Competitor analysis template: the columns that matter and how to fill them
A competitor analysis template is a sheet with one row per competitor and one column per thing a customer compares before buying: who they are, what they offer, the price, the promise, the proof, the channel, the weak spot and the date checked. Filled from public sources, it shows where you are stronger, where you are behind and what to change first.
Most competitor research fails in one of two ways: it never gets written down, or it turns into a long report nobody acts on. A short sheet with fixed columns avoids both.
Key ideas
- Use eight columns: who, offer, price, promise, proof, channel, weak spot, date checked.
- List three to five competitors a customer actually considers, including indirect ones.
- Fill every cell from a public source and keep the link next to it.
- End with one decision, then recheck on a fixed date so the data does not go stale.
The eight columns
Encyclopedic definitions describe competitor analysis as an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and potential competitors, done to find opportunities and threats. The Welsh Government's Business Wales guidance lists the basic questions: who offers something similar, how successful they are, what they sell, at what price and how they market it. A working sheet turns those questions into columns.
Who: the name and link. Offer: the main product or service. Price: the published figure for one typical order. Promise: the main claim on the home page. Proof: reviews, cases or numbers they show. Channel: where they get attention, such as search, ads, a marketplace or social posts. Weak spot: what a customer would complain about. Date checked: when you looked, because every other cell is only true on that day.
Filling it in one afternoon
Start with the list. The US Small Business Administration advises identifying competitors by product line or service and by market segment, and counting indirect competitors that could still affect your success. In practice, ask a few recent customers who else they considered and see who appears next to you in search results. Three to five names is enough.
Then spend about 30 minutes per competitor on public sources only: the home page, the price page, delivery and refund terms, reviews and one channel. The SBA calls this kind of desk work secondary research and notes that direct research such as interviews and surveys gives a sharper picture but can be time consuming and expensive. For a first sheet, the public pages are enough. Write prices and terms as published, with the link.
From sheet to one decision
A full sheet is not the result. Read the columns across and ask one question: where does every competitor make the same promise, and where is a weak spot that several share? A gap that appears in two or three rows is a real opening; one rival's flaw is not.
Write the decision in one sentence with a date, for example: state the delivery time on the price page by Friday, because no competitor does. The encyclopedic "competitor array" method adds weights to key factors such as price, service and convenience, and that is useful later. The first time, one clear decision is worth more than a score.
Two mistakes and a ready-made sheet
The first mistake is copying. A competitor's text, photos or price table answer their customers, not yours; note the idea and answer it in your own way. The second is stale data. Prices and offers change, and the encyclopedic account notes the argument that most firms do not run this analysis systematically enough. Set a recheck date and keep the Date checked column honest.
The VITON13 SCHOOL library has a free competitor watch sheet in XLSX format with four sheets. How to use explains the method. Competitors holds one row per competitor in ten columns, from what they sell to the link to their price page. Comparison scores you and three competitors from 1 to 5 on seven criteria, with a column for what you saw. Change log records the date, competitor, what changed, the source link, what it means for you, the action, the owner and a status.
In everyday language
It is like comparing three flats before renting one. You write the same facts for each on one page, and the choice often becomes obvious once the rows sit side by side.
Try it yourself
Download the free competitor watch sheet and fill the Competitors sheet for three rivals today, using only their public pages. Add the link for every price you write down.
Expected result
Three complete rows with published prices, main promises and links, and at least one point where all three make the same claim or share the same weak spot.
Check your answer: A competitor dropped its price once last month. Should you match it?
Not yet. Log it with the date and the link and watch for the same move again. One change is a data point; act when the direction repeats, and first ask whether a clearer offer answers it better than a lower price.
Questions
What should a competitor analysis template include?
At minimum: who the competitor is, the offer, the published price, the main promise, the proof, the main channel, a weak spot and the date checked. A link to the source for each figure makes the sheet checkable.
How often should I update it?
Recheck on a fixed schedule, monthly for most small businesses, and always before you change prices or rewrite your site. An undated sheet cannot tell you whether a fact is still true.
Pick three competitors, fill the eight columns from public pages this afternoon and write one dated decision. The free VITON13 SCHOOL competitor watch sheet gives you the columns ready-made, and the school library has more working files.
Sources and further reading
- U.S. Small Business Administration: Market research and competitive analysis ↗Sources checked:
- Business Wales (Welsh Government): What is market research? ↗Sources checked:
- Wikipedia: Competitor analysis ↗Sources checked: