as observing how competitors evolve, is necessary to ensure that you are staying competitive in the marketplace.

Tools for competitive research

Software and technology now make it easier than ever to conduct competitive research. However, there are hundreds of competitive research tools on the market and narrowing down the right software can feel overwhelming.

This is why we’ve done the legwork and narrowed it down for you. Here are four tools you should consider using to conduct your competitive research:

SEMrush : This is one of the best competitive research tools on the market. It contains over 30 tools that can track things like SEO, PPC, keyword research, competitive research, and more. SEMrush will help you discover new competitors, find their best-used keywords, and analyze their ad copy. They have flexible pricing plans depending on your business needs.

SpyFu : This search analytics tool reveals the keywords websites buy on Google. So, once you’ve identified your biggest competitors, you can track every keyword they’ve bought. Plus, you can track every keyword they are ranking for and find the content and backlinks that helped them rank in the first place.

BuzzSumo : BuzzSumo lets you see how your content is matching up to your competitors’ content. You can see which content is shared more frequently on social media compared to others, and you can even schedule alerts on your competitors’ content which will make it easier to continue tracking them.

Owletter : Owletter tracks and analyzes emails sent from a website. This allows you to track your competitors’ email marketing and see what is and isn’t working for them. To get started, you’ll need to sign up to join your competitors’ email list. Then, every time you receive an email, Owletter will take a screenshot, analyze it, and alert you to any useful information.

Competitive research can seem daunting at first but it’s an essential part of running a successful business. When you incorporate the right tools into your research, you may find that it’s not as difficult as you imagined.

On some level, understanding your competitors is just as important as understanding your customers. Your competitors have valuable lessons to teach you and it’s important to regularly monitor their online activity. Doing so will strengthen your business and improve your own value for your customers.

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What is a Competitive Analysis — and How Do You Conduct One?

Published: April 24, 2024

Every time I work with a new brand, my first order of business is to conduct a competitive analysis. 

A competitive analysis report helps me understand the brand’s position in the market, map competitors’ strengths/weaknesses, and discover growth opportunities. 

In this article, I’ll break down the exact steps I follow to conduct competitor analysis and identify ways to one-up top brands in the market. 

We’ll cover:

What is competitive analysis?

What is competitive market research, competitive analysis in marketing.

• How To Conduct Competitive Analysis in 5 Steps

How to Do a Competitive Analysis (the Extended Cut)

Competitive product analysis, competitive analysis example, competitive analysis templates.

• Competitive Analysis FAQs

Competitive analysis is the process of comparing your competitors against your brand to understand their core differentiators, strengths, and weaknesses. It’s an in-depth breakdown of each competitor’s market position, sales & marketing tactics, growth strategy, and other business-critical aspects to see what they’re doing right and find opportunities for your business.

Competitive analysis gives you a clearer picture of the market landscape to make informed decisions for your growth. 

That said, you have to remember that competitive analysis is an opportunity to learn from others. It isn’t:

• Copying successful competitors to the T.
• Trying to undercut others’ pricing.
• A one-and-done exercise.

Let’s look at how this exercise can help your business before breaking down my 5-step competitive analysis framework.

4 Reasons to Perform Competitive Analysis 

If you’re on the fence about investing time and effort in analyzing your competitors, know that it gives you a complete picture of the market and where you stand in it.

Here are four main reasons why I perform a competitive analysis exercise whenever working with a brand for the first time:

• Identify your differentiators. Think of competitor analysis as a chance to reflect on your own business and discover what sets you apart from the crowd. And if you’re only starting out, it helps you brainstorm the best opportunities to differentiate your business.
• Find competitors’ strengths. What are your competitors doing right to drive their growth? Analyzing the ins and outs of an industry leader will tell you what they did well to reach the top position in the market.
• Set benchmarks for success. A competitor analysis gives you a realistic idea of mapping your progress with success metrics. While every business has its own path to success, you can always look at a competitor’s trajectory to assess whether you’re on the right track.
• Get closer to your target audience. A good competitor analysis framework zooms in on your audience. It gives you a pulse of your customers by evaluating what they like, dislike, prefer, and complain about when reviewing competing brands.

The bottom line: Whether you’re starting a new business or revamping an existing one, a competitive analysis eliminates guesswork and gives you concrete information to build your business strategy.

10 Free Competitive Analysis Templates

Track and analyze your competitors with these ten free planning templates.

• SWOT Analysis
• Battle Cards
• Feature Comparison
• Strategic Overview

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

Competitive market research is a vital exercise that goes beyond merely comparing products or services. It involves an in-depth analysis of the market metrics that distinguish your offerings from those of your competitors.

A thorough market research doesn't just highlight these differences but leverages them, laying a solid foundation for a sales and marketing strategy that truly differentiates your business in a bustling market.

In the next section, we’ll explore the nuts and bolts of conducting a detailed competitive analysis tailored to your brand.

10 Competitive Analysis Templates

Fill out the form to access the templates., essential aspects to cover in competitive analysis research .

Before we walk through our step-by-step process for conducting competitor analysis, let’s look at the main aspects to include for every competitor:

• Overview. A summary of the company — where it’s located, target market, and target audience.
• Primary offering. A breakdown of what they sell and how they compare against your brand.
• Pricing strategy. A comparison of their pricing for different products with your pricing.
• Positioning.  An analysis of their core messaging to see how they position themselves. Customer feedback: A curation of what customers have to say about the brand.

Now, it’s time to learn how to conduct a competitive analysis with an example to contextualize each step. 

Every brand can benefit from regular competitor analysis. By performing a competitor analysis, you'll be able to:

• Identify gaps in the market.
• Develop new products and services.
• Uncover market trends.
• Market and sell more effectively.

As you can see, learning any of these four components will lead your brand down the path of achievement.

Next, let's dive into some steps you can take to conduct a comprehensive competitive analysis.

How to Conduct Competitive Analysis in 5 Quick Steps

As a content marketer, I’ve performed a competitive analysis for several brands to improve their messaging, plan their marketing strategy, and explore new channels. Here are the five steps I follow to analyze competitors.

1. Identify and categorize all competitors.

The first step is a simple yet strategic one. You have to identify all possible competitors in your industry, even the lesser-known ones. The goal here is to be aware of all the players in the market instead of arbitrarily choosing to ignore a few.

As you find more and more competitors, categorize them into these buckets:

• Direct competitors. These brands offer the same product/service as you to the same target audience. People will often compare you to these brands when making a buying decision. For example, Arcade and Storylane are direct competitors in the demo automation category.
• Indirect competitors. These businesses solve the same problem but with a different solution. They present opportunities for you to expand your offering. For example, Scribe and Whatfix solve the problem of documentation + internal training, but in different ways.
• Legacy competitors. These are established companies operating in your industry for several years. They have a solid reputation in the market and are a trusted name among customers. For example, Ahrefs is a legacy competitor in the SEO industry.
• Emerging competitors. These are new players in the market with an innovative business model and unique value propositions that pose a threat to existing brands. For example, ChatGPT came in as a disruptor in the conversational AI space and outperformed several brands. 

Here’s a competitive matrix classifying brands in the community and housing space:

Testing It Out

To help you understand each step clearly, we’ll use the example of Trello and create a competitor analysis report using these steps.

Here’s a table of the main competitors for Trello:

able of the main competitors for Trello:

2. Determine each competitor’s market position.

Once you know all your competitors, start analyzing their position in the market. This step will help you understand where you currently stand in terms of market share and customer satisfaction. It’ll also reveal the big guns in your industry — the leading competitors to prioritize in your analysis report.

Plus, visualizing the market landscape will tell you what’s missing in the current state. You can find gaps and opportunities for your brand to thrive even in a saturated market.

To map competitors’ market positions, create a graph with two factors: market presence (Y-axis) and customer satisfaction (X-axis). Then, place competitors in each of these quadrants:

• Niche. These are brands with a low market share but rank high on customer satisfaction. They’re likely targeting a specific segment of the audience and doing it well.
• Contenders. These brands rank low on customer satisfaction but have a good market presence. They might be new entrants with a strong sales and marketing strategy.
• Leaders. These brands own a big market share and have highly satisfied customers. They’re the dominant players with a solid reputation among your audience.
• High performers. These are another category of new entrants scoring high on customer satisfaction but with a low market share. They’re a good alternative for people not looking to buy from big brands.

This visualization will tell you exactly how crowded the market is. But it’ll also highlight ways to gain momentum and compete with existing brands.

Here’s a market landscape grid by G2 documenting all of Trello’s competitors in the project management space. For a leading brand like Trello, the goal would be to look at top brands in two quadrants: “Leaders” and “High Performers.” 

Image Source

3. Extensively benchmark key competitors.

Step 2 will narrow down your focus from dozens of competitors to the few most important ones to target. Now, it’s time to examine each competitor thoroughly and prepare a benchmarking report.

Remember that this exercise isn’t meant to find shortcomings in every competitor. You have to objectively determine both the good and bad aspects of each brand.

Here are the core factors to consider when benchmarking competitors:

• Quality. Assess the quality of products/services for each competitor. You can compare product features to see what’s giving them an edge over you. You can also evaluate customer reviews to understand what users have to say about the quality of their offering.
• Price. Document the price points for every competitor to understand their pricing tactics. You can also interview their customers to find the value for money from users’ perspectives.
• Customer service. Check how they deliver support — through chat, phone, email, knowledge base, and more. You can also find customer ratings on different third-party platforms.
• Brand reputation. You should also compare each competitor’s reputation in the market to understand how people perceive the brand. Look out for anything critical people say about specific competitors.  
• Financial health. If possible, look for performance indicators to assess a brand's financial progress. You can find data on metrics like revenue growth and profit margins. 

This benchmarking exercise will involve a combination of primary and secondary research. Invest enough time in this step to ensure that your competitive analysis is completely airtight.

Check out this example of a competitor benchmarking report for workforce intelligence tools:

Here’s how I benchmarked Asana based on these criteria using the information I could find:

4. Deep dive into their marketing strategy.

While the first few steps will tell you what you can improve in your core product or service, you also need to find how competitors market their products.

You need to deep-dive into their marketing strategies to learn how they approach buyers. I analyze every marketing channel, then note my observations on how they speak to their audience and highlight their brand personality.

Here are a few key marketing channels to explore:

• Website. Analyze the website structure and copy to understand their positioning and brand voice.
• Email. Subscribe to emails to learn their cadence, copywriting style, content covered, and other aspects.
• Paid ads. Use tools like Ahrefs and Semrush to find if any competitor is running paid ads on search engines.
• Thought leadership. Follow a brand’s thought leadership efforts with content assets like podcasts, webinars, courses, and more.
• Digital PR. Explore whether a brand is investing in digital PR to build buzz around its business and analyze its strategy.
• Social media. See how actively brands use different social channels and what kind of content is working best for them.
• Partnerships. Analyze high-value partnerships to see if brands work closely with any companies and mutually benefit each other.

You can create a detailed document capturing every detail of a competitor’s marketing strategy. This will give you the right direction to plan your marketing efforts. 

5. Perform a SWOT analysis.

The final step in a competitive analysis exercise is creating a SWOT analysis matrix for each company. This means you‘ll take note of your competitor’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Think of it as the final step to consolidate all your research and answer these questions:

• What is your competitor doing well?
• Where do they have an advantage over your brand?
• What is the weakest area for your competitor?
• Where does your brand have the advantage over your competitor?
• In what areas would you consider this competitor a threat?
• Are there opportunities in the market that your competitor has identified?

You can use tools like Miro to visualize this data. Once you visually present this data, you’ll get a clearer idea of where you can outgrow each competitor. 

Here’s a SWOT analysis matrix I created for Asana as a competitor of Trello:

• Determine who your competitors are.
• Determine what products your competitors offer.
• Research your competitors' sales tactics and results.
• Take a look at your competitors' pricing, as well as any perks they offer.
• Ensure you're meeting competitive shipping costs.
• Analyze how your competitors market their products.
• Take note of your competition's content strategy.
• Learn what technology stack your competitors use.
• Analyze the level of engagement on your competitors' content.
• Observe how they promote marketing content.
• Look at their social media presence, strategies, and go-to platforms.
• Perform a SWOT Analysis to learn their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

To run a complete and effective competitive analysis, use these ten templates, which range in purpose from sales to marketing to product strategy.

Featured Resource: 10 Competitive Analysis Templates

1. Assess your current product pricing.

The first step in any product analysis is to assess current pricing.

Nintendo offers three models of its Switch console: The smaller lite version is priced at $199, the standard version is $299, and the new OLED version is $349.

Sony, meanwhile, offers two versions of its PlayStation 5 console: The standard edition costs $499, and the digital version, which doesn’t include a disc drive, is $399.

2. Compare key features.

Next is a comparison of key features. In the case of our console example, this means comparing features like processing power, memory, and hard drive space.

3. Pinpoint differentiators.

With basic features compared, it’s time to dive deeper with differentiators. While a glance at the chart above seems to indicate that the PS5 is outperforming its competition, this data only tells part of the story.

Here’s why: The big selling point of the standard and OLED Switch models is that they can be played as either handheld consoles or docked with a base station connected to a TV. What’s more, this “switching” happens seamlessly, allowing players to play whenever, wherever.

The Playstation offering, meanwhile, has leaned into market-exclusive games that are only available on its system to help differentiate them from their competitors.

4. Identify market gaps.

The last step in a competitive product analysis is looking for gaps in the market that could help your company get ahead.

When it comes to the console market, one potential opportunity gaining traction is the delivery of games via cloud-based services rather than physical hardware.

Companies like Nvidia and Google have already made inroads in this space, and if they can overcome issues with bandwidth and latency, it could change the market at scale.

How do you stack up against the competition? Where are you similar, and what sets you apart? This is the goal of competitive analysis.

By understanding where your brand and competitors overlap and diverge, you’re better positioned to make strategic decisions that can help grow your brand.

Of course, it’s one thing to understand the benefits of competitive analysis, and it’s another to actually carry out an analysis that yields actionable results. Don’t worry — we’ve got you covered with a quick example.

Sony vs. Nintendo: Not all fun and games.

Let’s take a look at popular gaming system companies Sony and Nintendo.

Sony’s newest offering — the Playstation 5 — recently hit the market but has been plagued by supply shortages.

Nintendo’s Switch console, meanwhile, has been around for several years but remains a consistent seller, especially among teens and children.

This scenario is familiar for many companies on both sides of the coin; some have introduced new products designed to compete with established market leaders, while others are looking to ensure that reliable sales don’t fall.

Using some of the steps listed above, here’s a quick competitive analysis example.

In our example, it’s Sony vs Nintendo, but it’s also worth considering Microsoft’s Xbox, which occupies the same general market vertical.

This is critical for effective analysis; even if you’re focused on specific competitors and how they compare, it’s worth considering other similar market offerings.

PlayStation offers two PS5 versions, digital and standard, at different price points, while Nintendo offers three versions of its console.

Both companies also sell peripherals — for example, Sony sells virtual reality (VR) add-ons, while Nintendo sells gaming peripherals such as steering wheels, tennis rackets, and differing controller configurations.

When it comes to sales tactics and marketing, Sony and Nintendo have very different approaches.

In part thanks to the recent semiconductor shortage, Sony has driven up demand via scarcity — very low volumes of PS5 consoles remain available. Nintendo, meanwhile, has adopted a broader approach by targeting families as its primary customer base.

This effort is bolstered by the Switch Lite product line, which is smaller and less expensive, making it a popular choice for children.

The numbers tell the tale : Through September 2021, Nintendo sold 14.3 million consoles, while Sony sold 7.8 million.

Sony has the higher price point: Their standard PS5 sells for $499, while Nintendo’s most expensive offering comes in at $349. Both offer robust digital marketplaces and the ability to easily download new games or services.

Here, the key differentiators are flexibility and fidelity. The Switch is flexible — users can dock it with their television and play it like a standard console or pick it up and take it anywhere as a handheld gaming system.

The PS5, meanwhile, has superior graphics hardware and processing power for gamers who want the highest-fidelity experience.

5. Analyze how your competitors market their products.

If you compare the marketing efforts of Nintendo and Sony, the difference is immediately apparent: Sony’s ads feature realistic in-game footage and speak to the exclusive nature of their game titles.

The company has managed to secure deals with several high-profile game developers for exclusive access to new and existing IPs.

Nintendo, meanwhile, uses brightly lit ads showing happy families playing together or children using their smaller Switches while traveling.

6. Analyze the level of engagement on your competitor's content.

Engagement helps drive sales and encourage repeat purchases.

While there are several ways to measure engagement, social media is one of the most straightforward: In general, more followers equates to more engagement and greater market impact.

When it comes to our example, Sony enjoys a significant lead over Nintendo: While the official Playstation Facebook page has 38 million followers, Nintendo has just 5 million.

Competitive analysis is complex, especially when you’re assessing multiple companies and products simultaneously.

To help streamline the process, we’ve created 10 free templates that make it possible to see how you stack up against the competition — and what you can do to increase market share.

Let’s break down our SWOT analysis template. Here’s what it looks like:

Don't forget to share this post!

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10 free templates to help you understand and beat the competition.

Marketing software that helps you drive revenue, save time and resources, and measure and optimize your investments — all on one easy-to-use platform

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How to create a competitive analysis (with examples)

Competitive analysis involves identifying your direct and indirect competitors using research to reveal their strengths and weaknesses in relation to your own. In this guide, we’ll outline how to do a competitive analysis and explain how you can use this marketing strategy to improve your business.

