competitive-strategist skill

---
name: competitive-strategist
description: Expert competitive intelligence and strategy guidance for B2B/SaaS companies. Use when conducting competitive research, creating battlecards, analyzing win/loss data, building market landscape maps, positioning against alternatives, handling competitive objections, writing comparison pages, or developing sales enablement for competitive situations. Use for competitive monitoring, feature comparisons, and market intelligence gathering.
---

# Competitive Strategist

Expert competitive intelligence and positioning guidance for winning in crowded markets — from research methodologies to sales enablement and everything in between.

## Philosophy

Competitive strategy isn't about copying competitors or tearing them down:

1. **Know yourself first** — You can't position against others until you know your own strengths
2. **Focus on customers, not competitors** — What they need matters more than what rivals do
3. **Be honest** — Lies and FUD destroy credibility faster than any competitor
4. **Stay current** — Markets move fast; stale intel costs deals

## How This Skill Works

When invoked, apply the guidelines in `rules/` organized by:

- `research-*` — Competitive research methodologies and intelligence gathering
- `analysis-*` — Win/loss analysis and market landscape mapping
- `battlecard-*` — Battlecard creation, structure, and maintenance
- `positioning-*` — Positioning against alternatives and differentiation
- `messaging-*` — Competitive messaging and objection handling
- `enablement-*` — Sales enablement for competitive situations
- `monitoring-*` — Competitive monitoring systems and alerts

## Core Frameworks

### The Competitive Intelligence Cycle

```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                                                             │
│   ┌──────────┐    ┌──────────┐    ┌──────────┐             │
│   │  GATHER  │───▶│ ANALYZE  │───▶│  SHARE   │             │
│   │  (Intel) │    │ (Insight)│    │ (Enable) │             │
│   └──────────┘    └──────────┘    └──────────┘             │
│        ▲                                │                   │
│        │          ┌──────────┐          │                   │
│        └──────────│  UPDATE  │◀─────────┘                   │
│                   │ (Iterate)│                              │
│                   └──────────┘                              │
│                                                             │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

### Competitive Positioning Matrix

| Positioning Type | When to Use | Key Approach |
|------------------|-------------|--------------|
| **Head-to-head** | You're stronger on key dimensions | Direct comparison |
| **Niche down** | Competitor owns general category | Own a specific segment |
| **Reframe** | Competitor's strength is irrelevant | Change the criteria |
| **Leapfrog** | New capability they can't match | Future-oriented vision |
| **Coexist** | Different jobs to be done | Complement, don't compete |

### Competitor Tiers

| Tier | Description | Monitoring Frequency | Depth of Analysis |
|------|-------------|---------------------|-------------------|
| **Primary** | Direct competitors, same ICP | Weekly | Deep battlecards |
| **Secondary** | Adjacent solutions, partial overlap | Monthly | Overview cards |
| **Emerging** | Startups, potential disruptors | Quarterly | Watch list |
| **Alternatives** | Status quo, DIY, spreadsheets | Ongoing | Pain point mapping |

### Win/Loss Analysis Framework

```
Deal Outcome
    │
    ├── Won Against Competitor
    │   ├── What differentiated us?
    │   ├── What did they say about competitor?
    │   └── What would have changed their mind?
    │
    └── Lost to Competitor
        ├── What was the deciding factor?
        ├── Where did we fall short?
        └── What could we have done differently?
```

### The Battlecard Structure

| Section | Purpose | Update Frequency |
|---------|---------|------------------|
| **Overview** | Quick context, what they do | Quarterly |
| **Positioning** | How we win, key differentiators | Monthly |
| **Landmines** | Questions to ask that expose weaknesses | As discovered |
| **Objection Handling** | Responses to "Why not [competitor]?" | As encountered |
| **Proof Points** | Customer quotes, case studies | As available |
| **Pricing Intel** | Known pricing, packaging | As discovered |

## Competitive Response Spectrum

| Situation | Response | Example |
|-----------|----------|---------|
| **They launch feature you have** | Emphasize experience, depth | "We've had this for 2 years, here's what we've learned" |
| **They launch feature you don't** | Roadmap or reframe | "We're focused on X because customers told us Y matters more" |
| **They cut price** | Hold on value | "You get what you pay for — here's the TCO comparison" |
| **They spread FUD** | Correct with facts | "That's not accurate — here's the truth with proof" |
| **They announce funding** | Ignore or pivot to stability | "We've been profitable since 2019" |

## Intelligence Sources (Ranked by Value)

1. **Win/loss interviews** — First-party, high signal
2. **Sales call recordings** — Real objections, real context
3. **Customer feedback** — Why they chose you (and considered others)
4. **G2/Capterra reviews** — Volume of sentiment data
5. **LinkedIn activity** — Hiring, messaging, customer posts
6. **Job postings** — Strategic direction signals
7. **Press/funding news** — Major moves, positioning shifts
8. **Product trials** — Hands-on intel (respect ToS)

## Anti-Patterns

- **FUD tactics** — Spreading fear, uncertainty, doubt backfires
- **Obsessing over competitors** — Customer needs > competitor moves
- **Stale battlecards** — Outdated intel loses deals
- **One-size-fits-all** — Different competitors need different strategies
- **Ignoring the real competitor** — Often it's "do nothing" or spreadsheets
- **Attacking instead of differentiating** — Negative selling repels buyers
- **Hoarding intel** — Unshared intelligence is worthless
- **Copying competitors** — You become undifferentiated