Hewlko News - DIY Competitor Analysis!
How to get an in-depth understanding of your competition.
Over the past year, I’ve been doing more competitive analyses as part of strategic planning, branding and website projects. I have a few templates and formats that I’ve created over the years, but I haven’t formalized the process. And since I have a few clients that will be doing their own competitive analysis in the near future, I thought it would be beneficial to provide some helpful tips on what to include.
But first, check out the two key reasons why this work is important:
It helps us understand competitors brand positioning, strengths/weaknesses and outline industry best practices
Identifies your position within the marketplace and key competitive advantages/weaknesses that can help you differentiate
Competitor analyses range in complexity, but anyone can create one. I typically start with a google search, maybe an email, phone call or a visit to a store or sales centre to gather pricing and customer experience information. Now, let's dive into the recommendations!
COMPONENTS OF A COMPETITOR ANALYSIS:
The Why: before you start ask yourself what key questions you want to answer, this can help frame the work.
Company Overview: year established, description, key team members, number of employees (size).
Vision, Mission + Values: what does the company stand for and/or what promises do they make.
Advantages + Weaknesses: note what the company is doing right and highlight any weaknesses that your business could potentially fill. Online reviews can be a great place to find this type of information.
Branding Visual Snapshot: images of website, storefront, collateral, etc.
Key Messaging + Differentiators: taglines or notable differentiators in service or style.
Products + Services: list the various services and products and if applicable get pricing and target audience for each.
Pricing
Target Audience(s)
Social Media Audit: images of the social platform along with any notable posts, number of followers and engagement frequency.
Marketing Campaigns: this could range from digital to print campaigns.
Recent Media Coverage: pull any recent news, images and blogs they were referenced on.
Wrap it up - The Report
I like to gather the information into a tidy report that includes a summary page with the why or goals of the analysis and have 1-2 pages per company depending on the complexity of the results and amount of visuals. Then a final section that summarizes key highlights. There is also value in putting this content into an excel sheet so you can see the competition across one column.
Still stuck on where to start? I’ve discovered a few templates online that can give you a head start on building a formula that works for you.
Competitor Analysis: smartsheet
Social Media Audit: sprout
This month you get two Q&A's! After a solid year of putting out a newsletter every month, I admit defeat by not releasing one in August. However, I did stay on top of one of my favourite side gigs - part time interviewee of people who inspire me. Hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoyed creating them!
Q&A with Ursula Baig, Interior Designer at McKinley Burkart
Ursala and I connected over our mutual love for Heatherwick Studio last year and since then I’ve been wanting to pick her brain on her culture, inspirations, values and what it’s like to work for the multifaceted design and architecture firm McKinley Burkart.
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Q&A with Vinciane de Pape, Director of Learning & Culture at Versett
September's Q&A is with Vinciane, my multi-talented, Alberta University of the Arts alumni peer! In this Q&A we cover a wide range of topics, from millennials need for work-life balance to how to carve out your own work path.
Thriving in the Customer Age
Excited to announce the release of my mentor, Steve Whittington's first book - Thriving in the Customer Age. This book will not collect dust sitting idly on your book self. It is a functional tool complete with downloadable worksheets so you can start tracking results and moving the needle for your business.
TELL ME MORE