Whether you’re running a business or playing in a football game, understanding your competition is crucial for success. While you may not be scoring touchdowns in the office, your goal is to score business deals with clients or win customers with your products. The method of preparation for athletes and business owners is similar—once you understand your strengths and weaknesses versus your competitors’, you can level up. 

What is a competitive analysis?

Competitive analysis involves identifying your direct and indirect competitors using research to reveal their strengths and weaknesses in relation to your own. 

Direct competitors market the same product to the same audience as you, while indirect competitors market the same product to a different audience. After identifying your competitors, you can use the information you gather to see where you stand in the market landscape. 

What to include in a competitive analysis

The purpose of this type of analysis is to get a competitive advantage in the market and improve your business strategy. Without a competitive analysis, it’s difficult to know what others are doing to win clients or customers in your target market. A competitive analysis report may include:

A description of your company’s target market

Details about your product or service versus the competitors’

Current and projected market share, sales, and revenues

Pricing comparison

Marketing and social media strategy analysis

Differences in customer ratings

You’ll compare each detail of your product or service versus the competition to assess strategy efficacy. By comparing success metrics across companies, you can make data-driven decisions.

How to do a competitive analysis

Follow these five steps to create your competitive analysis report and get a broad view of where you fit in the market. This process can help you analyze a handful of competitors at one time and better approach your target customers.

1. Create a competitor overview

In step one, select between five and 10 competitors to compare against your company. The competitors you choose should have similar product or service offerings and a similar business model to you. You should also choose a mix of both direct and indirect competitors so you can see how new markets might affect your company. Choosing both startup and seasoned competitors will further diversify your analysis.

Tip: To find competitors in your industry, use Google or Amazon to search for your product or service. The top results that emerge are likely your competitors. If you’re a startup or you serve a niche market, you may need to dive deeper into the rankings to find your direct competitors.

2. Conduct market research

Once you know the competitors you want to analyze, you’ll begin in-depth market research. This will be a mixture of primary and secondary research. Primary research comes directly from customers or the product itself, while secondary research is information that’s already compiled. Then, keep track of the data you collect in a user research template .

Primary market research may include: 

Purchasing competitors’ products or services

Interviewing customers

Conducting online surveys of customers 

Holding in-person focus groups

Secondary market research may include:

Examining competitors’ websites

Assessing the current economic situation

Identifying technological developments 

Reading company records

Tip: Search engine analysis tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush can help you examine competitors’ websites and obtain crucial SEO information such as the keywords they’re targeting, the number of backlinks they have, and the overall health of their website. 

3. Compare product features

The next step in your analysis involves a comparison of your product to your competitors’ products. This comparison should break down the products feature by feature. While every product has its own unique features, most products will likely include:

Service offered

Age of audience served

Number of features

Style and design

Ease of use

Type and number of warranties

Customer support offered

Product quality

Tip: If your features table gets too long, abbreviate this step by listing the features you believe are of most importance to your analysis. Important features may include cost, product benefits, and ease of use.

4. Compare product marketing

The next step in your analysis will look similar to the one before, except you’ll compare the marketing efforts of your competitors instead of the product features. Unlike the product features matrix you created, you’ll need to go deeper to unveil each company’s marketing plan . 

Areas you’ll want to analyze include:

Social media

Website copy

Press releases

Product copy

As you analyze the above, ask questions to dig deeper into each company’s marketing strategies. The questions you should ask will vary by industry, but may include:

What story are they trying to tell?

What value do they bring to their customers?

What’s their company mission?

What’s their brand voice?

Tip: You can identify your competitors’ target demographic in this step by referencing their customer base, either from their website or from testimonials. This information can help you build customer personas. When you can picture who your competitor actively targets, you can better understand their marketing tactics. 

5. Use a SWOT analysis

Competitive intelligence will make up a significant part of your competitor analysis framework, but once you’ve gathered your information, you can turn the focus back to your company. A SWOT analysis helps you identify your company’s strengths and weaknesses. It also helps turn weaknesses into opportunities and assess threats you face based on your competition.

During a SWOT analysis, ask yourself:

What do we do well?

What could we improve?

Are there market gaps in our services?

What new market trends are on the horizon?

Tip: Your research from the previous steps in the competitive analysis will help you answer these questions and fill in your SWOT analysis. You can visually present your findings in a SWOT matrix, which is a four-box chart divided by category.

6. Identify your place in the market landscape

The last step in your competitive analysis is to understand where you stand in the market landscape. To do this, you’ll create a graph with an X and Y axis. The two axes should represent the most important factors for being competitive in your market. 

For example, the X-axis may represent customer satisfaction, while the Y-axis may represent presence in the market. You’ll then plot each competitor on the graph according to their (x,y) coordinates. You’ll also plot your company on this chart, which will give you an idea of where you stand in relation to your competitors. 

This graph is included for informational purposes and does not represent Asana’s market landscape or any specific industry’s market landscape. 

Tip: In this example, you’ll see three companies that have a greater market presence and greater customer satisfaction than yours, while two companies have a similar market presence but higher customer satisfaction. This data should jumpstart the problem-solving process because you now know which competitors are the biggest threats and you can see where you fall short. 

Competitive analysis example

Imagine you work at a marketing startup that provides SEO for dentists, which is a niche industry and only has a few competitors. You decide to conduct a market analysis for your business. To do so, you would:

Step 1: Use Google to compile a list of your competitors. 

Steps 2, 3, and 4: Use your competitors’ websites, as well as SEO analysis tools like Ahrefs, to deep-dive into the service offerings and marketing strategies of each company. 

Step 5: Focusing back on your own company, you conduct a SWOT analysis to assess your own strategic goals and get a visual of your strengths and weaknesses. 

Step 6: Finally, you create a graph of the market landscape and conclude that there are two companies beating your company in customer satisfaction and market presence. 

After compiling this information into a table like the one below, you consider a unique strategy. To beat out your competitors, you can use localization. Instead of marketing to dentists nationwide like your competitors are doing, you decide to focus your marketing strategy on one region, state, or city. Once you’ve become the known SEO company for dentists in that city, you’ll branch out. 

You won’t know what conclusions you can draw from your competitive analysis until you do the work and see the results. Whether you decide on a new pricing strategy, a way to level up your marketing, or a revamp of your product, understanding your competition can provide significant insight.

Drawbacks of competitive analysis

There are some drawbacks to competitive analysis you should consider before moving forward with your report. While these drawbacks are minor, understanding them can make you an even better manager or business owner. 

Don’t forget to take action

You don’t just want to gather the information from your competitive analysis—you also want to take action on that information. The data itself will only show you where you fit into the market landscape. The key to competitive analysis is using it to problem solve and improve your company’s strategic plan .

Be wary of confirmation bias

Confirmation bias means interpreting information based on the beliefs you already hold. This is bad because it can cause you to hold on to false beliefs. To avoid bias, you should rely on all the data available to back up your decisions. In the example above, the business owner may believe they’re the best in the SEO dental market at social media. Because of this belief, when they do market research for social media, they may only collect enough information to confirm their own bias—even if their competitors are statistically better at social media. However, if they were to rely on all the data available, they could eliminate this bias.

Update your analysis regularly

A competitive analysis report represents a snapshot of the market landscape as it currently stands. This report can help you gain enough information to make changes to your company, but you shouldn’t refer to the document again unless you update the information regularly. Market trends are always changing, and although it’s tedious to update your report, doing so will ensure you get accurate insight into your competitors at all times. 

Boost your marketing strategy with competitive analysis

Learning your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses will make you a better marketer. If you don’t know the competition you’re up against, you can’t beat them. Using competitive analysis can boost your marketing strategy and allow you to capture your target audience faster.

Competitive analysis must lead to action, which means following up on your findings with clear business goals and a strong business plan. Once you do your competitive analysis, you can use the templates below to put your plan into action.

Related resources

How to use a feasibility study in project management

How to track utilization rate and drive team profitability

How to accomplish big things with long-term goals

Smooth product launches are simpler than you think

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How to Identify and Research Your Competition Emphasizing your competitive advantage is an essential part of any business plan.

By Eric Butow Oct 27, 2023

Key Takeaways

• Why competitive analysis matters
• Questions to ask about your industry
• How to find similar companies

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

This is part 2 / 8 of Write Your Business Plan: Section 4: Marketing Your Business Plan series.

Successful entrepreneurs are renowned for intuitively feeling a market's pulse, project trends before anyone else detects them, and identifying needs that even customers are unaware of. After you are famous, perhaps you can claim a similar psychic connection to the market. But for now, you'll need to reinforce your claims to market insight by presenting solid research in your plan.

Market research aims to understand the reasons consumers will buy your product. It studies consumer behavior, specifically how cultural, societal, and personal factors influence that behavior. For instance, market research aiming to understand consumers who buy in-line skates might study the cultural importance of fitness, the societal acceptability of marketing directed toward children and teens, and the effect of personal influences such as age, occupation, and lifestyle in directing a skate purchase.

Related: 4 Effective Ways To Accomplish This Missing Step That Most Entrepreneurs Overlook

Market research is often split into two varieties: primary and secondary. Primary research studies customers directly, whereas secondary research studies information others have gathered about customers. Primary research might be telephone interviews or online polls with randomly selected target group members. You can also study your own sales records to gather primary research. Secondary research might come from reports on other organizations' websites or blogs about the industry.

Conducting market research provides answers to those unknown elements. It will greatly reduce risk as you start your business. It will help you understand your competitive position and the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. And it will improve your marketing and sales process."

Related: You Need Consumer Insights To Ensure The Success Of Your Business. Here Are Five Ways To Find Them.

Questions to Ask About Your Industry

To start preparing your industry analysis and outlook, dig up the following facts about your field:

• What is your total industry-wide sales volume? In dollars? In units?
• What are the trends in sales volume within your industry?
• Who are the major players and your key competitors? What are they like?
• What does it take to compete? What are the barriers to entry?
• What technological trends affect your industry?
• What are the main modes of marketing?
• How does government regulation affect the industry?
• In what ways are changing consumer tastes affecting your industry?
• What are recent demographic trends affecting the industry?
• How sensitive is the industry to seasons and economic cycles?
• What are key financial measures in your industry (average profit margins, sales commissions, etc.)?

Related: 5 Essential Elements of Your Industry Trends Plan

How to Find Similar Companies

Find a close match when looking at comparable businesses (and their data). For comparative purposes, consider:

• Companies of relative size.
• Companies serving the same geographic area could be global if you plan to be a web-based business.
• Companies with a similar ownership structure. If you are two partners, look for businesses run by a couple of partners rather than an advisory board of twelve.
• Relatively new companies. While you can learn from long-standing businesses, they may be successful today because of their twenty-five-year business history and reputation.

You will want to use the data you have gathered to determine how much business you could do and to figure out how you will fit into and adapt to the marketplace.

Related: How to Make Your Business Stand Out

How To Do Original Research

One limitation of in-house market information is that it may not include exactly what you're looking for. For instance, if you'd like to consider offering consumers financing for their purchases, it's hard to tell how they'd like it since you don't already offer it.

You can get around this limitation by conducting original research—interviewing customers who enter your store, for example, or counting cars that pass the intersection where you plan to open a new location—and combining it with existing data. Follow these steps to spending your market research dollars wisely:

Determine what you need to know about your market. The more focused the research, the more valuable it will be.

• Prioritize the results of the first step. You can't research everything, so concentrate on the information that will give you the best (or quickest) payback.
• Review less expensive research alternatives. Small Business Development Centers and the Small Business Administration can help you develop customer surveys. Your trade association will have good secondary research. Be creative.
• Estimate the cost of performing the research yourself. Keep in mind that with the internet you should not have to spend a ton of money. If you're considering hiring a consultant or a researcher, remember this is your dream, these are your goals, and this is your business.
• Don't pay for what you don't need.

Related: The One Simple Task That Will Help Your Startup Succeed

More in Write Your Business Plan

Section 1: the foundation of a business plan, section 2: putting your business plan to work, section 3: selling your product and team, section 4: marketing your business plan, section 5: organizing operations and finances, section 6: getting your business plan to investors.

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How to Write the Competitive Analysis of a Business Plan

Written by Dave Lavinsky

If you are writing a business plan, hopefully by this point you’ve conducted thorough market research to identify industry trends and identified the target market for your business. Now it’s time to conduct a competitor analysis. This section is included in virtually every simple business plan template , and the information you include will depend on several factors such as how many competitors there are, what they offer, and how large they are in comparison to your company.

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here

What is a Competitive Analysis?

A competitive analysis is a type of market research that identifies your competitors, their strengths and weaknesses, the strategies they are using to compete with you, and what makes your business unique. Before writing this section it’s important to have all the information you collected during your market research phase. This may include market data such as revenue figures, cost trends, and the size of the industry.

Why Do You Need the Competitive Analysis?

If you are planning to raise capital, the investor will require a business plan that includes the competitive analysis section. This section will also come in handy while writing a business plan template , if your company is considering increasing prices or adding new products and services. You can use the information you find to determine how well-positioned your business is to perform in the competitive landscape.

3 Steps to Writing a Competitive Analysis

The steps to developing the competitive analysis section of your business plan include:

• Identify your competition.
• Select the appropriate competitors to analyze.
• Determine your competitive advantage.

1. Identify Your Competition

To start, you must align your definition of competition with that of investors. Investors define competition as to any service or product that a customer can use to fulfill the same need(s) as the company fulfills. This includes companies that offer similar products, substitute products, and other customer options (such as performing the service or building the product themselves). Under this broad definition, any business plan that claims there are no competitors greatly undermines the credibility of the management team.

When identifying competitors, companies often find themselves in a difficult position. On one hand, you may want to show that the business is unique (even under the investors’ broad definition) and list few or no competitors. However, this has a negative connotation. If no or few companies are in a market space, it implies that there may not be a large enough base of potential customers to support the company’s products and/or services.

2. Select the Appropriate Competitors to Analyze

Once your competition has been identified, you want to consider selecting the most appropriate competitors to analyze. Investors will expect that not all competitors are “apples-to-apples” (i.e., they do not offer identical products or services) and therefore will understand if you chose only companies that are closest in nature. So, you must detail both direct and, when applicable, indirect competitors.

Direct competitors are those that serve the same potential customers with similar products and services. If you sell your products or services online, your direct competitors would also include companies whose website ranks in the top 5 positions for your same target keyword on Google Search.

For example, if you are a home-based candle-making company , you would consider direct competitors to be other candle makers that offer similar products at similar prices. Online competitors would also include companies who rank for the following keywords: “homemade candles”, “handmade candles”, or “custom candles.”

Indirect competitors are those that serve the same target market with different products and services or a different target market with similar products and services.

In some cases, you can identify indirect competitors by looking at alternative channels of distribution. For example, a small business selling a product online may compete with a big-box retailer that sells similar products at a lower price.

After selecting the appropriate competitors, you must describe them. In doing so, you must also objectively analyze each of their strengths and weaknesses and the key drivers of competitive differentiation in the same market.

For each competitor, perform a SWOT Analysis and include the following information:

• Competitor’s Name
• Overview of Competitor (where are they located; how long have they been operating)
• Competitor’s Product or Service
• Competitor’s Pricing
• Estimated Market Share
• Location(s)
• Potential Customers (Geographies & Segments)
• Competitor’s Strengths
• Competitor’s Weaknesses

By understanding what your competitors offer and how customers perceive them, you can determine your company’s competitive advantage against each competitor.

Finish Your Business Plan Today!

If you’d like to quickly and easily complete your business plan, download Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template and complete your plan and financial model in hours.

3. Determine Your Competitive Advantage

Perhaps most importantly, you must describe your company’s competitive advantages over the other companies in the space, and ideally how the company’s business model creates barriers to entry. “Barriers to entry” are reasons why it would be difficult for new companies to enter into or compete in the same market.

For instance, you may have a patent that provides value to your customers and makes them less likely to switch suppliers, which protects your business from potential competitors. Or, you may have more resources than the competition and thus be able to provide superior customer service.

Below is a list of areas in which you might have a competitive advantage:

• Size of the Company – Large companies have more resources and can usually offer lower prices than smaller businesses. This is a significant barrier to entry, as starting a small business and competing with a larger company may be difficult.
• Product or Service Differentiation – If your product or service is unique in some way, this will make it less likely that customers will switch to a competitor.
• Experience & Expertise – Experience and knowledge are valuable attributes that can help differentiate you from the competition.
• Location – If you are located in an area where there is high demand for your product or service, this can be a barrier to entry because competitors will not want to open new locations.
• Patents & Copyrights – Protecting intellectual property can prevent others from entering the same market and competing with your company.
• Brand Recognition – Customers are loyal to brands they have come to trust, which protects the company from new competitors.
• Customer Service – Providing excellent customer service can help you retain customers and prevent them from switching suppliers.
• Lowest Cost Offerings – If you can offer a lower price than your competitors, this makes it more difficult for them to compete with you.
• Technology – New technology that enables you to provide a better product or service than your competitors can be an advantage.
• Strategic Partnerships & Alliances – Collaborating with a company that your customers want to work with can help keep them from switching.
• Human Resources – If you have a highly skilled and talented workforce, it can be difficult for competitors to find and employ the same skills.
• Operational Systems – Strong operational systems that lead to greater efficiencies can protect your business from the competition.
• Marketing Strategy – Investing in strong marketing campaigns can make your business difficult to compete with.

For instance, you could say that your [enter any of the bullets from above] is better than your competitors because [insert reason].

The competitive landscape is one of the most important considerations in developing a business plan since it sets the stage by providing information on past and current competitors and their respective strengths and weaknesses. A strong understanding of the competitive landscape is needed before you can develop a strategy for differentiating your company from the competition. Follow the above competitive analysis example and you will be well-prepared to create a winning competitor analysis section of your business plan.

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Other Resources for Writing Your Business Plan

How to Write a Great Business Plan Executive Summary

How to Expertly Write the Company Description in Your Business Plan

The Customer Analysis Section of Your Business Plan

How to Write the Market Analysis Section of a Business Plan

The Management Team Section of Your Business Plan

Financial Assumptions and Your Business Plan

How to Create Financial Projections for Your Business Plan

Everything You Need to Know about the Business Plan Appendix

Business Plan Conclusion: Summary & Recap

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Original text

If you’ve been dreaming about your business idea for some time, it might come easy to talk or write about it. Beyond your own idea, though, a strong business plan requires a critical eye on the world beyond your own budding company. You’ll need market research about the customers you plan to target and competitive research to know what other companies you’re up against in reaching those customers.

Conducting this research can be fun, and with the amount of information available online, it’s easier than ever to compile much of the information you’ll need to make a compelling case in your business plan .

But that ease of accessing information can be challenging, especially if your digital life is filled with distractions and demands for your attention.

Follow these tips for success collecting market and competitive research for your business, both now and in the future.

1. set a timer.

Once you start researching using free resources online, it’s so easy to get carried away. Set a timer for each research session to keep you on task and prevent you from getting overwhelmed. Keep a research log to track your progress during each research session. It doesn’t have to be fancy — ordinary notebook paper, a word processing document or even a note in your phone can help you remember what resources you used, what you learned, and what you want to focus on next time you sit down to research your market or competition.

2. Work on market research and competitor research separately

Stay organized by focusing on one type of research at a time.

Market research helps you determine your ideal customer, based on income level, age, gender, or other factors.

Conducting this research is nearly painless thanks to free resources such as the U.S. Census Bureau’s American FactFinder . Your state or city may have its own reports about different locations, the people who live there, and their needs.

Couple statistics with anecdotal evidence that’s inspired your small business for a compelling market research section of your business plan.

Competitor research , on the other hand, focuses on similar companies as your business venture. If you’re opening a location-based business, like a restaurant, that competitor research might involve visiting other venues in person to judge quality, service, aesthetics and other factors through which you want to differentiate your own business. If you’re opening a service-based or ecommerce business, you may have to conduct much of this research online.

Record observations about your competition as you go, so you don’t have to rely on your memory later as you work on your business plan. Want to provide a quick glance at your competition? Use a chart to display your strengths and weaknesses alongside your competitors’.

Focus on one of these areas of research at a time to stay focused, and avoid confusion in these sections of your business plan .

3. Ask for feedback

As with most parts of your business plan, you’ll want to ask for guidance when compiling your market and competitor research. When you think you have a good grasp of your analysis , ask for help reviewing what you’ve gleaned. Family and friends may not have the industry- or location-specific expertise you need, but your community is likely teeming with people who do.

Look to SCORE mentors , local business associations, neighborhood-based alliances, and marketing experts for feedback you can trust. Tap into your business network , or make connections with new contacts. Then, return to your research to make edits, or resolve unanswered questions.

4. Review your research often

Once you write the market and competitive research portions of your business plan, don’t forget about these aspects of building a strong business. Continue to conduct research by reading industry publications and local news, and by attending events within your business community. You need not rewrite your business plan each time a new competitor comes onto the market, but you’ll want to keep notes about what’s happening in your business space and how you plan to respond.

Ready to seek valuable feedback on your market research and competitive analysis? Meet with a SCORE mentor !

Conducting a Market Analysis This workshop explains the importance of doing a market analysis and how to best conduct your research. Case studies are included to help you start today.

Business Plan Template for a Startup Business To increase your odds of a successful business startup, download this step-by-step business plan template you can use to plan for your new business.

Copyright © 2024 SCORE Association, SCORE.org

Funded, in part, through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All opinions, and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

Market Research for a Business Plan: How to Do It in a Day

Whether it’s your first time using market research for a business plan or this isn’t exactly your first rodeo: a quick refresh on the topic can do no harm.

If anything, it’s the smart route to take. Particularly when you consider modern-day market research data can be obtained quicker than ever – when the right tools are used.

Today, I’m going to explain exactly how to conduct market research for a business plan, and how to access that key data and juicy intel without hassle.

The importance of market research in business planning

They say knowledge is power, and where your rivals and your market are concerned, there’s nothing quite like it. By looking at things like consumer behavior, the competitive landscape , market size, and the digital strategies of others; companies at any stage in their lifecycle can stay relevant, maintain a competitive edge, set strategic direction, and experience growth. Doing periodic market research also helps businesses develop a deeper, more informed understanding of a market, its audience, and key players. If you’re seeking financial backing, doing market research is essential to show credibility and build confidence in your plans.

How to conduct market research for a business plan

Good market research for a business plan should be contextualized with information about your company, its goals, products, pricing, and financials. Sounds like a lot of work, right? Read on to learn how to conduct all the market research for a business plan you’re going to need – quickly, using the most up-to-date data there is. I’ll show you how to:

• Understand your audience
• Identify target personas
• Size your market 
• Research the competition 
• Discover your unique sales proposition
• Define marketing priorities 

Before you start, make sure your business planning document includes the following 10 headings:

This format is considered best practice, so I’ve indicated the specific sections that each element of your market research fits into.

Sound good? Then let’s get started.

1. Understand your audience

What it is – A target audience is a social segment of people who are likely to be interested in your products or services. It’s a snapshot of your target customer base, sorted by certain characteristics. It’s also known as audience demographics and can contain data like age, gender, location, values, attitudes, behaviors, and more.     

Where to use this market research in a business plan – Demographical data can help determine the size of your market, which slots into the executive summary, marketing plan, market sizing, and financial sections of the plan. What’s more, when you use it to identify groups of people to target, it can also be used in the products and services, competitive research tools , and SWOT analysis sections.

Bonus: Audience demographics can also help you develop stronger branding by choosing imagery that appeals most to your ideal customers.

How to do a quick audience analysis

Similarweb Research Intelligence gives you the ability to view almost any industry in a few seconds; you can also create a custom industry based on specific players in your market.  Here’s how to see relevant audience demographics in a market. For this example, I chose the airline industry.

View typical audience relevant to your sector with gender and age distribution, along with geographical data . You can see which companies are experiencing growth and at what rate. Audience loyalty is also key to understanding how people behave, if they tend to shop around and what search terms they use to discover sites in any niche.

Read more: Learn more about how to do a demographic analysis of your market’s audience .

2. Identify target personas

What it is – An audience or target persona is a typical customer profile. It starts with audience demographics, and then zooms into a much deeper level. Most organizations develop multiple target personas, based on things like pain points, location, gender, background, occupation, influential factors, decision-making, likes, dislikes, goals, ideals, and more. 

Pro Tip: If you’re in B2B, your target personas are based on the people who make purchasing decisions, not the business itself.

Where to use this market research in a business plan – Creating target personas for your business shows you know whom you’re targeting, and how to market to them. This information will help you complete market sizing, product or service overview, marketing plan, and could fit into the competitive research section too.

How to create a buyer persona in five steps

Guesswork does not equal less work – there’s no place for shortcuts here. Your success depends on developing the most accurate representation of who your customers are, and what they care about. 

1. Research: If you’re already in business, use market research surveys as a tool to collect information about your customers. If you’re a startup or pre-startup, you can use a platform like Similarweb to establish a typical customer profile for your market. Don’t forget to use mobile app intelligence and website analytics in tandem to build a complete picture of your audience. 

Pro Tip: Secondary market research is another good source of intel for startups. You might be able to find published surveys that relate to your products or market to learn more.

2. Analysis: Here, you’re looking to answer key questions to fill in the blanks and build a complete picture of your ideal customer. Tools like Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence, Google Analytics, and competitors’ social media channels can help you find this out. Typical questions include:

• Where is your audience coming from?
• What channels do they use to find your site?
• Do they favor access via mobile site, app, or desktop?
• What are their demographics? Think age, job, salary, location, and gender.

3. Competitive market research: This shows you what marketing channels, referral partners, and keywords are sending traffic to businesses similar to yours When you combine this data with what you learned in sections 1 + 2, you are ready to build your personas.

4. Fill in a buyer persona template: We’ve done the hard work for you. Download a pre-made template below .

Further reading: The complete guide to creating buyer personas

3. Size your market

What it is – Market sizing is a way to determine the potential size of a target market using informed estimation. This is how you find out the potential revenue and market volume applicable to your business . There are three key metrics: total addressable market (TAM), service addressable market (SAM), and service obtainable market (SOM).

Where to use this market research in a business plan – Knowing how big the slice of the pie you’re going after is crucial. It can inform any goal setting and help with forecasting too. This data can be used in your executive summary, marketing plan, competitive research, SWOT analysis, market sizing, operations, and financial sections.

Further reading: How to do market sizing shows you how to calculate the TAM, SAM, and SOM for your business.

4. Research the competition

What it is – Competitive landscaping shows who you’re up against and how your offering stacks up vs others in your space. By evaluating rivals in-depth and looking at things like features, pricing, support, content, and additional products, you can form a detailed picture of the competition.

Where to use this market research in a business plan – The information you gain from performing a competitive analysis can transform what you offer and how you go to market. In business planning, this market research supports the executive summary, product or service overview, marketing plan, competitive research, SWOT analysis, and operation sections.  

How to do competitive landscaping

Using the industry overview section of Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence, competitor research is made quick and easy. Access key metrics on an industry or specific players, then download raw data in a workable excel file or get a PNG image of charts in an instant. Most data can be downloaded via excel or as an image and included in the resource section of your plan.

Here, you can see a summary of a market, yearly growth, and top sites. A quick click to industry leaders shows you market leaders and rising stars. Select any name for a complete picture of their digital presence – use this to spot potential opportunities to gain a competitive advantage.

Read more: See how to do a competitive analysis and get a free template to help you get started.

5. Discover your unique sales proposition

What it is – Not all businesses have them, and that’s OK. A unique selling proposition (USP) is something distinctive your business offers but your rivals don’t . It can be anything that’s unique to a product, service, pricing model, or other.  

Why it’s useful – Having a compelling USP helps your company stand out in a market. It can make your business more valuable to a customer vs the competition, and ultimately help you win and retain more customers.

Where to use this market research in a business plan – Your USP should be highlighted in the executive summary, the product and service overview, and the SWOT analysis.

How to find your USP

Unless you’ve developed a unique product or service, or you’re planning to sell to the market at a lower-than-average price point, you’re going to have to look for some kind of service differentiator that’ll help you stand out. In my experience, the quickest way to discover this is through competitive benchmarking. Here, I’m talking about evaluating your closest rivals to uncover things they’re not doing, or looking for gaps that your business can capitalize on. 

A competitive review of their site should look at things like:

• Customer support: do they have live chat, email support, telephone support, etc.?
• Content: do they produce additional content that offers value, free resources, etc.?
• Offers: what promotions or offers do they run?
• Loyalty or referral programs: do they reward loyalty or referrals?
• Service level agreements: what commitments do they make to their customers?
• Operations: consider delivery methods, lead times, returns policy etc.
• Price promises: what satisfaction or price promises do they offer, if at all?

Go easy on yourself and create a basic template that details each point. Once complete, look for opportunities to provide something unique that nobody else currently offers.

6. Define marketing priorities

What it is – A detailed plan showing how you position and market your products or service. It should define realistic, clear, and measurable goals that articulate tactics, customer profiles, and the position of your products in the market.

Where to use this market research in a business plan – Relevant intel you uncover should inform the marketing plan first and foremost. However, it can also be used in the SWOT analysis, operation, and financial sections.

How to do it – with a market research example

Using the marketing channels within Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence, you can short-cut the lengthy (and often costly) process of trial and error when trying to decide which channels and activities work best.

Let me show you how.

Using Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence, I can hone in on any site I like, and look at key marketing intel to uncover the strategies they’re using, along with insights into what’s driving traffic, and traffic opportunities.

In less than 60 seconds, I can see easyJet’s complete online presence; its marketing and social channels, and a snapshot of every metric that matters, like referrals, organic and paid ads, keywords, and more. Expand any section to get granular data, and view insights that show exactly where key losses, gains, and opportunities exist.

You can take this a step further and add other sites into the mix. Compare sites side-by-side to see who is winning, and how they’re doing it. While this snapshot shows a comparison of a single competitor, you can compare five at any one time. What’s more, I can see industry leaders, rising players, and any relevant mobile app intelligence stats, should a company or its rivals have an app as part of their offering.

Best practice for market research data in business plans

When doing any type of market research , it’s important to use the most up-to-date data you can get your hands on. There are two key factors for data are timeliness and trustworthiness.

For any market, look for data that applies to any period over the last 12 months. With how fast markets evolve and how quickly consumer behaviors change, being able to view dynamic data is key. What’s more, the source of any data matters just as much as its age.

To emphasize the importance of using the right type of data in a business plan, here’s some timely advice from SBA commercial lending expert and VP of Commerce National Bank and Trust, Steve Fulmer. As someone who, in the past 15 years, has approved approximately $150 million in loans to SMBs; his advice is worth paying attention to.

“ For anybody doing market research for a business plan, they must cite sources. Most new or small businesses lack historical performance data, which removes substantial confidence in their plans. As a lender, we cannot support assumptions in their business plan or their projections if their data hasn’t come from a trustworthy source.”

Wrapping up…

Now you know the six ways to do market research for a business plan, it’s time to knuckle down and get started. With Similarweb, you’ve got access to all the market intel you’re going to need to conduct timely, accurate, and reliable market research. What’s more, you can return to the platform anytime to benchmark your performance , get fresh insights, and adapt your strategies to focus on growth – helping you build a sustainable business that can withstand the test of time.

How do I do market research for a business plan?

By using Digital Research Intelligence tools like Similarweb, you can quickly conduct audience research, company research, market analysis, and benchmarking from a single place. Another method is secondary market research, but this takes more time and data isn’t always up to date. 

Why does a business plan need market research?

Doing market research for a business plan is the quickest and easiest way to validate a business idea and establish a clear view of the market and competitive landscape. When done right, it can show you opportunities for growth, strategies to avoid, and effective ways to market your business. 

What is market research in a business plan?

Market research in business planning is one of the most powerful tools you can use to flesh out and validate your company or its products. It can tell you whether there’s a market for your product, and how big that market is – it also helps you discover industry trends, and examine the strategies of the rising stars and industry leaders in detail. 

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How to Write the Competitor Analysis Section of the Business Plan

Writing The Business Plan: Section 4

Susan Ward wrote about small businesses for The Balance for 18 years. She has run an IT consulting firm and designed and presented courses on how to promote small businesses.

The competitor analysis section can be the most difficult section to compile when writing a business plan because before you can analyze your competitors, you have to investigate them. Here's how to write the competitor analysis section of the business plan.

First, Find Out Who Your Competitors Are

If you're planning to start a small business that's going to operate locally, chances are you already know which businesses you're going to be competing with. But if not, you can easily find out by doing an internet search for local businesses, looking in the online or printed local phone book, or even driving around the target market area. 

Your local business may also have non-local competitors that you need to be aware of.

If you're selling office supplies, for instance, you may also have to compete with big-box retailers within a driving distance of several hours and companies that offer office supplies online. You want to make sure that you identify all your possible competitors at this stage.

Then Find Out About Them

You need to know:

• what markets or market segments your competitors serve;
• what benefits your competitors offer;
• why customers buy from them;
• as much as possible about their products and/or services, pricing, and promotion.

Gathering Information for Your Competitor Analysis

A visit is still the most obvious starting point - either to the brick and mortar store or to the company's website. Go there, once or several times, and look around. Watch how customers are treated. Check out the prices.

You can also learn a fair bit about your competitors from talking to their customers and/or clients - if you know who they are. Other good "live" sources of information about competitors include a company's vendors or suppliers and a company's employees. They may or may not be willing to talk to you, but it's worth seeking them out and asking.

And watch for trade shows that your competitors may be attending. Businesses are there to disseminate information about and sell their products or services; attending and visiting their booths can be an excellent way to find out about your competition.

You'll also want to search for the publicly available information about your competitors. Online publications, newspapers, and magazines may all have information about the company you're investigating for your competitive analysis. Press releases may be particularly useful. 

Once you've compiled the information about your competitors, you're ready to analyze it. 

Analyzing the Competition

Just listing a bunch of information about your competition in the competitor analysis section of the business plan misses the point. It's the analysis of the information that's important.

Study the information you've gathered about each of your competitors and ask yourself this question: How are you going to compete with that company?

For many small businesses, the key to competing successfully is to identify a market niche where they can capture a  specific target market  whose needs are not being met.

• Is there a particular segment of the market that your competition has overlooked?
• Is there a service that customers or clients want that your competitor does not supply? 

The goal of your competitor analysis is to identify and expand upon your competitive advantage - the benefits that your proposed business can offer the customer or client that your competition can't or won't supply.

Writing the Competitor Analysis Section

When you're writing the business plan, you'll write the competitor analysis section in the form of several paragraphs. 

The first paragraph will outline the competitive environment, telling your readers who your proposed business's competitors are, how much of the market they control and any other relevant details about the competition.

The second and following paragraphs will detail your competitive advantage, explaining why and how your company will be able to compete with these competitors and establish yourself as a successful business.

Remember; you don't have to go into exhaustive detail here, but you do need to persuade the reader of your business plan that you are knowledgeable about the competition and that you have a clear, definitive plan that will enable your new business to successfully compete.

How to Research Competition for a Business Plan

Table of Contents

What should I keep in mind when creating my business plan?

