Competitive Analysis Skill (Zhang Zaiwang Methodology)

Based on Zhang Zaiwang's "Effective Competitive Analysis" methodology, providing a complete competitive analysis framework, tools and templates.

Core Principles

1. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you can fight a hundred battles without defeat - Competitive analysis is the foundation of product competition
2. Co-opetition mindset - A new perspective that combines competition and cooperation
3. Right intention, taking advantage, clear approach, excellent techniques, united people, practice - Complete analysis philosophy
4. 6-step competitive analysis - Systematic operation process

🎯 Skill Usage Guide

Key Principle: Start with the end in mind, goal-driven

Before using this skill, you must first clarify the analysis goal. Without a clear goal, competitive analysis will lose direction and become meaningless information stacking.

Interactive Startup Process

When users request competitive analysis, if the following key information is not clear, you must first ask the user:

6 Key Questions (Competitive Analysis Starting Point):

1. For which product is the competitive analysis being done? - Clarify the analysis object
2. Which stage is the product currently in? - Confirm the development stage (planning/development/operation)
3. What are the main problems and challenges facing the current product? - Diagnose core issues
4. What is the purpose of doing competitive analysis? - Determine analysis intent (decision support/learning reference/market early warning)
5. What are the specific goals of competitive analysis? - Set measurable goals
6. What is the output deliverable? - Clarify expected deliverables

Why is goal clarity so important?

Quick Start Suggestions

1. For simple needs: Directly ask the 6 key questions
2. For complex projects: Use goal-clarification-template.md for systematic sorting
3. For team collaboration: Organize goal alignment meetings to reach consensus

Remember: The time spent on goal clarification will be doubled in subsequent analysis.

Knowledge System Architecture

Tao (Philosophy)
├── Know yourself and know your enemy
├── Co-opetition mindset
└── Right intention, taking advantage, clear approach, excellent techniques, united people, practice

Fa (Process)
└── 6-step competitive analysis

Shu (Methods)
├── Comparison method, matrix analysis, competitive tracking matrix
├── Function decomposition, demand exploration
├── PEST analysis, Porter's Five Forces model
├── SWOT analysis
└── Add-subtract-multiply-divide

Qi (Tools)
├── Lean Canvas
├── Competitive Canvas
└── Strategy Canvas

Li (Cases)
└── Complete case analysis

Jian (Practice)
└── Practice session

6-Step Competitive Analysis (Core Process)

Step 1: Clarify Goals - Start with the end in mind (Most critical step)

Core concept: Start with the end in mind, goal-driven. Without a clear goal, competitive analysis will lose direction and become meaningless information stacking.

Interactive Goal Clarification Process

When users request competitive analysis, if the following information is not clear, you must first ask:

1. Analysis Object Clarification

• Key question: For which product/service/feature is the competitive analysis being done?
• Follow-up points:
  • Product name and version
  • If it's a new idea, please describe the core concept
  • Who is the target user group?

2. Development Stage Confirmation

• Key question: Which stage is the product currently in?
• Option explanations:
  • Planning stage: The product is still in the concept stage, need to verify market feasibility
  • Development stage: The product is being developed, need design references and function借鉴
  • Operation stage: The product has been launched, need optimization and competitive strategy

3. Problem Diagnosis

• Key question: What are the main problems and challenges facing the current product?
• Question directions:
  • User growth issues? Retention issues? Payment conversion issues?
  • Market competition pressure? Technical bottlenecks? Resource constraints?
  • Brand awareness? User experience issues?

4. Analysis Purpose Determination

• Key question: What is the purpose of doing competitive analysis?
• Purpose types:
  • Decision support: Provide basis for product decisions (market entry, feature priority, investment decisions, etc.)
  • Learning reference: Learn from competitors' advantages, avoid pitfalls (function design, user experience, operation strategy, etc.)
  • Market early warning: Monitor market changes, warn of competitive threats (new competitors, policy changes, technical trends, etc.)

5. Specific Goal Setting

• Key question: What are the specific goals of competitive analysis?
• Goal examples:
  • "Find product differentiated positioning, increase market share by 5%"
  • "Optimize core function experience, reduce user churn rate by 10%"
  • "Evaluate market entry feasibility, develop product roadmap"
  • "Learn from competitor operation strategies, improve user activity"

6. Output Deliverable Clarification

• Key question: What is the expected output deliverable?
• Deliverable types:
  • Complete competitive analysis report
  • Key findings summary (1-2 pages)
  • Function comparison matrix
  • Strategic recommendation list
  • Implementation roadmap

Importance of Goal Clarity

How goals affect subsequent analysis:

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Mistake: Skip goal clarification, start analysis directly ✅ Correct: Spend 30% of time clarifying goals to ensure correct analysis direction

❌ Mistake: Goals are too broad (e.g., "understand the market") ✅ Correct: Goals are specific and measurable (e.g., "find 3 differentiated opportunity points")

❌ Mistake: Do not distinguish analysis purposes, use the same method ✅ Correct: Customize analysis methods and depth based on purpose

