Competitor Analysis for Your Small Business
Learn how to compare three competitors, what to include in your comparison table, and how to turn it into pricing and offer decisions.
Key takeaways
- Compare yourself with three competitors: one direct competitor selling what you sell to the same audience, one bigger competitor, and one alternative that solves the customer’s problem differently.
- Your comparison table should cover what each competitor sells, their published prices, offers, delivery, how they present themselves, and what their customers complain about.
- Collect information only from what competitors publish publicly. Don’t pretend to be a customer to get information they don’t disclose.
- The analysis is not complete until you make a decision: three priority-ordered steps to start this month.
Competitor analysis for a small business means choosing three competitors and putting them in one table that compares what they sell, how much they charge, how they present it, and what their customers complain about. Then you leave that table with three decisions to act on: in pricing, in your offer, or in how you present yourself. You do not need a full market study to get started; an honest table and an hour of thinking are enough. If you want someone to prepare it for you, on Hylance, at the time of writing, analysis of three competitors starts at about SAR 70 (about $19).
When do you need competitor analysis?
You need it any time you are making a decision the customer will see and compare against other options. The customer does not see your business in isolation; they open your page and your competitor’s page side by side, then choose. That is why competitor comparison is especially useful in these situations:
- Before launching your business or store, so you know where you stand before setting your first price and offer.
- Before changing prices, so you do not raise your price above what the market accepts or lower it without a reason.
- When sales drop for no clear reason, because a competitor may have changed their offer or delivery approach.
- Before adding a new product or service, so you know whether there is demand and how others are offering it.
- Before applying for funding or bringing in a partner, because the funding side will often ask: who are your competitors, and how are you different from them?
How do you choose the competitors to compare yourself with?
Choose three, not ten. Comparing yourself with ten competitors creates a long table that no one reads, while comparing yourself with just one gives you an incomplete picture. Ideally, the three should be different types:
- A direct competitor: someone selling almost what you sell, to the same audience, and in your city or area if delivery matters. This is the competitor your customer is actually comparing you with.
- A bigger competitor: a well-known store or business in your field. You probably will not compete with them on price, but you can learn from them what customers have come to expect.
- An alternative competitor: someone solving the same customer problem in a different way. A home bakery competes with the nearby bakery, but it also competes with the dessert section in a large store.
To find your direct competitor, search on Google and social media using the words your customer would type when looking for you, not your business name. What appears in the top results is what your customer sees before they ever get to you.
What should you compare in a competitor table?
Put your business in the first column and the three competitors after it, then fill in the following rows with what you actually see, not what you assume. If you cannot find a piece of information, leave it blank and write “Not published.” That is information too.
| What to compare | What to write in the cell | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| What they sell | The main products or services and their approximate number | You learn whether you are competing on variety or specialization |
| Published prices | The price of the two or three most requested products, as the customer sees them | You learn where your price sits between the cheapest and the most expensive |
| Offers and bundles | Ongoing discounts, free shipping above a certain amount, bundles | You understand what customers are used to getting |
| Delivery or fulfillment | Timing, cost, and service areas | Many customers decide here, not at the price |
| Presentation style | Image quality, clarity of description, ease of ordering | You learn whether you are losing the customer before they even see your price |
| What customers praise and complain about | The most repeated points in ratings and comments | A repeated complaint about your competitor is an opportunity for you |
| What makes them stand out | One sentence: why do customers choose them? | You learn what you cannot copy and what you can |
Where do you gather competitor information from?
From everything a competitor publishes publicly, which is more than you might think. Their website or store shows you products, prices, and shipping policy. Their social media accounts show you how they speak to their audience and which posts people engage with. Customer ratings and comments are the most honest part of the whole analysis, because they tell you what matters to customers in their own words.
There are also limits you should stick to: do not pretend to be a customer to ask for information the competitor does not publish, do not copy their photos or text, and do not base your decision on sales numbers people pass around without a source. Accurate public information is more useful than an exciting estimate when you do not know where it came from.
How do you turn the table into decisions?
The table alone changes nothing. After filling it in, read it row by row and ask three questions: where am I clearly better? Where are they clearly ahead of me? And what are their customers complaining about that I can offer? Then write only three steps, in priority order, to carry out this month. Here is a practical example for a small perfume store:
- Observation: the two direct competitors include small samples with every order, and their customers mention that in reviews. Decision: add a sample to orders above a certain amount.
- Observation: my product photos are weaker than all three competitors. Decision: reshoot the top five best-selling products before running any ads.
- Observation: customers of the bigger competitor complain about slow replies to questions. Decision: prepare ready-made answers for common questions and highlight them on the store page.
Notice that none of these three decisions is “lower the price.” Competing on price alone is the easiest decision and the riskiest for a small business, and good analysis will usually show you other ways to stand out.
Common mistakes in competitor analysis
- Comparing yourself only with the biggest name in the market, and coming away feeling you cannot compete.
- Copying exactly what a competitor does, so the customer sees you as a weaker version of them.
- Looking only at prices and ignoring delivery, presentation, and reviews.
- Filling in the table from memory or impressions instead of actually opening competitors’ pages.
- Analyzing competitors once and then forgetting about it; review the table every few months or when your sales change.
- Finishing the analysis without a written decision to act on.
How much does competitor analysis cost on Hylance?
The following numbers are approximate, based on services published on Hylance at the time of writing, and the exact price appears on each service page in your currency. Analysis of three competitors in a comparison table with written notes and ordered recommendations starts at about SAR 70 (about $19), a short session to review your business idea before you begin starts at about SAR 50 (about $13), and target audience research with customer personas starts at about SAR 120 (about $32). In your order message, include a description of your business, the names of the competitors you want compared, and exactly what you want to know about them.
You pay from your Hylance wallet, and the amount stays on hold with the platform until you confirm that you received the work. If you cancel the order before delivery, the amount goes back to your wallet. If the seller delivers work that does not match what you agreed on and does not fix it, open a dispute from the order page after delivery. On your first order on the platform, you get a 10% discount.
Competitor and market analysis services on Hylance
3 Competitor Analysis Table for Your Project
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30-Minute Session to Review Your Project Idea Before You Start
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Target Audience Research and Customer Personas
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Frequently asked questions
How do I do competitor analysis for a small business?
Pick three competitors: a direct one selling what you sell to the same audience, a bigger one, and an alternative that solves the same problem in a different way. Then put them in one table comparing what they sell, their published prices, offers, delivery, presentation, and customer reviews, and finish with three steps you will carry out this month.
Where can I find competitor information?
From what they publish publicly: their websites and stores, their social media accounts, their customer ratings and comments, and their visible ads. Don’t pretend to be a customer to get information they do not publish, and don’t rely on sales figures people circulate without a source.
How much does competitor analysis cost?
On Hylance, at the time of writing, analysis of three competitors in a comparison table with written notes starts at about SAR 70 (about $19), and a short session to review your business idea starts at about SAR 50 (about $13). The exact price is shown on each service page in your currency.
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