Who are your competitors, who are their audiences, what benefits do they offer, product or service information and pricing, gathering your information, analysing your findings, get on track to success from day one.

A business plan is a crucial tool for both new and established companies. Setting out strategies to achieve your goals with detailed background information is key to set your venture up for success. An essential part of establishing your business is understanding who else is out there in your market space. It’s important to write this into your business plan early on to determine how you will set yourself apart from your competitors. 

First, it’s important to keep in mind that market research is separate from competitor research . Competitors will be part of the current market share, but try not to get the two confused. You should have both clearly marked out in your business plan for separate reasons. You can find a separate article on market trends for your business plan here.

Remember to note down your findings and references in an organised way as you go, so that you don’t have to waste time trying to go back and find statistics again. You could use charts to display your company’s attributes against the competition to make the information more digestible.

Start by defining who your competitors are on a local scale. Understand what services are offered in your area so that you can set yourself apart from them. 

Then, find out who your competitors are on a larger, national scale. Which brands dominate your sector? How did they grow to their current size? Try to find out about their origins, so you can pick and choose the elements you would like to apply to your own business. 

Once you have identified who your competitors are, research the following questions:

What is your competitors’ biggest sales demographic? You can use online tools and software to find out this information, and whether their following on social media is predominately this same audience. For bigger brands, it can be a good idea to look at what celebrities or influencers follow them, to give an indication of the kind of audience this business speaks to. 

For example, a well-known ‘mummy blogger’ who follows a beauty brand will likely draw in other women that have children and are interested in similar topics. This beauty brand could engage this audience with relevant messaging or by collaborating with the influencer.

This will all help you figure out who your competitors speak to in their communications and sales messaging. Researching your competitors’ audiences can highlight where you can add value. 

Research why customers are loyal to your competitors. Investigate the benefits attached to their products or services, and advantages they pose over other similar brands. 

This information may be factual, like price or special offers, or more intangible, such as luxury branding. Spend some time understanding this area, because it may help you discover a gap in the market that you can fill to have an edge over the competition. 

Get some hard facts on your competitors’ pricing plan. Is there a product gap they have overlooked that you could capitalise on? Use this information to determine where your pricing should lie. Making your prices too high or too low can cause customers to shy away from your business. It’s crucial to get it right. 

To gain useful insights into your competitors, broaden your search. Suppose you’re a locally-based retail boutique or restaurant. You may have to visit other businesses to glean the information you need. Make notes on the quality of service, the look and feel of the premises, and other factors that you want to differentiate from. 

If you will operate and provide your service digitally, you can likely do most of your research online. Use company websites to see how they talk about themselves. What do they feature in their messaging? Read reviews on Trustpilot or service directories to find out what their customers say. You could even use Glassdoor to find out what employees think of the business.

You could also use SEO tools to understand the digital marketing advantages competitors have, such as the share of search engine results that a competitor occupies. Examine whether they have a robust content marketing strategy by looking at their website and position in the search results, and you can use online tools like SEMRush to determine whether they have a large market share of the search engine results.

Now it’s time to pull together what you found. What matters is not the facts, but the way you interpret them to benefit your business plan and your strategies going forward.

The first part of your competitor research should be about the competitive environment – who the competitors are and the market they occupy. The next sections should be about your competitive advantage. Focus on how you will compete against these brands and the strategies you could apply to establish yourself in the industry.

Now that you are starting your own business, make sure to keep on top of your business finances from the get go. To manage your cash flow and keep organised records of your transactions ahead of your first tax return, it’s important to keep personal and business expenses separate. Countingup is the unique 2-in-1 business current account that automates your bookkeeping so that you can focus more on running your business. Find out more here . 

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How to Create a Market Research Plan

Table of Contents

While having a great idea is an important part of establishing a business, you’ll only get so far without laying the proper groundwork. To help your business take off, not only do you need to size up the competition, but you also need to identify who will buy your product, how much it will cost, the best approach to selling it and how many people will demand it.

To get answers to these questions, you’ll need a market research plan, which you can create yourself or pay a specialist to create for you. Market research plans define an existing problem and/or outline an opportunity. From there, the marketing strategy is broken down task by task. Your plan should include objectives and the methods that you’ll use to achieve those objectives, along with a time frame for completing the work.

What should a market research plan include?

A market research plan should provide a thorough examination of how your product or service will fare in a defined area. It should include:

• An examination of the current marketplace and an analysis of the need for your product or service: To know where you fit in the market, it’s important to have a broad understanding of your industry — covering everything from its annual revenue to the industry standards to the total number of businesses operating within it. Start by gathering statistical data from sources like the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and BMI Research and consider the industry’s market size, potential customer base and how external factors such as laws, technology, world events and socioeconomic changes impact it.
• An assessment of the competition: By analyzing your competitors, you can discover strategies to fill market gaps. This involves identifying well-known competitors and noting trends they employ successfully, scrutinizing customer feedback about businesses in your sector, such as through online reviews, and understanding competitors’ product or service offerings. This knowledge can then guide the refinement of your own products or services to differentiate them from others in the market.
• Data about customers: Identify which segment of potential customers in your industry you can effectively target, considering their demographics — such as age, ethnicity, income and location and psychographics, including beliefs, values and lifestyle. Learn about the challenges your customers face in their daily lives and determine how the features and benefits of your offerings address their needs.
• The direction for your marketing in the upcoming year: Your plan should provide a clear roadmap for your marketing strategies for the next year, focusing on approaches to distinguish your brand from competitors. Develop marketing messages that resonate with and display empathy toward your target market and find ways to address customers’ needs and demonstrate value.
• Goals to be met: Outline goals your business would like to achieve and make these goals clear to all employees on your team. Create goals that are realistic and attainable while also making a meaningful impact on the business’s growth. Consider factors including your target number of products or services, the expected number of units to sell based on market size, target market behavior, pricing for each item and the cost of production and advertising.

How to create your market research plan

Doing business without having a marketing plan is like driving without directions. You may eventually reach your destination, but there will be many costly and time-consuming mistakes made along the way.

Many entrepreneurs mistakenly believe there is a big demand for their service or product but, in reality, there may not be, your prices may be too high or too low or you may be going into a business with so many restrictions that it’s almost impossible to be successful. A market research plan will help you uncover significant issues or roadblocks.

Step 1. Conduct a comprehensive situation analysis.

One of the first steps in constructing your marketing plan is to create a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis , which is used to identify your competition, to know how they operate and then to understand their strengths and weaknesses.

Step 2: Develop clear marketing objectives.

In this section, describe the desired outcome for your marketing plan with realistic and attainable objectives, the targets and a clear and concise time frame. The most common way to approach this is with marketing objectives, which may include the total number of customers and the retention rate, the average volume of purchases, total market share and the proportion of your potential market that makes purchases.

Step 3: Make a financial plan.

A financial plan is essentia l for creating a solid marketing plan. The financial plan answers a range of questions that are critical components of your business, such as how much you intend to sell, what will you charge, how much will it cost to deliver your services or produce your products, how much will it cost for your basic operating expenses and how much financing will you need to operate your business.

In your business plan, be sure to describe who you are, what your business will be about, your business goals and what your inspiration was to buy, begin or grow your business.

Step 4: Determine your target audience.

Once you know what makes you stand out from your competitors and how you’ll market yourself, you should decide who to target with all this information. That’s why your market research plan should delineate your target audience. What are their demographics and how will these qualities affect your plan? How do your company’s current products and services affect which consumers you can realistically make customers? Will that change in the future? All of these questions should be answered in your plan.

Step 5: List your research methods.

Rarely does one research avenue make for a comprehensive market research plan. Instead, your plan should indicate several methods that will be used to determine the market share you can realistically obtain. This way, you get as much information as possible from as many sources as possible. The result is a more robust path toward establishing the exact footprint you desire for your company.

Step 6: Establish a timeline.

With your plan in place, you’ll need to figure out how long your market research process will take. Project management charts are often helpful in this regard as they divide tasks and personnel over a timeframe that you have set. No matter which type of project management chart you use, try to build some flexibility into your timeframe. A two-week buffer toward the home stretch comes in handy when a process scheduled for one week takes two — that buffer will keep you on deadline.

Step 7: Acknowledge ethical concerns.

Market research always presents opportunities for ethical missteps. After all, you’ll need to obtain competitor information and sensitive financial data that may not always be readily available. Your market research plan should thus encourage your team to not take any dicey steps to obtain this information. It may be better to state, “we could not obtain this competitor information,” than to spy on the competitor or pressure their current employees for knowledge. Plus, there’s nothing wrong with simply feeling better about the final state of your plan and how you got it there.

Using a market research firm

If the thought of trying to create your own market research plan seems daunting or too time-consuming, there are plenty of other people willing to do the work for you.

Pros of using a market research firm

As an objective third party, businesses can benefit from a market research firm’s impartial perspective and guidance, helping to shape impactful brand strategies and marketing campaigns. These firms, which can help businesses with everything from their marketing campaigns to brand launches, deliver precise results, drawing on their expertise and experience to provide in-depth insights and solutions tailored specifically to your company’s needs. 

Even more, working with a market research firm can elevate a brand above the competition, as they provide credible and unique research that is highly valued by the media, enhancing brand credibility and potentially increasing website traffic, social media shares and online visibility.

Cons of using a market research firm

Although hiring a firm can provide businesses with tremendous results, certain downsides can lead a business toward the do-it-yourself route. Most notably, market research firms can be a costly expense that some businesses can’t afford. However, businesses that can allocate the funds will likely see a positive return on investment, as they are paying for the expertise and proficiency of seasoned professionals in the field.

Additionally, finding the right market research firm for your business’s needs can take some time — and even longer, ranging from weeks to months, for a market research firm to complete a plan. This lack of immediate results can be detrimental for businesses that don’t have the time to wait. 

Market research firms can charge into the thousands of dollars for a market research plan, but there are ways to get help more affordably, including:

• Outline your plans carefully and spell out objectives.
• Examine as many sources as possible.
• Before paying for any information, check with librarians, small business development centers or market research professors to see if they can help you access market research data for free.
• You may think you’ll need to spend a hefty sum to create a market research plan, but there are plenty of free and low-cost sources available, especially through university business schools that will guide you through the process.

Miranda Fraraccio contributed to this article. 

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Look for companies that have similar business descriptions and industry classifications.  Try to compare their financials, their service and product lines, and the geographic areas they serve, to give you better idea of how your business stacks up.

Resources at the Boston Public Library can also help you learn about your competitor's company history, ownership, intellectual property, and news.

• Company Research Guide --Library of Congress This guide is designed to give someone searching for company information some ideas and strategies for finding this type of information.

On the Web: There are a number of web resources you can use to help you pinpoint your competition.  You can start with a general search in your favorite search engine. You can also try review sites such as Yelp. 

• Boston Startups Guide -- Startups Regularly updates list of new tech startups in Boston. Browse startups or search for startups of interest.
• Crunchbase Crunchbase is the world’s most comprehensive dataset of startup activity and it’s accessible to everyone. Founded in 2007 by Mike Arrington, CrunchBase began as a simple crowd sourced database to track startups covered on TechCrunch.
• ThomasNet ThomasNet.com is the leading product sourcing and supplier discovery platform for procurement professionals, engineers, plant & facility management personnel, small business owners and other occasional buyers.

With your Library Card:  From your home or office you can use these library resources to generate a list of competitors with their locations. 

• AtoZdatabases This link opens in a new window AtoZdatabases is a leading job search, reference & mailing list database including 30 million business profiles & 240 million residents. Ideal for sales leads mailing lists, market research, employment opportunities, finding friends and relatives, and more.
• DemographicsNow: Business and People This link opens in a new window DemographicsNow: Business & People is a comprehensive business and residential reference and research tool. Users can produce comprehensive business and residential lists as well as detailed demographic reports, or even use a unique mapping tool that visualizes trends.
• Mergent Intellect Mergent Intellect offers users a unique opportunity to access private and public U.S. and international business data, industry news, facts and figures, executive contact information, the ability to access industry profiles, and much more.

On the Web:  Look at your competitors websites and social media to see how they talk about themselves.  Look at how your competitors and customers interact. Also perform a search in your favorite search engine for news concerning you competitors.  

• Boston Business Journal The Boston Business Journal features local business news about Boston. The Kirstein Business Library and Innovation Center has a subscription and their Annual Book of Lists.
• Bostinno New site focusing on Boston startups, technology and innovation

With Your Library Card:   From your home or office you can access these databases and search for you competition.  

• Boston Globe (1980-Present) This link opens in a new window Provides full-text articles for staff-written news items, feature stories, columns, and editorials for the Boston Globe . Coverage: 1980-present
• General Business File ASAP This link opens in a new window Analyze company performance and activity, industry events and trends as well as the latest in management, economics and politics. Access to a combination of broker research reports, trade publications, newspapers, journals and company directory listings with full text and images available. Coverage: 1980-present
• Gale General OneFile This link opens in a new window Access to more than 3,100 full-text periodicals, 89 newswire services, and five major American newspaper indexes covering a diverse set of topics.
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• Last Updated: Mar 6, 2024 1:47 PM
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How to Win a Business Plan Competition

8 min. read

Updated May 10, 2024

Have you considered business plan competitions as part of your startup strategy? I’ve personally seen startups get more than a million dollars in investment at the annual Rice University Business Plan Competition, held every April. I’ve also seen startups raise tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars of grant money at competitions hosted by the University of Oregon and the University of Texas. And I’ve read about startups getting good money from outside universities, in competitions held by business development organizations and businesses. And this is now worldwide, not just in the U.S. 

As I write this, I just did a web search for business plan competitions, and came up with dozens of them coming up in 2022. I judged a University of Oregon business plan competition just last month. 

I’ve never entered a business plan competition, but I’ve been judging them since 1997. I’ve done multiple stints at several of the majors. And I’ve developed some pointers and tips to help you win your next business plan competition. 

• 1. Know the judging guidelines

As business plan competitions have grown and developed, most of them have fine-tuned the details of judging procedures and criteria. For example, many ask judges to choose which entrant is the best investment for outsiders. That’s different from which is the best business or which they would rather own or share in. The key point there is that criterion essentially dismisses good startups that don’t need outside investment to grow. 

I’ve seen startups successfully tailor their plans and pitches to aim at outside investment rather than self funding. That, in my opinion, is the right way to adjust to the specific criteria. 

You should also be aware of judging guidelines governing questions, comments, interruptions of pitches, plan and pitch length, and so forth. Some business plan competitions ask the judges to listen quietly to a pitch, without interrupting. Others encourage judges to interrupt at will, as they would in a real investment pitch. Startups have to know and plan accordingly. 

• 2. Research who you are pitching to

In most of the business plan competitions I’ve seen, judges are a collection of venture capitalists, angel investors, entrepreneurs, and local business leaders. That’s predictable. The organizers of these competitions ask local people to participate, as volunteers, as judges. So they look for people who know the general territory of startups, business plans, pitches, and investment. 

Different judges have different sets of expertise. I’ve seen attorneys, accountants, and medical doctors as judges, along with investors in general. Read their biographies before you finalize your pitch. Know what experience and background they have. This can help a lot as you deliver a pitch and field questions.

• 3. Refine your pitch deck and get feedback

Start with a good deck of slides . Understand what your slide deck is supposed to do: ideally, it’s a collection of useful and/or beautiful images that focus attention on what you are saying, add depth to what you are saying, and sets the structure to what you say. For example, as you discuss the problem your startup solves, you project a beautiful image that illustrates the problem you solve. You want your investors to focus on you and your words, not read words from your slides. Avoid the so-called “death by PowerPoint” meaning the boredom of a speaker reading slide bullet points to a captive audience.   

We have a lot of information for you, on this site, about doing your slide presentation for a business pitch. All of that applies to the pitch component of a business plan competition. That includes How to Create a Pitch Deck , 15 Tips for a Successful Pitch , T he 11 Slides Your Need for a Pitch Deck , and others. 

Practice makes perfect . Trite but true. In my experience, the best pitches are practiced a lot but not memorized. The slide images stand as placeholders to set the flow of topics. They provide visual emphasis. But the speakers use their own words and let it flow differently each time they do it. The best have been over the pitch a lot, with others listening and poking holes where they can. So they have a good guess on what questions might come up, and how they will respond to those questions when they do. You might look at this article on how to get feedback on your pitch . 

• 4. Develop a memorable hook

You have just a few seconds to make that important first impression. Call that a hook. You want judges’ attention from the very beginning. Maybe you tell a story of a real person suffering the problem you want to solve. Ideally, in that case, your first slide is a picture of that problem. Maybe you share the vision of how this will help the world. That can start with an image too. 

Hooks are hard to generalize, but it’s all about getting the judges to care. It’s most often about the problem a startup solves, the size of the need, the importance of the solution. But it might also be the ambitious goals, if you can make the judges care about that. Be creative. Put yourself in the place of an investor, sense business plan competition judges are usually thinking as investors. What makes this exciting to the investor? What’s the best thing to make them care from the beginning. 

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• 5. Share any traction

Being able to show actual achieved traction is a huge advantage in a business plan competition. Most competitions invite startups at very early stages, often long before launch or even serious steps towards execution. The startup that already has traction is way ahead of the competition. 

What makes traction depends on your type of business. Maybe it’s proven research, subscribers, customers, distributors, letters of intent, users, and so forth. Generally, there’s nothing stronger than actual paying customers. 

• 6. Show realistic market potential and growth

Don’t ever think that in a business plan competition the biggest market wins. It’s so very much not that simple. Credibility and realism are critical. I’ve seen judges not choose a startup that was going to cure cancer, with a projected market of billions, because they just didn’t believe it. I’ve seen judges routinely reject unbelievable big numbers. 

