How do you use user research to understand competitors?

User research is a vital part of product management, as it helps you understand your users' needs, preferences, and pain points. But user research can also help you understand your competitors, and how they position themselves in the market. In this article, you'll learn how to use user research methods to gain insights into your competitors' strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

1 Identify your competitors

The first step in using user research to understand your competitors is to identify who they are. You can start by conducting a market analysis, where you map out the different segments, niches, and trends in your industry. You can also use tools like Google Trends, SimilarWeb, or App Annie to find out who are the most popular or emerging players in your domain. Once you have a list of potential competitors, you can narrow them down by defining your criteria for comparison, such as target audience, value proposition, features, pricing, or reviews.

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Diti Modi

Product Manager | Business Analyst | Technology Consultant
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Competitor study becomes increasingly important and using your competitor’s product is one of the best ways to analyze and compare with your product. This helps discover few use cases that not even google or their website will help you find. But sometimes in B2B scenarios, competitor study is not possible by using this method since it’s difficult to get their software on a public platform unlike in B2C. So in that cases, it is important to build relationship with your counterparts in that company and learn more about their product genuinely.

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Tanuj Agarwal

Product | Growth | Operations | 0-1-10 builder
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A lot of times identifying competitors can be done through our users themselves. How do they solve <the problem we are solving for them> currently? This not only talks about the obvious competition that we could find through any of the tools out there, but also helps us scope out our solution to target the ultimate need of the user.

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2 Analyze their websites and apps

The next step is to analyze your competitors' websites and apps, and see how they communicate their value proposition, design their user interface, and structure their information architecture. You can use tools like Hotjar, UsabilityHub, or UserTesting to conduct heuristic evaluations, user testing, or surveys on your competitors' products, and collect feedback from real or potential users. You can also use tools like Moz, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to analyze your competitors' SEO, keywords, backlinks, or content strategy, and see how they rank on search engines.

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Tanuj Agarwal

Product | Growth | Operations | 0-1-10 builder
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Become a user of your competitor's apps and website. It always helps you uncover the minute details they are focussing on which in turn helps you make more informed decisions about your product. Become a mystery shopper! There is nothing wrong with it.

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3 Monitor their social media and reviews

The third step is to monitor your competitors' social media and reviews, and see how they engage with their customers, promote their products, and handle feedback. You can use tools like Mention, BuzzSumo, or Sprout Social to track your competitors' mentions, sentiment, or influencers across different platforms, and see what topics, issues, or questions are relevant to your audience. You can also use tools like Trustpilot, G2, or Capterra to read your competitors' reviews, ratings, or testimonials, and see what users like or dislike about their products.

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4 Conduct interviews and surveys

The fourth step is to conduct interviews and surveys with your existing or potential customers, and ask them about their experiences, opinions, or preferences regarding your competitors' products. You can use tools like Zoom, Calendly, or Typeform to schedule, conduct, or record interviews or surveys with your users, and ask them open-ended or closed-ended questions. You can also use tools like Miro, Airtable, or NVivo to analyze, organize, or visualize your data, and identify themes, patterns, or gaps in your users' feedback.

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Niklas Lindén

Relator & Marketer | Strategy & Innovation | Driving Business Growth | Communication Expert | Digital First Leader
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För mig handlar det om att kombinera kvantitativa data från affärssystem med enkäter och undersökningar. Utifrån det addera kvalitativ data från djupintervjuer och kanske också fokusgrupper. Det finns en vits att låta någon tredje part genomföra intervjuer får att få den nakna sanningen och identifiera vad som gör erbjudande meningsfullt och intressant.

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Wyatt Beakler

Product Manager | Product Strategy, User Research, Monetization, Growth
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Analyzing a competitors product vs your own can often lead to biased learnings. One of the best ways to get a true gauge on market competitors is to conduct interviews with users who have used both your product and a competitors. They will be able to give clearer insight into which product is easier to use, has better features, more stability, provides more value, etc.

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5 Create a competitive analysis report

The final step is to create a competitive analysis report, where you summarize your findings, compare your competitors' products, and identify your competitive advantage. You can use tools like Google Slides, PowerPoint, or Canva to create a presentation or a document that showcases your user research methods, results, and insights. You can also use tools like SWOT, Porter's Five Forces, or Value Proposition Canvas to create frameworks or models that help you evaluate your competitors' strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Wyatt Beakler

Product Manager | Product Strategy, User Research, Monetization, Growth
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Comparing your product to competitors is not always like comparing apples to apples. You must take into account unique features or user experiences that each product offers whether they are tangible or not.

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How do you use user research to understand competitors?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Identify your competitors

2 Analyze their websites and apps

3 Monitor their social media and reviews

4 Conduct interviews and surveys

5 Create a competitive analysis report

6 Here’s what else to consider

Product Management

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How do you use user research to understand competitors?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Identify your competitors

2 Analyze their websites and apps

3 Monitor their social media and reviews

4 Conduct interviews and surveys

5 Create a competitive analysis report

6 Here’s what else to consider

Product Management

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