Goal Clarity Checklist

Before starting analysis, confirm the following issues are clear:

• Analysis object is clear and specific
• Development stage has been confirmed
• Core issues have been identified
• Analysis purpose has been determined
• Specific goals are measurable
• Output deliverables are expected

Tool: First part of Competitive Canvas + Goal Clarification Template (see templates/)

Step 2: Select Competitors - Careful Selection

Competitor classification:

• Brand competitors: Same product form and target user group, different brands
• Category competitors: Different product forms, similar target user groups
• Substitutes: Different products that meet the same needs
• Reference products: Products worth learning from

Selection principles:

1. Initial selection: Preliminary selection based on analysis purpose
2. Refined selection: Focus on 3 or so key competitors for in-depth analysis
3. Dynamic adjustment: Regular review, pay attention to market changes

Tool: Second part of Competitive Canvas

Step 3: Determine Analysis Dimensions - Multi-dimensional Perspective

Product perspective (factors affecting product success):

1. Function
2. User experience design
3. Team background
4. Technology
5. Market promotion
6. Strategic positioning
7. User situation
8. Profit model
9. Layout planning

User perspective ($APPEALS framework):

1. $-Price
2. A-Availability
3. P-Packaging
4. P-Performance
5. E-Easy to Use
6. A-Assurances
7. L-Life Cycle of Cost
8. S-Social Acceptance

Selection principles:

• Select based on competitive analysis goals
• Adjust focus based on product type
• Focus based on key success factors

Tool: Third part of Competitive Canvas

Step 4: Collect Competitor Information - Comprehensive Collection

Information source classification:

1. Competitor official public information

   • Official website, official Weibo, official account
   • Media reports, CEO interviews
   • Product downloads, documents, FAQ, user forums
   • Product launch events, exhibitions
   • Company financial reports, recruitment advertisements

2. Third-party channels

   • Industry media, industry associations
   • Industry summits, trade shows
   • Internal company channels (sales, marketing, operations, etc.)
   • Third-party evaluation agencies, databases
   • Search engines, patent agencies

3. First-hand information

   • Personal experience
   • On-site inspection
   • User interviews, questionnaires
   • Reverse engineering (within legal scope)

Information rating standards:

• Level A: Completely reliable, authoritative source
• Level B: Usually reliable, occasional errors
• Level C: Not very reliable, needs verification
• Level D: Unreliable, for reference only
• Level E: Cannot evaluate reliability

Tool: Fourth part of Competitive Canvas

Step 5: Information Organization and Analysis - Detailed Analysis

Analysis method toolbox:

1. Comparison method

   • Check comparison method (function comparison)
   • Rating comparison method (user experience evaluation)
   • Description comparison method (detailed comparison)

2. Matrix analysis method

   • Two-dimensional matrix analysis of product positioning
   • Discover market gap opportunities

3. Competitive tracking matrix

   • Track competitor historical versions
   • Predict competitor next moves

4. Function decomposition

   • Decompose by menu navigation
   • Decompose by usage process
   • Decompose by interactive operation

5. Demand exploration (5Why analysis)

   • Solution-level demand → Problem-level demand → Human nature-level demand
   • Explore the real needs behind functions

6. PEST analysis (macro environment)

   • Politics
   • Economy
   • Society
   • Technology

7. Porter's Five Forces model (industry environment)

   • Industry competitors
   • Threat of potential entrants
   • Threat of substitutes
   • Bargaining power of suppliers
   • Bargaining power of buyers

8. SWOT analysis

   • Strengths
   • Weaknesses
   • Opportunities
   • Threats

Analysis framework: Sky·Rain·Umbrella

• Sky = Facts (current situation)
• Rain = Explanation (interpretation of the situation)
• Umbrella = Action (conclusions drawn from the explanation)

Tool: Fifth to eighth parts of Competitive Canvas

Step 6: Summary Report - Value-driven

Competitive strategy types:

1. SWOT-based competitive strategy

   • SO strategy: Leverage strengths, seize opportunities (growth type)
   • WO strategy: Utilize opportunities, overcome weaknesses (turnaround type)
   • ST strategy: Leverage strengths, avoid threats (diversification type)
   • WT strategy: Reduce weaknesses, avoid threats (defensive type)

2. Porter's competitive strategy

   • Focus strategy
   • Cost leadership strategy
   • Differentiation strategy

3. "Copy-Surpass-Profit" methodology

   • Copy: Learn and reference
   • Surpass: Surpass and innovate
   • Profit: Commercial success

4. Judo strategy (small companies dealing with giants)

   • Movement principle: Avoid direct conflict
   • Balance principle: Utilize opponent's scale
   • Leverage principle: Turn opponent's advantage into disadvantage

5. Disruptive innovation

   • New market disruption
   • Low-end disruption

Report structure:

1. Executive summary
2. Market overview
3. In-depth competitor analysis
4. Comparative analysis
5. Strategic recommendations

Tool: Ninth part of Competitive Canvas

Three Core Tools

1. Lean Canvas (Business Model Analysis)

9 modules:

1. Problem
2. Customer segments
3. Unique value proposition
4. Solution
5. Channels
6. Key metrics
7. Competitive barriers
8. Cost analysis
9. Revenue analysis

Function: Establish product global view, analyze business model

2. Competitive Canvas (Competitive Analysis Template)

9 parts:

1. Competitive analysis goals
2. Select competitors
3. Determine analysis dimensions
4. Collect competitor information
5. Strengths
6. Weaknesses
7. Opportunities
8. Threats
9. Summary and recommendations

Function: Quick start for beginners, low-cost idea validation

3. Strategy Canvas (Differentiation Innovation)

Usage steps:

1. List main competitive elements
2. Draw competitor value curves
3. Apply "add-subtract-multiply-divide"
4. Draw differentiated value curves

Add-subtract-multiply-divide:

• Add: Add new elements
• Subtract: Reduce unnecessary elements
• Multiply: Innovatively enhance
• Divide: Remove redundant elements

Function: Product differentiation innovation, find blue ocean market

Network Engineering Special Perspective

For network engineering related products, additional attention to:

Technical dimensions

• Architecture analysis: Distributed, cloud-native, microservices
• Performance indicators: Latency, throughput, availability, SLA
• Security: Encryption, authentication, access control, compliance
• Integration capability: API design, SDK quality, ecosystem
• Operation and maintenance support: Monitoring alerts, automation, document quality

Market dimensions

• Technical trends: SDN/NFV, 5G, edge computing, zero trust
• Standard compatibility: Industry standards, protocol support, interoperability
• Customer types: Operators, enterprises, government, cloud service providers
• Procurement process: Bidding, POC testing, technical evaluation

Execution Guide

Quick Start Template

# Competitive Analysis Quick Start

1. Fill in Competitive Canvas (30 minutes)
   - Clarify analysis goals
   - Select 3 key competitors
   - Determine core analysis dimensions

2. Information collection (2-4 hours)
   - Official information collection
   - Personal product experience
   - User feedback research

3. Preliminary analysis (2 hours)
   - Function comparison table
   - Preliminary SWOT analysis
   - Key findings summary

4. In-depth analysis (as needed)
   - Lean Canvas analysis
   - Strategy Canvas differentiation
   - Complete report writing

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. ❌ Only analyze functions, ignore business model
2. ❌ Subjective bias, only collect favorable information
3. ❌ Information listing, lack of in-depth analysis
4. ❌ Vague recommendations, lack of operability
5. ❌ Static analysis, ignore dynamic changes
6. ❌ Homogeneous analysis, lack of differentiated perspective

Success Keys

1. ✅ Start with the end in mind, clear goals
2. ✅ Multi-dimensional perspective, comprehensive analysis
3. ✅ Deep excavation, explore needs
4. ✅ Dynamic tracking, continuous update
5. ✅ Value-driven, actionable recommendations
6. ✅ Team collaboration, consensus building

Output Templates

Competitive Analysis Report Structure

1. Executive Summary
   - Analysis purpose and scope
   - Key findings
   - Key recommendations

2. Market Overview
   - Market size and growth
   - Market segmentation
   - Main player landscape

3. In-depth Competitor Analysis
   - Competitor A: Business model + product analysis
   - Competitor B: Business model + product analysis
   - Competitor C: Business model + product analysis

4. Comparative Analysis
   - Function comparison matrix
   - User experience rating
   - Business model comparison
   - Comprehensive SWOT analysis

5. Strategic Recommendations
   - Differentiated positioning suggestions
   - Competitive strategy selection
   - Product roadmap suggestions
   - Risks and countermeasures

Appendix:
- Raw data tables
- Detailed function decomposition
- User research questionnaire
- Reference list

Skill Usage Scenarios

When to use this skill

1. Product planning stage: Market entry decision, product positioning
2. Product design stage: Function design reference, user experience optimization
3. Market competition stage: Competitive strategy formulation, differentiated positioning
4. Learning and improvement stage: Industry research, product sense cultivation
5. Investment decision stage: Project evaluation, due diligence

Suitable for

• Product managers, product planning personnel
• Marketing managers, operation personnel
• Entrepreneurs, investors
• Strategic planning personnel
• Relevant personnel who need to do competitive analysis

Practical Exercises

Practice session

1. Select your product: Select a product you are familiar with or working on
2. Fill in Competitive Canvas: Complete filling according to 6 steps
3. Apply analysis tools: Use at least 3 analysis methods
4. Output analysis report: Write a complete competitive analysis report
5. Team discussion: Communicate with colleagues and get feedback

Continuous improvement

1. Regular review: Update competitive analysis quarterly
2. Dynamic tracking: Establish competitive tracking matrix
3. Method iteration: Optimize analysis methods based on practice
4. Knowledge precipitation: Establish competitive analysis knowledge base

Remember: Competitive analysis is not a one-time task, but a continuous process. Through systematic methodology and tools, turn competitive analysis into the core competitiveness of the product.

Data source: Zhang Zaiwang "Effective Competitive Analysis: Essential Methodology for Good Products", China Machine Press.