Yes, of course, bigger is better, but only within that framework of credibility. The method and assumptions and transparency of a projection is very important. The best market projections build from the bottom up, with believable assumptions about drivers: stores, channels, web views, traffic, sales funnels. Numbers should start at the base drivers and build up to the bigger numbers. 

• 7. Prepare relatable stories

Stories are vital to business success and that includes in business plan competition. Your hook is a story. Your problem and solution are a story. How people find and buy that solution is another story. Business planning is in many ways telling stories first and then planning how to make them come true. The stories are vital to your success in a business plan competition. You hint at them in an elevator pitch, tell them in the business pitch, and show them and how they can come true in your business plan. 

• 8. Keep things short and straightforward

Business plan competition judges are busy people. They have a lot of distractions. Boredom is your enemy. Time is the scarcest resource. Keep your pitches moving. Once you lose their attention, it is very hard to get that back. Stay on point. Move it forward fast. 

In a pinch, use your slide deck to help. Click on the next slide. That should move you to the next topic. 

• 9. Prove you are uniquely qualified

Most business plan contest judges are investors and most investors agree that choosing a startup is often more about the jockey than the horse. I’ve often seen judges reject a good plan with a good product and market but an unconvincing team. Show why your team background and qualifications make you uniquely qualified. Usually that means track records, industry experience, related credentials, accomplishments, market knowledge, product knowledge, and commitment. Simply put: why you?  

• 10. Have your business plan prepared to share

Start with the obvious: Make sure you are aware of each business plan competition’s specific requirements for the plan itself. Most of them set down standards for how many pages. Some set just page count while others will distinguish between text pages and pages containing illustrations and/or financial projections. Many business plan contests also specify pagination and details for the executive summary. 

Pay special attention to the summaries. Many judges will read just the summaries well and skim the rest, and then screen and grade plans based mainly on the summary information. Make sure you show the highlights first, and well. What highlights? That depends on your unique plan. For some, technology is most important. For others, it’s the market, or the team experience. You have to know what best sets you apart, and put that where judges will see it. 

In a business plan competition, the quality of presentation in the plan — writing and formatting as well as content — is especially important. Be careful with text, diction, spelling, grammar, and formatting. Don’t let important information get lost in details. You are going to be graded on the quality of the document. 

• Get funding for your business

Finally, maybe as a conclusion, let’s remember that winning a business plan competition is one way to get funding for your business. Winnings can be very helpful. I’ve seen startups come up with hundreds of thousands of dollars and in a couple specific cases (at the Rice Business Plan Competition in Houston) more than a million dollars in angel investment by winning a business plan competition. And I’ve seen startups come up with tens of thousands of dollars as simple grants, no strings attached, as prizes for winning a business plan contest. 

Create a business plan that maximizes your chances of securing funding

Tim Berry is the founder and chairman of Palo Alto Software , a co-founder of Borland International, and a recognized expert in business planning. He has an MBA from Stanford and degrees with honors from the University of Oregon and the University of Notre Dame. Today, Tim dedicates most of his time to blogging, teaching and evangelizing for business planning.

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Competitor Analysis: Core Principles and How to Conduct One

Written by Leigh McKenzie In collaboration with Semrush

In the fast-paced realm of digital marketing, understanding and outperforming your competitors is not just an advantage, it’s a necessity.

Competitor analysis, a critical skill for any marketer, provides insights that can be the difference between leading the market or lagging behind.

This guide, rooted in Backlinko’s expert approach to digital marketing strategies, delves into the nuts and bolts of effective competitor analysis.

From leveraging SEO tactics to understanding audience needs, we unpack the methods that will not only help you understand your rivals but also enable you to outmaneuver them strategically.

Get ready to transform your approach to competition, armed with tools and insights that put you ahead in the digital marketing game.

Let’s dive in.

Key Takeaways

• A competitor analysis involves collecting data about your competitors to identify their strengths and weaknesses and improve your marketing strategy.
• Any type of business can benefit from conducting a competitor analysis.
• Before you begin a competitor analysis, you need to be sure of who your target customer is.
• The next step of a competitor analysis involves identifying your organic and paid search competitors. You also need to determine if they’re classed as direct, indirect, or replacement competitors.
• Once you’ve identified your competitors, you need to analyze their content strategies , backlink profiles, technical SEO , and paid media strategies.

The Importance of Competitor Analysis in Marketing

Before we discuss how to carry out your competitor analysis, let’s take a look at exactly what it is and why it’s so beneficial.

What is Competitor Analysis?

A competitor analysis, commonly referred to as competitive analysis, is a strategic and systematic approach to identifying competitors within your industry and analyzing their strengths and weaknesses.

It involves assessing your competitors’ product offerings, pricing strategies, distribution channels, customer service, innovation, marketing strategies, and overall market positioning.

This in-depth analysis serves as a valuable benchmark. It helps you grasp not just the strategies and tactics your competitors employ but also allows you to pinpoint your own strengths and weaknesses relative to each competitor.

Armed with this well-rounded view, you can strategically position your business for success in the competitive arena.

A competitive analysis can be broad or specific. You can delve into every aspect of your competitors’ business or focus on just one area. For example, you might choose to concentrate solely on analyzing their marketing strategy.

However you decide to go about it, you need to ensure your approach is customized to align with the needs and goals of your business.

Who Can Benefit from an Analysis?

Simply put, anyone who wants to gain a better understanding of a market and the competitive landscape will benefit from a competitor analysis.

Business Owners and Executives

Competitive research helps business owners and executives:

• Identify opportunities and threats posed by competitors
• Make informed decisions
• Optimize resource allocation
• Stay ahead of industry trends
• Proactively respond to competitive challenges

As a result, these actions contribute to business growth and sustained success.

Product Marketing Teams

Conducting market research can greatly benefit product marketing teams by helping them:

• Identify unique features and benefits of their products
• Understand how competitors position and present their products
• Tailor their marketing messages to highlight distinct advantages of their products
• Recognize market gaps for potential product innovation
• Understand customer preferences
• Adapt strategies to differentiate products effectively in the market

Brand Marketing Teams

Gathering market competitor insights will help brand marketing teams:

• Understand how competitors position and present their brands
• Develop strategies to create a distinct and compelling brand image
• Identify unique selling points to differentiate the brand
• Adapt messaging to address customer perceptions and preferences

Content Marketing Teams

Content marketing teams will be able to use the insights gained from conducting competitor research to:

• Tailor content to address customer needs based on competitor insights
• Identify content gaps and opportunities in the market
• Adapt their messaging to differentiate content from competitors
• Learn from competitors’ successful content strategies
• Improve overall content effectiveness and relevance in the market

SEO Professionals

SEOs can use these competitive benchmarks to help them:

• Identify keywords competitors are ranking for
• Uncover link-building opportunities
• Discover content gaps to provide valuable and unique information
• Improving website structure and user experience based on their competitors’ successes

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Specialists

A competitive analysis can help PPC specialists:

• Identify effective strategies used by competitors in their ads
• Adjust bidding strategies based on competitors’ performance
• Improve ad creatives and messaging to stand out in the market

Social Media Teams

The insights gained from an analysis allows Social media teams to:

• Identify successful strategies used by competitors on social platforms. This includes analyzing content themes and engagement tactics that resonate with the target audience.
• Uncover the various social media platforms their competitors leverage
• Discover opportunities for unique and engaging social content
• Adapt posting schedules and frequency based on their competitors’ performance

Sales Teams

Competitor analysis data will help Sales teams:

• Determine their competitors’ strengths and weaknesses
• Identify their competitors’ unique selling points
• Anticipate customer objections, and stay informed about market trends

This helps them tailor their pitches, address customer concerns effectively, and position their products or services competitively. As a result, it can enhance sales outcomes.

Identifying Your Target Customer

Before delving into a competitor analysis, it’s crucial to clearly understand your target audience. Without this insight, you’re essentially navigating in the dark. To help clear things up, let’s dive into why it’s so important. Plus, we’ll cover the best ways to identify your target audience, but first, let’s discuss the difference between a target market and a target customer.

Target Market vs. Target Customer

A target market is a fairly broad group of customers you hope to sell your products or services to. For example, if you sell gym wear, your target market could be fitness enthusiasts.

A target customer is a more specific segment of your target market. So, your target customer within your target market could be a fitness enthusiast aged 25 to 35, who lives in Los Angeles.

The process begins by identifying your target market and then pinpointing more specific target customers within that market.

To pinpoint your target market, you must assess the key features and benefits of your products or services. Delve into understanding the problems they solve and the value they offer. Next, identify the broad groups of customers who are likely to find these qualities appealing.

By identifying your target customers, you can efficiently allocate resources to analyzing the competitors that engage with your specific audience.

How to Identify Your Target Customer

So, now you know why it’s important to identify your target customer before carrying out a competitor analysis, but how do you do it?

1. Start With Your Existing Customers

If you’re already selling products or services, you should have insights into your existing customer base, which can significantly inform your understanding of your target customer. Analyzing your current customer data, including demographics, preferences, and purchase behavior, provides a foundation for identifying and refining your target customer profile.

Additionally, gathering feedback directly from your current customers proves invaluable in gaining deeper insights.

A highly effective method to achieve this is by initiating surveys with your customer base. You can do this via email, text, or call to ask customers who have purchased to complete a survey. You can also add survey buttons and links to certain pages on your site or read customer reviews.

Furthermore, you should leverage social media platforms as an additional channel to connect with your current customers. You should create posts or direct messages inviting them to participate in surveys or share their thoughts and experiences.

2. Gather Demographics Data With Google Analytics 4 (GA4)

To collect demographic data on your target audience, you can utilize GA4 . This tool offers comprehensive insights, allowing you to get a deeper understanding of your audience.

After you log in, click “Reports”, “User attributes”, and then “Demographic details”. You’ll now see a graph representing the number of users who visited your site from different countries.

Scroll down, and you’ll see the total number of “Users” for each country, as well as the number of “New Users” (users who interacted with your site for the first time).

To view different types of demographic data, click the “Country” button in the table and you’ll get a dropdown.

For example, we chose “Interests”, and this is what the tool gave us.

In this case, the data provided above clearly indicates that a significant portion of our audience is located in the US and Canada, with a keen interest in technology, media, and entertainment.

By applying different filters, we can also see data about the audience’s:

3. Dig Into Your Social Media Analytics

Another way to identify your target customer is to explore your social media analytics. This helps you gain insights into the behaviors, preferences, and demographics of your audience.

Semrush’s Social Tracker tool allows you to analyze your followers, mentions, and engagement levels on multiple social media platforms.

This helps you identify the type of customer who interacts with your site via social media and also reveals the social media channels that generate the highest engagement and traffic for your site. You can then focus on these channels when analyzing your competitor’s social media strategy .

4. Create a Target Audience Profile

Once you’ve collected the data, it’s time to put it to use by creating a profile of your ideal target customer.

This should include information like:

• Level of education
• Platform usage

It’s essential to recognize that you may have various types of target customers. For example, an e-commerce store could have a distinct target customer for each product or service they offer.

The more data you can collect about your different types of target customers before you start a competitor analysis, the better.

How to Conduct a Competitor Market Analysis

After you identify who your target customer is, it’s time to begin your competitive research.

Before we begin, here’s a bit of advice.

• A competitor analysis can easily become overwhelming if you try to do everything at once.
• It’s always best to start fairly small and break it down into manageable chunks. Instead of analyzing 50 competitors, start with a small number (even one will do) and gradually increase the scope of your analysis over time.
• Identify what your goals are before you start your analysis. Ideally, your main objective should be conducting sufficient research to take actions that positively impact your business.
• Store your competitor insight data in a spreadsheet, which should be a living document that you return to periodically and update with new information.

OK, let’s get into how to conduct a competitor analysis.

1. Identifying Your Main Competitors

First things first, it’s time to figure out who your main competitors are.

When identifying your competitors, you need to break them down into three categories:

Direct Competitors

Direct competitors are businesses in your industry or local area that sell products or services very similar to the ones you offer. They also have the same target audience as you and are of a similar size and scope to your business.

McDonald’s and Burger King are direct competitors in the fast-food market. Both chains offer a range of fast-food items such as burgers, fries, and beverages. They target a similar customer base and compete for market share in the quick-service restaurant industry.

Indirect Competitors

Indirect competitors are businesses that offer different solutions to the same customer needs or cater to the same target audience. Unlike direct competitors, indirect competitors do not provide similar products or services but fulfill a similar customer need or serve the same overall market.

You and your competitor both run travel websites. However, you focus on offering luxurious beach vacations while they specialize in adventure vacations – like hiking trips. Even though you’re both trying to attract people looking for vacations, the key difference is that you provide different kinds of trips.

Replacement Competitors

Replacement competitors offer alternative or substitute products or services to what your business offers.

• Your business: Specializes in selling traditional incandescent lightbulbs.
• Replacement competitor: Specializes in selling energy-efficient LED bulbs.

The replacement competitor is considered as such because, although they offer a different type of product, their offerings serve as a substitute or replacement for the traditional incandescent lightbulbs sold by your business.

Customers looking for a solution to their lighting needs have the option to choose between your traditional bulbs and the energy-efficient LED bulbs offered by the replacement competitor.

The competition arises because both businesses are aiming to satisfy the same fundamental customer need, illumination, albeit through different types of products.

How to Identify Your Competitors

Whenever we need to identify our competitors, we primarily use Semrush, but there are other ways you can get an idea of who your industry competitors are. These include:

• Customer Feedback: Reach out to your existing customers and inquire about the other businesses they considered before choosing yours. Make sure to ask for their opinions on which other businesses they perceive as providing a similar service or product.
• Market research: Consult your sales department to understand the businesses they frequently encounter during research within your target market. Their on-the-ground insights can contribute valuable information.
• Google Search: Conduct a Google Search using your target keyword (e.g., “running shoes”) to identify competitors. Analyze the first page of the search results to pinpoint key players in your industry.

You’ll also want to gain a comprehensive understanding of your organic, paid, and local competitors.

Several features within the Semrush tool can help you.

Identify Your Organic Search Competitors

These are sites that compete with you in the SERPs for non-paid traffic. They use SEO strategies to rank as highly in the SERPs as possible.

The easiest way to identify your organic competitors is to use Semrush’s Organic Research tool .

Type in your domain, hit “Search”, then click “Competitors”.

You’ll see a chart representing your site and your main competitors who rank for the same organic keywords as you. The X-axis shows you how many keywords your competitors are ranking for, and the Y-axis shows you how much monthly traffic they receive.

Scroll down, and you’ll see a long list of competitors with several bits of data like competition level (how closely a site is competing with you for the same keywords) and common keywords (the number of keywords both you and your competitor are ranking for).

Now, just because these sites are competing with you for the same organic keywords doesn’t necessarily mean they’re direct competitors, they could be targeting a different audience to you.

Here’s an example to give you a better grasp:

Imagine there’s a website that writes a blog about advertising. They want to attract people interested in “online marketing strategies.”

Now, let’s say you have a blog about SEO, and you also want to attract people searching for “online marketing strategies.” Even though you’re both targeting the same keyword, you’re not necessarily in direct competition.

Here’s why: The first website is focused on advertising, so their audience is interested in learning about advertising. On the other hand, your blog is about SEO, and your audience is more interested in SEO topics.

So, even though you target the same keyword, the sites serve different interests and are not considered direct competitors.

The best way to determine whether the sites in your list are direct, indirect, or replacement competitors is to visit each site and analyze their offerings. Here, we clicked on “neilpatel.com”.

A brief review of the blog content indicates that it shares similarities with ours and is geared toward the same audience. This categorizes it as a direct competitor.

Find Your Paid Search Competitors

Paid search advertising, or Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, involves businesses bidding on keywords. Ads from the highest bidders are then displayed in the SERPs when users search for these keywords.

To identify your paid search competitors, you can use Semrush’s Advertising Research tool . You’ll see the same graph you get in the Organic Research tool but with paid traffic and keywords instead.

Below, you’ll get a table of your paid competitors.

As with the Organic Traffic table, you can see the number of keywords you have in common with your competitors. This is a good indication of how closely you’ll be competing with them.

Remember, to split your competitors into different types, you’ll need to examine the site content, and their products or services to see what they offer. This may sound like a lot of work, but as we said earlier, you only need to start small.

Identifying Local Competitors

Your local competitors are the businesses in your area that offer a similar product or service. You may already have several local businesses in mind that you consider to be your competition. However, your local competitors might not be exactly what you expected when it comes to SEO.

Local SEO competitors are businesses that rank prominently in the SERPs for keywords related to your products or services within a specific geographical area. These businesses are your direct competition for visibility in local search results and aim to attract local customers searching for relevant products or services.

The most effective method to pinpoint these competitors is through Google. For example, if you operate a law office in Seattle, users searching for such services in your area will likely use long-tail keywords (three or more words) with location modifiers specific to the region, such as “lawyer in Seattle.”

Type this into Google and see which businesses appear in the local search results. One of the most important things to pay attention to is the Map Pack. This is a group of top-ranking local businesses that are displayed prominently in the SERPs.

2. Analyzing Your Competitor’s Content Strategy

Once you’ve identified your competitors, it’s time to analyze their content strategy .

The goal is to identify the components of their strategy that are performing well and those that are not. By doing so, you can replicate the successful elements and take advantage of the opportunities created by the shortcomings in the weaker aspects of their strategy.

The key things to analyze are:

Content Types and Formats

Identify the various kinds of content competitors create, like blog posts , videos , infographics , or podcasts .

Additionally, analyze the formats they employ to present information within these content types. For example, blog post formats may include how-to guides, listicles , or thought leadership articles.

This analysis will help you understand the diversity of their approach and allow you to tailor your content strategy to meet similar or unique audience preferences.

Content Quality and Relevance

Assess the overall quality of their content. Look at factors such as relevance, depth, and level of expertise. Evaluate how well their content meets the users’ search intent and addresses the needs and interests of their target audience.

The insights you gain will allow you to learn from your competitors’ successes or capitalize on their failures. By identifying what works well in their content, you can incorporate similar strategies into your own. Similarly, understanding where their content falls short provides an opportunity to avoid similar pitfalls and tailor your approach for better results.

Content Frequency

Analyze how often they publish new content and the consistency of their posting schedule. This can provide insights into their content production capabilities and audience engagement strategy.

By evaluating your competitors’ content frequency, you can learn from their success in maintaining a consistent posting schedule, potentially improving your own content planning . On the flip side, identifying gaps or irregularities in their posting schedule presents an opportunity to capitalize on potential shortcomings and enhance your own content consistency for better audience engagement.

Content Distribution Channels

This involves recognizing the platforms or mediums competitors use to promote and share their content , which may include social media, email newsletters , or external platforms.

This analysis will help you to learn from their success in reaching audiences through specific platforms. It also provides insights into potential gaps or missed opportunities. This offers you a chance to capitalize on alternative channels for broader content reach and engagement.

Analyzing the keywords your competitors prioritize provides insights into what their audience is actively searching for, allowing you to align your content with similar user intent . Identifying the keywords they are targeting will help you spot industry trends and topics that resonate with your shared audience.

If you create a Semrush project, Copilot AI will automatically check what keywords your competitor ranks for. It will also check where they’re gaining visibility compared to you.

You’ll also be able to identify content gaps that will help you tailor your strategy to address topics that may be underserved in your niche. Additionally, analyzing how your competitors utilize keywords in their meta titles, page headings, and main content can offer valuable insights. This analysis will guide you in optimizing your content effectively or seizing opportunities where your competitors may fall short.

Backlink Profile

By analyzing the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to their content, you will get insights into the authority and credibility of their content in the eyes of search engines.

3. Assessing Your Competitor’s Backlink Profile

A backlink is a hyperlink from a page on one site to a page on another site. Acquiring backlinks from high-authority sites that align with your niche is a great way of increasing the authority of your site.

When analyzing your competitor’s backlink profile, you need to assess the quality of their links rather than focusing solely on the quantity.

Analyzing your competitors’ backlink profiles is important because sites with robust and diverse link profiles are likely to rank highly in the SERPs. By analyzing their strategies, you can identify backlink opportunities for your site, and boost your rankings and traffic.

If you’d like to learn more about building links, check out our comprehensive guide on link-building strategies .

Here’s how to check up on your competitors’ backlinks.

You can use Semrush’s Backlink Analytics tool .

On the “Overview” page, you will see:

Referring Domains: This is the total number of referring domains pointing to your competitor’s domain.

Backlinks: This is the total number of backlinks your competitor has earned.

As mentioned earlier, the quality of the backlinks is more important than the quantity. You’ll need to assess the quality of referring domains that are linking to your competitor’s pages. To do this, click on “Referring Domains”.

On the “Referring Domains” page, select:

• Set the AS score to 40-100
• Click on “Add filter” and select “Follow”

As you can see in the image above, there are over 3.5k high-authority referring domains linking to this competitor’s domain.

Now, if you want to check the actual backlinks pointing to your competitor’s pages, click on “Backlinks”.

Here you can see the source pages, their AScore, and the pages they are linking to on your competitor’s site.

4. Evaluating Your Competitor’s Technical SEO

Analyzing the technical aspects of your competitor’s site is crucial to understanding how well their site performs. You then compare this data to your site and identify areas where you’re outperforming them and where you need to improve.

Here’s why conducting a technical analysis of your competitors’ sites is essential:

• Identify Strengths and Weaknesses: Analyzing the technical aspects of your competitors’ sites can reveal their strengths and weaknesses in terms of website structure, page speed, mobile optimization, and other technical elements. Understanding these aspects helps you identify areas where you can surpass them.
• User Experience (UX): Technical SEO influences the user experience. By analyzing your competitors’ technical elements, you can gain insights into how user-friendly their websites are. This understanding can guide improvements to your site’s UX.
• Crawling and Indexing: Examining how well your competitors’ websites are crawled and indexed by search engines provides insights into their overall search engine visibility. This can reveal potential issues or opportunities for improvement on your site.

You can use the info you gather to avoid common mistakes, prioritize tasks, and replicate successful strategies. Ultimately, this can lead to better UX, increased traffic, and improved rankings.

5. Exploring Your Competitor’s Paid Media Strategy

Simply put, analyzing your competitor’s paid media strategy helps you:

• Learn what works in your industry
• Stay updated on market trends
• Benchmark your performance
• Discover new advertising channels
• Improve your creativity and messaging
• Adapt to changes
• Enhance your targeting strategies

All of this ensures your advertising efforts remain effective and competitive.

Here’s how to go about analyzing your competitors’ paid media strategies.

Keyword Research

You need to identify the keywords your competitors are bidding on. This will help you uncover gaps in your PPC keyword strategy.

Analyze Historical Performance

You should analyze your competitors’ click-through rates, ad spends, and conversion rates. This will help you determine if their tactics are worth replicating to improve your site’s PPC results.

Ad Placement Analysis

You need to identify where your competitors are placing their ads. Do they tend to favor specific sites, the SERPs, or social media platforms like Facebook? This provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of the different channels they use, their overall market presence, and their strategic focus. Armed with this knowledge you can optimize your advertising approach based on successful practices and focus on platforms that yield better results.

Ad Copy Analysis

A key part of any PPC competitor analysis involves assessing your competitors’ ad copy. You need to analyze the ways they position their product or service and how they promote their unique selling points (USPs).

When analyzing ad copy, it’s useful to ask questions like:

• What types of CTA do they use?
• How do they incorporate keywords into their ad copy?
• Do the color schemes in their ads align with those of their brand?
• Do they use graphics or videos to drive clicks?

Landing Page Analysis

Optimized landing pages are one of the most important elements of a successful PPC campaign. If they contain effective CTAs, enticing content, and are well laid out, they can greatly increase your conversion rates.

So, it’s important to dig into your competitors’ landing pages to identify their strengths and weaknesses. Key things to analyze include:

• Relevance: Does the landing page align with the ad copy that led users to it? To maintain user trust and increase conversions, there must be consistency between the content of a landing page and the ad that leads to it.
• Visuals: How do your competitors use images, graphics, and videos on their landing pages? Are they high-quality and relevant? Do they support the overall message of the page?
• Headline: Pay attention to how clear and compelling the headline on the landing page is, and if it quickly communicates the value proposition of the product or service to the user. The value proposition tells the user the benefits and value of a product or service. For example, “Save time and money with our user-friendly project management software designed for small businesses.”
• Social proof and trust indicators: Keep an eye out for social proof signals like reviews and user ratings, and trust signals like security badges, as these can enhance credibility and user trust.

Track Performance and Return On Investment (ROI)

Keeping tabs on your competitors’ performance and ROI helps you to set goals and KPIs for your site.

Semrush’s Advertising Research tool enables you to effortlessly monitor key performance and ROI metrics, such as CPC and average positions.

Paid Social Media Analysis

Analyzing your competitors’ paid social media strategies will help you identify the ad copy and promotions they use to attract customers within your target audience. The insights you gather will offer ideas that you can integrate into your own paid social media campaigns.

One way of doing this is to use the tools that are built into social media platforms, like Meta Ads Library. This allows you to see all of your competitor’s ads that are currently active on Facebook or Instagram. All you need to do is choose a location and the type of ads you want to see and then type in a keyword or a competitor’s domain.

Then, you’ll be taken to a page with the ads your competitor is running. For each ad, it tells you when it was launched and which Meta platforms it’s running on and you can view the ad itself.

However, this doesn’t provide insight into the success of competitor’s ads. To gauge their effectiveness, we need to uncover metrics such as ad spend, impressions, and share of voice. You can use Semrush’s AdClarity tool to gain these insights. The tool allows you to track your competitors’ ad performance metrics on social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter).

Real-World Competitor Analysis Example

OK, you now know what information you need to uncover during your competitor analysis and how to conduct one. To make it even clearer, we’re going to walk you through a real-world example where we’ll carry out our own competitor analysis.

For this example, we’re going to identify a single competitor for “Backlinko.com”, and focus on them for the analysis.

As we already went into detail about how to identify your target customer, we’ll be skipping this step. We’ve already used the steps laid out above to determine that our target customer lives in the US, is aged between 18 to 34, and is interested in SEO but isn’t necessarily an SEO professional.

Step 1: Identify Your Competitor

Using Semrush’s Organic Research tool, we can pull up a list of the main competitors (we’ll be focusing on organic competitors in this example).

In the list above, you can see that Backlinko has 7.3K keywords in common with “wordstream.com” and 13% “Competition Level”. By quickly scanning the site, we can also see that we create similar types of content and target the same audience.

This makes “wordstream.com” a great choice for our competitor analysis.

Step 2: Content Analysis

During the next phase of competitor analysis, we’re going to dig into WordStream’s content strategy.

First, identify the types of content they publish. The easiest way to do this is to simply have a look at the WordStream site and make a note of all the different content formats.

You can also analyze WordStream’s meta titles to get an understanding of the content they create. For this, we’re going to use Screaming Frog SEO Spider.

This is a tool that crawls domains and gives you valuable info about them. The free version allows you to crawl up to 500 URLs, which is perfect for smaller websites.

By analyzing these meta titles, you can start to build a picture of the types of content WordStream is creating. We can see titles include phrases like “How to” and “25 ways”, which indicates WordStream is creating how-to guides and listicles.

When analyzing your competitor’s content strategy, you should identify how frequently they publish content. To do this, type site:your competitor’s domain into Google, click “Tools”, and click “Anytime”.

Next, choose a date range from the dropdown menu. We went with “Past month”.

This will give you an idea of the amount of content your competitor publishes a month.

Next, you should take a look at the pages driving the most traffic to your competitor’s site. To do this, you can use the “Organic Pages” report in Semrush’s Organic Research tool.

There are two things you can learn from this report.

• These insights will provide content ideas. Identify the topics most relevant to your site and start creating content for them.
• If you already have content covering these topics but the pages aren’t getting a lot of traffic, you need to optimize them to start drawing in higher levels of traffic.

Next, you need to assess the quality of the content your competitor is producing. You need to look at the depth of the content and its relevance. Is the information well researched and does the content match search intent?

Next, evaluate the levels of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness) your competitor demonstrates within their content.

For example, do they demonstrate experience by including hands-on videos within their how-to guides?

Or do they communicate their expertise by including info about the authors of their articles?

Here’s a look at an article on Wordstream.

Step 3: Backlink Analysis

Next, we’re going to analyze WordStream’s backlink profile. There are many different elements of this we could analyze, but we’re going to focus on four main things during this competitor analysis:

• Number of backlinks: The total number of backlinks pointing to WordStream’s site.
• Quality of backlinks: The number of high-authority referring domains linking to WordStream.
• Top-linked pages: The number of pages that have the most backlinks pointing to them. This indicates the quality and popularity of their content.

Using Semrush’s Backlink Analytics tool, we can see that WordStream has a total of 10.6M backlinks and 87K referring domains.

Now, let’s check out how many of those links are coming from high authority referring domains.

To do this, click on the number under “Referring Domains”.

You’ll only want to pay attention to the domains with the highest Authority Score (AS), so click “AS” at the top-left of the table to view the list in descending order. You can also view the number of backlinks your competitor receives from each domain.

Underneath the domain name, Semrush tells us what category the site falls into. By looking at this table, we can determine the diversity of sources for WordStream’s backlink profile, too.

Next, we want to analyze the pages receiving the most backlinks. Just click on the “Indexed Pages” to get the report:

If your site has pages covering the same topics as your competitors, you should compare the backlinks you’ve received with those of your competitor’s pages. This comparison provides insights into whether you’re outperforming them or falling short in terms of backlink performance.

If your site lacks pages covering these topics, prioritize the most relevant topics and create superior content.

Then, identify the referring domains linking to your competitor’s pages, and proactively reach out to the webmasters of these domains and ask for a link.

Step 4: Technical SEO Analysis

There are a huge number of technical SEO elements you can analyze during a competitor analysis. we’re going to focus on site performance, and analyze Wordstream’s Core Web Vitals, page load speeds, and check if their site is mobile-friendly.

Core Web Vitals

Core Web Vitals are a set of metrics that measure a site’s performance in terms of providing a positive UX. The Core Web Vitals metrics are:

• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Measures how visually stable a page is by analyzing how much the content of the page shifts around as it loads.
• First Input Delay (FID): Measures the time it takes between a user first interacting with a page and the browser starting to process this interaction. FID will be replaced by a new metric called Interaction to Next Paint (INP) in March 2024.
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures how long it takes for the largest content element on a page to become visible to the user.

All of these metrics are important for providing a good UX, and they’re also included in Google’s ranking factors , which is why it’s worth analyzing them.

The quickest way to do this is by using Google’s Page Speed Insights .

First, you’ll see your competitor’s Core Web Vitals for the mobile version of their page.

Click on the “Desktop” tab to see the metrics for the desktop version.

Analyzing your competitor’s Core Web Vitals is useful as it can serve as a benchmark for the performance of your site.

When you analyze several of your competitors, you can build a picture of the average performance levels for sites within your niche, and ensure that your site performs to this level or above it. This will result in a better UX and could improve your rankings.

Page Load Speeds

Next, we’re going to use Page Speed Insights again to check up on WordStream’s page load speeds. The metric to pay close attention to is the “Speed Index”. This shows how long it takes for the visual elements on the page to be fully rendered.

Ideally, you want this to be 2-3 seconds or lower. So, this page is pretty slow.

The key takeaway here is that by analyzing your competitor’s page speed, you can compare it to yours. This indicates whether you’re outperforming them or if improvements are needed.

It’s important to note that the “Speed Index” metric is not representative of the entire site, it only pertains to the specific URL you paste in for analysis.

Mobile-Friendliness

Now, we need to check whether WordStream’s site is mobile-friendly or not. As Google has retired its Mobile-Friendly Test, we’re going to use Bing’s Mobile Friendliness Test Tool instead.

You can see that Wordstream’s page is mobile-friendly.

The primary reason for conducting this analysis is to benchmark your site against your competitors. For instance, if the pages on your site aren’t mobile-friendly, it signifies that you are lagging behind competitors. In the realm of online marketing, sometimes a single factor can determine whether you have an advantage over your competitors or vice versa.

Step 5: Paid Media Analysis

In the final stage of this competitive analysis, we’re going to take a look at WordStream’s paid media strategy.

PPC Keyword Research

The first thing we want to do is gain some insights into WordStream’s PPC keywords using Semrush’s Advertising Research tool . The tool allows you to view metrics such as:

• Position changes
• Search volume

This analysis will reveal the keywords your competitor is excelling in and those where they are struggling. Take note of their success with certain keywords and the areas where they are not performing well.

If you and your competitor are targeting the same keywords, compare your ad performance to theirs. This will enable you to identify areas where you are outperforming them or falling short.

By analyzing the keywords in which your competitor is finding success, you can attempt to replicate it by analyzing their ad copy. On the other hand, by analyzing the keywords they are not performing well for, you can optimize your ad copy and outperform them.

Another effective way to improve your PPC strategy is to identify the paid keywords your competitor is targeting but you aren’t.

To do this, we’re going to use Semrush’s Keyword Gap tool .

Here, we get a list of paid keywords that WordStream is targeting but our site isn’t.

This analysis will give you insights into their PPC strategy and their target audience.

Additionally, analyzing the CPC for the keywords they are targeting provides valuable insights into their ad budget. This understanding will help you determine the budget required to compete effectively with them.

Competitive Analysis Templates and Tools to Guide Your Research Journey

As you can see from this real-world example, Semrush has many features that can aid you in conducting an in-depth competitor analysis, but you need somewhere to store all of the info you gather.

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. This free spreadsheet template , courtesy of Semrush, allows you to store your competitor analysis data in one easily accessible place.

Analyzing your competitors is vital for gaining insights into their digital marketing strategies, so you can learn from their success and enhance your own.

It also highlights areas where your competitors are not performing well, presenting opportunities for you to capitalize on their shortcomings and outperform them.

But remember, the key is to start small. Don’t overwhelm yourself by analyzing a ton of competitors at once.

The objective should be to gain insights that you can act on immediately to improve your marketing efforts and stay ahead of the competition.

If you found this guide useful, then check out our in-depth guide on SEO Competitor Analysis.

Business Plan Research Guide

Competitors.

• Financial Ratios
• Going Global
• Sample Plans

Identify and research key competitors and determine their strategies, business and market segments, distribution, etc.

Try to identify at least one publicly-held competitor or similar company and look up their latest 10-K annual SEC filing for descriptions of business, operation strategies, their competition, distribution, intellectual property as well as management discussion and financial statements.

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How to Create a Growth Plan for Your Business in 6 Simple Steps

The following is an excerpt from Grow Your Business: Scaling Your Business for Long-Term Success by the staff of Entrepreneur Media and Eric Butow, on sale now.

To grow your company, you need a plan that establishes how you will grow and why your ideal customers should buy from you. Then you need to invest in the people and tools that can turn your plans into reality. If possible, distill your growth plan into a one-page document that will help you focus on the essentials and be easy for your team to digest. Growth plans are different for each business, and you can implement different strategies depending on what type of business you have. But regardless, you need to keep your team thinking in terms of growth. Once you establish a growth mindset in your employees, you and your team can continuously look for new opportunities for growth.

What a Growth Plan Is . . . and Isn't

A growth plan may be hard to wrap your head around when you're getting started in your business. Before you offer your product and/or service to the world, you need to focus on establishing a value proposition for potential customers and find out where your ideal customers are. Once you do, you can measure your progress as you sell your product and/or service. Those measurements will help you identify new revenue streams and let you compare yourself to the competition. That comparison will tell where your strengths are so you can focus on them. And when you have a clear idea of what you do and who your customers are, you can use that information to attract talented employees. Establish a Value Proposition Before you can grow, you need to think about what sets you apart from the competition. For example, some companies compete on authority. Whole Foods Market touts itself as the place to buy healthy and organic foods. Walmart asserts that it's the low-price leader and no one can beat its prices. Whatever competitive advantage you find, stick with it. If you don't, you run the risk of devaluing your business because customers won't know what you stand for.

Grow Your Business: Scaling Your Business for Long-Term Success is available now at Entrepreneur Bookstore | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

1. Pinpoint Your Ideal Customer

You started a business so you could solve a problem for a specific audience. During the startup stage, you may have identified numerous markets you thought you might be able to serve before narrowing it down to your specific niche market. Now you need to hone your target market even further until you've winnowed it down to your ideal customer. Once you know who they are, you can address them consistently in your market or submarket as you grow.

Related: How to Leverage Virtual Sales Events to Grow Your Business

2. Define Key Indicators

You won't be able to measure growth if you can't measure change. Start by identifying key performance indicators (KPIs), which are quantifiable measurements of a company's performance in specific areas over time. (Examples of commonly tracked KPIs include net profit, liquidity ratio, customer satisfaction, and customer retention.) Then dedicate time and money to improving those indicators.

3. Verify Your Revenue Streams

Don't just think about your current revenue streams—think about new revenue streams that could make your business more profitable. Once you've started identifying possible new revenue streams, get in the habit of asking yourself (and your team) if every cool new idea you and they come up with has a revenue stream attached. If it does, ask if that stream is sustainable over the long run.

Related: 5 Reasons Why Your Brand Needs a Chief Growth Officer

4. Research Your Competition

If your company is struggling with something, you likely have a competitor that excels at it. Don't just put your head down and try to surmount a challenge yourself. Look at similar growth businesses to inform your strategies and solutions. If you belong to an industry trade group or a networking organization (and you should), don't be afraid to ask for advice. Why have similar businesses made different choices? Do your competitors' growth choices mean that their businesses are positioned differently?

5. Focus on Your Strengths

Tailoring your growth plan to focus on and maximize your strengths can help you identify strategies for success. That doesn't mean you should ignore your weaknesses, but starting from a position of strength will give your company the fuel it needs to grow.

6. Invest in Talent

Your employees have direct or indirect contact with your customers, so you should hire people who are motivated by your company's value proposition and your plans for growth. Pay and treat your employees well because their positive energy will inspire your customers. Your employees will also listen to your customers and bring back ideas from them that will help you grow your business.

For more growth strategies, pickup Grow Your Business: Scaling Your Business available now at Entrepreneur Bookstore | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

• Mercy University Entrepreneurship Program Inspires Future Innovators
• Mercy University News
• School of Business
• News & Events

Standing from left to right: Sofia Cialicu, associate director of Operations for Mercy's School of Business; Mercy alum Alex Boryk ’17, co-founder of Lunchbox; Mercy Trustee and alumnus Phillip Grant, CEO, Hunts Point Produce Market; Robert F. Bohn, director of Mercy’s entrepreneurship programs; Korhan Beba and Umran Beba of the Beba Innovation and Entrepreneurship Foundation; 2022 winner Tereva Bundy ’21; Elena Rivera-Cheek,  CEO of C&A Digital and Victor Petenkemani, interim dean of the School of Business.

Seated from left to right: Student finalists and winners Joey Dos Santos, Eirick Elvestad, Sophia Resolme, Mason Gifford, Olga Ineza, Jorgen Krohn-Pettersen and Alyssa Politi.

This Spring, Mercy University’s School of Business hosted its 5th Annual Student-Preneur Conference to inspire future innovators. Sponsored by the Beba Innovation & Entrepreneurship Foundation, the event featured guest speakers, an entrepreneurial alliance panel, an entrepreneur expo, and the business plan competition finale, during which students got to display their business acumen.

“Our job is to prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs, so they can go on to help solve problems because that is what entrepreneurship is all about,” said Victor Petenkemani, interim dean of the School of Business. “Thank you, Professor Robert Bohn for leading this fantastic initiative along with our wonderful team in the School of Business.”

The event drew more than 180 attendees, including students, faculty, and staff, who participated in person at the Westchester campus and virtually. Students from local high schools, including Lincoln High School in Yonkers, New York, also got the chance to participate for the second year in a row.

This year’s keynote speaker was Mercy alum Alex Boryk ’17, co-founder of Lunchbox, a company that empowers restaurants by helping them build their own online ordering platforms. Featured in Forbes “30 Under 30” for being one of the brightest young entrepreneurs, Boryk’s passion for digital business began while he was still a student at Mercy.

“I benefited so much from the incredible networking opportunities and internships I received at Mercy,” said Boryk. “What you’re getting here is a well-rounded foundation in business, and you are building upon the skillset of knowing and getting the exposure of finding where you want to go.”

His advice to the students in the room, “always be open and embrace the unconventional, don’t create your own “no’s” in your head; it takes perseverance and grit, build a great team with the people who will run towards the fire and motivate each other, and always be willing to learn.”

The event also included an entrepreneurial alliance panel headed by Elena Rivera-Cheek, founder and CEO of C&A Digital, a leading Westchester-based strategic communications and consulting agency. She highlighted the importance of networking to build connections and recommended gaining some experience before attempting to start your own business. “Learn on a company, let them show you the way, and then start your own thing,” she added.

The day concluded with the anticipated Business Plan Competition Finale. Robert F. Bohn, Director of Mercy’s Entrepreneurship programs and the conference organizer, noted that this year, they had an unprecedented number of competitors thanks to the expansion of the contest to all students. “For the first time, we had cross-functional teams with students who come from different Schools and academic programs, making the competition a university wide engagement,” added Bohn. The competition drew students from finance, management, marketing, entrepreneurship, accounting, mental health counseling, health science, sport management and journalism.

Five student teams presented their business ideas to a panel of judges comprised of Boryk, Rivera-Cheek, Mercy Trustee Phillip Grant, M.B.A. ’08,  CEO, Hunts Point Produce Market; Umran Beba,  M.B.A., H.D. ’22  co-founder of the Beba Innovation and Entrepreneurship Foundation and Korhan Beba, its executive director and 2022 competition winner Tereva Bundy,  M.S. '22,  who has since successfully launched her online tutoring business.

The finalists were Simon Steffensen '25, Jaid Wazihullah '25, Paal Andreas Furuseth '24 with Friendly, an application to help find roommates, rooms and apartments in Europe; Isabella Masala '26, Evanice Garrisi '24, Alyssa Gonzalez '24 with MindFit, a place that combines exercise and mental health resources; Joey Dos Santos '25, Eirick Elvestad '24, Jorgen Krohn-Pettersen '25 with Rescue-Ready VR, a virtual reality application that offers in-depth training for emergency medical technicians and nurses; Alyssa Politi '24 with Self-Scent, a company that lets you personalize the scent of your perfume; and Mason Gifford '26, Olga Ineza '27 and Sophia Resolme '26 with Trace, a discrete, radio-frequency tracking sticker.

After much deliberation, the judges declared the winners. First place went to the team at Trace, who received a $4,500 prize. Second place went to Self-Scent and Rescue-Ready VR came in third place.

“It is so rewarding,” said Gifford about winning as a team. “Meeting night in and night out. It taught us a lot about time management.” Ineza added, “What we learned was to make the solution happen, and we came up with Trace.”

When asked what their inspiration was for the product, Resolme said, “We are constantly losing stuff. It seemed trivial but once we dove into it and saw stats, we thought it was a great idea.” To which, Ineza added, “We’d love to invest in a prototype.”

The winning team will represent Mercy University at the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization’s 41 st Annual Global Conference and Pitch Competition, which will be held from October 31 - November 2, 2024, in Tampa, FL.

For Margaret Ennin, a sophomore at Lincoln High School, attending the conference was truly inspiring. “Our generation can change the world, and this taught me the opportunities we have as entrepreneurs to change the world.”

" We look forward to Mercy University’s 6th Annual Student Preneur Conference next year. Our School of Business thanks the Beba Innovation & Entrepreneurship Foundation for their continued support to our students. Their commitment to Mercy University, and for their overall invaluable contribution, to the competition, and to the school, over the years, is vital to our future growth," concluded Bohn.

First place winners:  Sophia Resolme, Mason Gifford and Olga Ineza with Trace

University of North Dakota’s official press release archive.

• UND News Hub

UND and NDSU collaborative research projects announced

Five research projects based in North Dakota have been awarded grants through the University Research Collaboration Program (URCP), funded by the Economic Diversification Research Funds (EDRF) appropriated during the 2023 North Dakota Legislative session.

The URCP funds Level 1 proposals up to $25,000 of the combined total budget and Level 2 proposals up to $50,000.

For FY2025, $200,000 was made available for the program. The program requires projects  to foster research collaboration across institutions in activities such as data collection, materials, experimental or instrumentation needs. Projects were also required to have collaborators at both of the state’s research universities, North Dakota State University (NDSU) and the University of North Dakota (UND), in addition to faculty or students from a third institution in the state, such as a predominantly undergraduate institution, a polytechnic institution or a Tribal college or university. The two research universities contributed funds equally, but the third partnering institution was not required to provide funding.

The purposes of the EDRF funds include stimulating economic activity across the state through new technology, concepts and products as well as promoting job creation and career and wage growth while providing experiential learning opportunities for students.

Casey Ryan serves on the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education (SBHE) and chairs its Research and Governance Committee. He believes the collaborative nature of the program sets a positive example moving forward.

“This program is an innovative way to enlist some of the best minds in our state on research projects that will be transformative for the state,” Ryan said. “We appreciate the research stewardship that the North Dakota Legislature has made with this investment, and I am excited to learn about the results of our North Dakota researchers’ work.”

The URCP was designed by the vice presidents for research at NDSU and UND to promote and foster collaborations that reflect the broad portfolio of institutions in North Dakota in a way that fuels existing research priorities and investments.

“Funded projects led by UND represent collaborations which align well with our research priorities, particularly our Grand Challenges in energy and sustainability and human health,” said Scott Snyder, UND vice president for research & economic development. “Building on existing strengths will generate results that drive current knowledge forward. I am very excited about these collaborations.”

NDSU Vice President for Research and Creative Activity Colleen Fitzgerald agreed with Snyder.

“Leveraging our key strategic priority areas to spark big ideas has been our focus with this program, so it will, in turn, generate new research funds coming into the state,” Fitzgerald said. “These projects reflect NDSU’s expertise and key priorities in life and computational sciences. This initiative enables us to work collectively to advance the state to create impact and for both NDSU and UND to advance campus priorities.”

“It is rewarding to see the range of projects that result from a collaborative call such as this,” said Mark Hagerott, chancellor for the North Dakota University System. “The leadership shown by North Dakota State University and the University of North Dakota in driving these projects is an example of the excellence that real collaboration can deliver.”

“Our institutions are answering a call made by the North Dakota Legislature to help solve big problems while growing workforce,” said NDSU President David Cook. “This fits in our mission as North Dakota’s land grant institution of delivering value across the state and beyond.”

UND President Andrew Armacost said, “Through this funding, university research can certainly help diversify the economy in the state of North Dakota. Strong college and university research activity provides the critical foundation in every high-tech area of economic development — especially at the leading edge of technology.”

Funded projects also may be required to provide monthly summaries of project progress. Additional annual reporting deadlines could be aligned with SBHE approved timelines, currently under consideration.

A second call for URCP-funded proposals is currently underway, with a deadline of June 5, 2024.

URCP Level 1 Proposals

• UND, NDSU, and United Tribes Technical College: “Electrocatalyst Development for Oxygen Evolution from Water Splitting” (N. Oncel, R. Kirshna Hona, D. Kilin, A. Azure)
• UND, NDSU, Valley City State University, and Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College: “Carbon Quantum Dots from Kraft Lignin: Novel Bacterial Antidote?” (M. Goriacheva, U. Burghaus, S. Eliazer, H. van Gijssel, A. LaVallie)

URCP Level 2 Proposals

• UND, NDSU, and Dickinson State University: “Ammines for Energy Storage and Ammonia Production Enhancement” (J. van der Watt, A Mohammed, A. Gladen, J. Hewage)
• NDSU, UND, and Mayville State University: “Examining the Role of a Honey-Pomegranate Supplement on Muscle Health in Older Adults” (R. McGrath, Y. Rhee, M Berg, S Paessler, D Jurivich, C. Smith, T. Gonnella)
• NDSU, UND, and Cankdeska Cikana Community College: “A 3D printed scaffold sensor using novel functionalized 2D MXene for advanced stage cancer monitoring” (D. Wang, K. Katti, J. Zhao, N. Bittner)

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How to build geopolitical resilience amid a fragmenting global order

Geopolitical risk is at the top of the CEO agenda, according to McKinsey’s latest survey  of global economic conditions. In the face of fragmentation and uncertainty, many business leaders are responding by intensifying their focus on resilience.

For the past three decades, going global meant unlocking specialization and scale, developing markets, and creating multinational corporations. In 2021 alone, low interest rates and ample cash led US firms to spend $506 billion on foreign mergers and acquisitions.

But the orthodoxy of globalization is under strain. The latest salvo: multiple disruptions  triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The world seems to be tethered to crisis, or the threat of it. CEOs need to know whether they can still remain global players and, if so, how.

The orthodoxy of globalization is under strain. The world seems to be tethered to crisis, or the threat of it. CEOs need to know whether they can still remain global players and, if so, how.

Looking ahead, the challenges are likely to only become more acute. According to the US National Intelligence Council’s Global trends 2040 report , in the next two decades, competition for global influence is likely to reach its highest level since the Cold War: “No single state is likely to dominate all regions or domains, and a broader range of actors will compete to advance their ideologies, goals, and interests.”

Amid these challenges, the value of resilience is on the rise. That is why McKinsey and the World Economic Forum launched the Resilience Consortium earlier this year . The consortium aims to convene government ministers, chief executives, and heads of international organizations to develop a common resilience framework for public- and private-sector organizations. Leveraging the principles set out in the framework, the consortium can hope to achieve more sustainable, inclusive growth amid external shocks.

To be sure, many global executives have an intuitive sense of where to focus initially to build resilience. However, most are seeking a more rigorous and analytical approach to fostering geopolitical resilience and to creating an enterprise-wide “resilience premium.”

To address the geopolitical risks of the present —and future—leaders should challenge their organizations on six key dimensions of resilience: business model, reputation, organization, operations, technology, and finance (exhibit).

1. Business model resilience

“Organizations that take a serious, systematic, and senior-driven approach to political risk management are likely to be surprised less often and recover better.”

– Condoleezza Rice and Amy Zegart, Political Risk: How Businesses and Organizations Can Anticipate Global Insecurity (Hachette, 2018)

Building business model resilience starts with the board. To exercise effective oversight and decision making, boards need to first develop an understanding of geopolitical developments that are material to the organization.

While most board members will have a “high altitude” perspective on specific risks, individual members may vary in their insight and interpretation, and the aggregate view may fluctuate as board membership evolves. To establish a benchmark for resilience, organizations should take a systematic approach to radiating insights on geopolitical developments and trends to the board and leadership team. This may take the form of analytical products, briefings, or scenario exercises—anchored not on the “what” but on the “so what” and “now what.”

Second, the sheer pace and volatility of geopolitical developments means that boards should not waiver in paying attention. They should dedicate time at each meeting to discussing relevant topics, and convene as necessary in the interim.

One way to focus and structure the board discussion is to identify priority geopolitical risks. Boards could leverage a tiered approach, with tier five denoting markets with the highest level of geopolitical risk and tier one denoting markets with localized risks that can be managed by local leadership and teams.

For many boards, the higher-tier markets are often identifiable. Questions we hear from CEOs on business model resilience in high-tier markets include:

How should I think about my corporate footprint and intellectual property amid geopolitical tensions?

Should I view my operation as a separate region that is carved off to insulate it from geopolitical tensions, or does the lack of direct control itself generate risk?

How should I view my relationship with my joint venture partner in the near, medium, and long term?

How do I manage extraterritorial and/or contradicting legal, tax, or regulatory requirements?

Is there a point where I will be forced to exit, and how I do work backward from that point?

In addition to grappling with these strategic questions in a top-tier market, boards also need to manage the longtail risk of operating across multiple tier-one markets.

To do so requires organizations to establish a mechanism to conduct regular global market scans and to assess in a scorecard fashion across internal teams—legal, security, finance, risk, and communications—the aggregate risk (versus opportunities) of operating in a particular market. These teams can provide recommendations to the board on options to recalibrate market presence or evolve the legal and financial structure of the organization. Their efforts can be coordinated by a dedicated geopolitical risk unit that may sit within an organization’s finance, government relations, legal, risk, strategy, or other teams depending on the organization’s structure.

Understanding and exercising oversight over geopolitical risk is necessary but not sufficient. The board should drive and direct the development of proactive risk-mitigation measures and crisis response with standing updates from teams on execution and material new issues.

2. Reputational resilience

“While there is a rising call for business to be more engaged in geopolitics, the call also extends to CEOs, who are expected to not only be the face of the new geopolitical corporation but they are also expected to shape policy on societal and geopolitical issues.”

– 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer special report: The geopolitical business

A first step to building reputational resilience is to strive for internal alignment around operations connected with geopolitically sensitive markets. In short, organizations need to know what they stand for (and what they are against).

Not every geopolitical crisis will comprise as sharp an inflection point as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in response to which many organizations have chosen to curtail or halt their Russia operations . In many cases, decisions will be less cut and dried. Therefore, organizations need to step back and parse out their stance on individual situations. One way to do that is to create market-specific assessments, or “compacts,” that fuse corporate strategy and risk management. These compacts should be clear in the organization’s priorities in high-risk markets and the criteria on which organizations assess and manage risks. They should also set out how to deploy the criteria in a way that is aligned with operational and performance goals. The risks could come in many guises, including financial, health and safety, legal, political, or reputational—for example, working with the public sector in countries governed by authoritarian regimes.

A clear stance is a prerequisite for the next step in building reputational resilience: developing a coherent values-driven narrative. Indeed, many organizations today are grappling with how to explain not just their stance but their core identity, notably around their presence in markets governed by authoritarian regimes. There is a recognition that the old arguments pegged to globalization and wandel durch handel (change through trade) have dimmed.

Based on our benchmarking of US-based multinational companies, we see three potential postures: proactive—for example, engagement is important for US competitiveness and leadership; reactive—for example, principled engagement with close attention to supply chain integrity; or silent—meaning generally avoiding public statements.

Whichever narrative an organization chooses, it needs to bear in mind that, in the age of instant information, the story told in one market won’t stay there. And a narrative that works in one place could inhibit market opportunities in another, or create sensitivities internally and among regions. In short, there is no silver bullet.

In the age of instant information, the story told in one market won’t stay there. And a narrative that works in one place could inhibit market opportunities in another.

With a clear stance on the core of the narrative, the third step in bolstering reputational resilience is a robust government and public-affairs capability to communicate the narrative to key stakeholders. While the ultimate responsibility of articulating stance and narrative falls on the CEO, government and public-affairs professionals situated across key markets are critical to managing stakeholder relations, cultivating “air cover” in sensitive markets, and providing an escalation mechanism for CEO and leadership-level engagement.

3. Organizational resilience

“Geopolitical tensions are rising, leaving business in the line of fire. Suddenly companies’, and executives’, nationalities matter again. . . . Can we have peace in the company when the world is in turmoil?”

— Financial Times (May 16, 2021)

External geopolitical pressures are increasingly triggering internal pressures. The days of the borderless executive are receding. Indeed, nationality and cultural relativism are coming to the fore in discussions around stance, narrative, strategy, and risk appetite. These discussions can take place on multiple levels: between leadership and teams, regional and local offices, or global headquarters.

Points of internal debate cited by executives include:

• Are we a global organization headquartered in the United States, or are we an American company that is global in its outlook?
• To what extent should assessing the reputational risk around a particular project be indexed to a potential response from Western governments and media outlets in a multipolar era?
• How do we keep a “neutral stance” amid geopolitical tensions? Can a company have no “citizenship”?
• What kind of diversity of geographical cultural norms and standards is feasible and desirable in a global company when stakeholders (including media and even governments) in many countries increasingly challenge the norms and standards applied in other geographies?
• How should we reconcile perceived “double standards” around how leadership responds to different social and humanitarian crises across markets, from messaging to charitable giving?

In this context, developing organizational resilience is no longer just about maintaining cultural cohesion. It is also about sustaining a global ethos amid powerful centrifugal forces.

Three approaches can be taken to build organization resilience. First, organizations need to ensure they have inclusive governance structures, from the board to risk committees. These must reflect diverse geographic viewpoints and nationalities. If colleagues do not feel they are part of the discussion on shaping direction, or view discussions as indexed to a particular lens, the struggle for retaining global hearts and minds will be lost.

Second, leaders, starting with the CEO, need to have open and honest dialogues in appropriate fora. These should acknowledge global stresses and the ways they are felt internally, empower colleagues to air their views on stance and risk appetite, and create a common sense of purpose. For example, a critical message from corporate leaders amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is to differentiate condemnation of the Russian government’s actions from support for Russian colleagues.

Finally, organizations need to consider a range of targeted initiatives to promote connectivity and cohesion, from rotating colleagues in and out of geopolitically sensitive markets to sharing views (particularly as COVID-19-related travel restrictions ease), while also ensuring that screening and “insider threat” mechanisms are sufficiently robust.

4. Operational resilience

The aggregation of trade protectionism, the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain crunches, and geopolitical flash points are stress-testing the operational resilience of organizations across the globe.

A priority area of focus has been and must remain protecting and pivoting supply chains. Supply chain operations should consider a range of resilience measures . In the near to medium term, these include creating a nerve center for the supply chain, simulating and planning for extreme disruptions, revaluating just-in-time strategies, and assessing the resilience of one’s suppliers’ suppliers as part of a full look-through approach. Efforts to diversify and build redundancy in supply chains must critically factor in the political risks of entering any new market through a detailed assessment across multiple risk indicators.

To achieve long-term structural resilience, however, organizations should consider measures such as constructing a “digital twin” of the most critical parts of the supply chain, creating and testing what-if scenarios, and ring-fencing a small part of the supply team to focus on building long-term resilience instead of day-to-day supply chain issues.

Supply chain security must be complemented by the physical security of one’s people. From Ukraine and Russia to Ethiopia to Myanmar, organizations in the past 18 months alone have had to secure and evacuate colleagues globally. Considerations range from maintaining redundancy in communication channels, aligning with security vendors on the ground, and keeping a low profile to mitigate any risk of retaliation should an organization decide to exit. As future flash points arise, investing in early-warning systems and extraction plans is essential.

5. Technological resilience

Organizations today are also confronting the strategic challenge of maintaining the global networks of yesteryear amid geopolitical fragmentation. Building technological resilience in this context requires accelerating planning and taking concrete steps in four key areas.

The first is navigating the “splinternet.” Geopolitical tensions, notably between the United States and China, are resulting in the internet splintering into regional variants and technology stacks. Companies need to balance segmenting their networks and differentiated use of laptops and devices across markets with maintaining consistent cross-connectivity and user experience.

Complying with data localization requirements is another area testing global IT architectures, as companies need to think through regulatory and other considerations.

A third area is managing data access. Organizations need to ensure appropriate compartmentalization of data as well as manage external cyber intrusions.

Paying close attention to ensuring resiliency against diverse crises is also essential. This includes the ability to effectively respond to cyberattacks, from recovering data to deploying new technological equipment across markets with speed as required.

6. Financial resilience

At the intersection of geopolitical risk and financial resilience are a number of issues that organizations need to carefully manage on an ongoing basis. These range from long-standing foreign exchange (and expropriation) risks to evolving sanctions risks.

Foreign exchange risks are, of course, well known to many organizations. From a rapid devaluation of currency in Sri Lanka amid the country’s worst economic crisis to controls on withdrawing funds in Myanmar following a military coup, companies have had to and must be prepared to deal with a range of constrictions, from paying their employees to moving funds. With the global economy roiled by inflationary and other shocks, these challenges may continue to manifest. Thinking through crisis protocols in advance and building out an early warning system around macroeconomic challenges are key resilience measures to consider.

Global sanctions and regulatory risks, however, are rapidly evolving and testing organizations, since the escalating application of sanctions and counter-sanctions across multiple jurisdictions is today at the core of geopolitical risk. These measures can be existential in terms of a company’s ability to operate in a market. Compliance with one jurisdiction’s laws can risk running afoul of another’s. Resilience in the face of the growing global weaponization of trade and investment requires not just having a precise understanding of ever-shifting regulatory regimes and a robust compliance capability but also driving a culture of compliance with the organization itself on an issue with no room for error.

“We are more conscious of the risks but don’t have a lot of good ideas.”

For many organizations, this observation by the global head of government affairs of a Fortune 500 company rings true. Yet every organization faces a unique set of circumstances. With that in mind, the above framework is offered as a starting point for internal discussions on how to develop appropriate solutions. The new normal requires a new CEO mindset. That means making geopolitical resilience a strategic priority that will both protect the organization and lay the foundations for long-term competitive advantage.

Andrew Grant   is a senior partner in the Auckland office; Ziad Haider is the global director of geopolitical risk based in McKinsey's Singapore office; and  Jean-Christophe Mieszala  is a senior partner in the Paris office.

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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's Archewell Foundation has been labelled "delinquent" in the US for failing to submit annual records.

A letter was sent to the charity on 3 May by by California's Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, saying it has been "listed as delinquent" for "failing to submit required annual report(s) and/or renewal fees".

The letter said an organisation listed as delinquent is banned from "soliciting or disbursing charitable funds" and its registration may be "suspended or revoked".

It is understood that a physical cheque was sent by Archewell Foundation but not received, and a new one has been sent to resolve the issue.

It is believed the charity was only made aware of this when the delinquency notice was published.

Read more on this story below...

Shares of US video game retailer GameStop have soared again today, fuelled by the return of online influencer "Roaring Kitty" to social media.

Real name Keith Gill, the influencer's first online post caused shares to jump yesterday, with another surge reported today.

The retailer's shares rallied 132% in pre-market trading before falling back to about 80% up as US markets opened. 

Mr Gill shared a meme and more than 10 clips from movies including The Avengers and Tombstone. Though the posts didn't mention any company names, GameStop and US cinema chain AMC were the most-traded stocks by investors yesterday and today, according to data from JP Morgan.

He is credited with helping to fuel the "meme stock" craze during the COVID pandemic, which saw GameStop shares rise more than 1,000%. They later collapsed as interest faded.

Tesco's managing director has seen his pay deal more than double to almost £10m. 

That's 431 times the wage of the average £23,010 salary for a Tesco worker. 

Ken Murphy received a pay packet worth £9.93m for the year to February, the supermarket's annual report revealed.

His pay deal came to £4.4m in the previous financial year. 

The rise was driven by £4.91m from his performance share plan (PSP) after he helped lead the company to higher profits in the face of challenging inflation.

This PSP payment will be paid out in Tesco shares and is based on the company's performance since 2021.

It comes on top of an annual salary of £1.64m and an annual bonus of £3.38m. 

The group's chief finance officer, Imran Nawaz, also saw his annual pay package more than double.

He received a total £4.95m for the year, jumping from £2.27m in the previous financial year.

The retailer was criticised for revealing a £2.83bn profit for the year to February when many customers had been impacted by rampant food and drink inflation. 

Alison Platt, chairwoman of the Tesco remuneration committee, said the pay boost reflects the fact "Tesco has delivered for all of its stakeholders over the last year".

She added: "Tesco remains committed to a competitive and fair reward package for all colleagues and over the last two years we have invested more than £800m in colleague pay, as well as significantly enhancing the range of wellbeing benefits we offer."

Sony's operating profit  has climbed 5% this business year - even as it forecasts lower PlayStation 5 sales. 

The Japanese entertainment and electronics company said its operating profit is expected to come in at 1.28 trillion yen (£6.5bn) in the year ending March.

Sony, a major supplier of image sensors for smartphones, said its chips business is expected to book a 40% rise in operating profit on higher sales and lower costs.

At its gaming unit, revenues are expected to fall with the PlayStation 5 in its fourth year, but Sony said user engagement and cost control could drive future profitability at the business.

It predicted PlayStation 5 sales will fall to 18 million units from last year's 20.8 million. 

Cheaper energy deals for new customers could potentially return in October, with the industry regulator announcing a review of their ban. 

Ofgem is consulting on removing the block on acquisition-only tariffs in an attempt to encourage competition between suppliers. 

The ban was introduced as a short-term measure in April 2022 to protect consumers during the energy crisis, and was due to be lifted in March next year.

Now, the regulator has said that it is the right time to consider removing it as the energy market continues to stabilise.

MoneySavingExpert Martin Lewis welcomed the consultation, saying: "We need anything possible right now to stimulate competition and bring prices down." 

"In normal times, I wouldn't call for firms to be allowed to offer new customers cheaper prices than existing, yet these aren't normal times." 

Melinda French Gates has left the charity she set up with her former husband, Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, after the couple's divorce. 

In a statement, she said she would step down from her position at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on 7 June. 

You can see her full statement below... 

The foundation was created in 2000 and it is one of the most influential charitable organisations in the world. 

It has spent billions working to tackle poverty and disease around the world. 

Bill and Melinda Gates announced they were divorcing three years ago after being married for 27 years. 

An AI-powered mortgage lender has cut rates for a second time this week. 

MPowered has reduced all its two and five year fixed deals, with rates starting at 4.37% down from 4.59%. 

"The swap markets are moving at pace at present, and it is important that as a responsible lender we are able to react and pass on any savings we can to borrowers," said Matt Surridge, sales director of MPowered Mortgages. 

"I'm therefore really pleased we are one of the first, if not the first, to cut rates this week, having already cut rates once in the past week." 

The company uses AI in its mortgage process and is a fully digital platform. 

McDonald's has decided to remove the iconic smile from its Happy Meal box in a bid to teach children about their emotions. 

Instead, a sheet of stickers depicting different moods will be placed inside, which children can use to express their feelings. 

A QR code for a mental health hub will also be placed on the red packaging to provide its younger customers with different resources about emotional wellbeing. 

The move comes as part of Mental Health Week, with research by the fast food chain finding nearly half of children feel pressure to be happy all the time. 

Football legend Rio Ferdinand has teamed up with the company to support the campaign, which runs until 19 May. 

The father-of-five said: "It's our job to empower our children to express themselves freely and support them every step of the way in understanding that it's okay to not be happy all the time." 

The Traitors' winner Harry Clark has revealed he's only spent some of his prize money so far, and it's gone towards clearing his relatives' debts. 

The 23-year-old won £95,150 after successfully convincing his fellow contestants that he was a faithful in the second season of the show. 

Speaking on the TV BAFTAs red carpet, the former British Army engineer said his dad has stopped him from spending the cash and has been looking after him. 

"He's got his head screwed on. He's been making sure I can get my first place," he told reporters.

"I've just given my family some dosh, just to pay off their debts and stuff like that, so they don't have to worry anymore. 

"That's all I've wanted to do in my life." 

Police are no longer interested in dealing with shoplifting and retailers are being forced to spend "a lot of money" on protecting themselves, the chairman of M&S has claimed. 

Archie Norman said stores have resorted to installing new camera systems and employing store detectives to try to keep crime rates down. 

"We get very little help from the police," he told LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast.

"I think we have to accept that the police are not interested in this sort of crime any more. Whether we like it or not, that's the way it has gone." 

Shoplifting is at the highest levels since records began in 2003, according to the Office for National Statistics. 

It has risen by 37% since last year.

Mr Norman said thefts had surged since the pandemic, and the rising cost of living crisis was also causing problems. 

"When people are hard up, or particularly when there's a growth in other forms of crime, particularly drugs-related crime, then one way of financing it is to go and steal from shops… it's understandable given what we've been through in the last couple of years, we've seen more of that," he added.

A change to the law in 2014 now means shoplifting goods worth less than £200 is only a summary offence. 

This may have prompted police to pay less attention to it, and it has been on the rise since.

Home Office data also show the number of shoplifting charges has fallen in recent years. 

Taking further action wasn't considered to be "in the public interest" in most cases. 

Sky News has contacted the Home Office for comment.

By James Sillars , business news reporter 

The prospects for a Bank of England interest rate cut are almost 50/50.

That's according to the latest financial market expectations in reaction to this morning's employment figures.

They showed the pace of wage growth remaining stubbornly high - overshooting the expectations of economists.

Strong wage growth is not what the Bank wants to see, as it fears a surge in consumer spending power driving a new wave of inflation.

There is a further set of wage data before the Bank's next rate-setting meeting on 20 June.

That may not help those seeking a cut in borrowing costs, however, as it will reflect the impact of April's big rise in the National Living Wage.

Away from the interest rate cut speculation, the FTSE 100 has opened flat for a second day.

Currys is among stocks doing well on the wider stock market.

The electricals retailer saw its shares trading almost 8% higher in early deals after it raised its annual profit outlook.

Those of Greggs, however, were down almost 1% despite a leap in sales.

The bakery to fast food chain said its performance was in line with expectations and, as such, it had no impact on its forecasts for the full year.

Wages grew by 6% in the three months to March, excluding bonuses, according to the Office for National Statistics.

This is slightly above economists' expectations - bad news for the Bank of England, which wants to see wage growth fall to help ease inflation as it weighs when to cut 16-year-high interest rates.

The Bank is watching wages closely as it looks to bring inflation back to its 2% target, and cooling earnings growth is seen as being key to paving the way for it to begin cutting rates.

In real terms - taking Consumer Prices Index inflation into account - pay rose 2.4% across the period.

In March alone, that figure was 3% - the highest level of growth since July 2021, when it hit 3.9%.

"Earnings growth in cash terms remains high, with the recent falls in the rate now levelling off while, with inflation falling, real pay growth remains at its highest level in well over two years," said ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown.

Meanwhile, unemployment ticked up to 4.3% from January to March, compared to 4.2% in the previous three months, December to February. 

The number of job vacancies remains about pre-pandemic levels, but has been declining for 22 consecutive months, said Ms McKeown.

"With unemployment also increasing, the number of unemployed people per vacancy has continued to rise, approaching levels seen before the onset of COVID-19."

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