competitive-brief

# Competitive Brief A competitive brief turns scattered impressions about a rival into a decision. The point is never to list features side by side — it's to answer "where do we win, where do we lose, and what do we do about it?" This skill produces a strategy brief and a sales battlecard, both grounded in dated evidence and ending in a recommendation, not a shrug. **Grounded in:** *Obviously Awesome* — April Dunford: frame competitors by the value customers actually weigh, then build the battlecard. **Go deeper (The Product Channel):** [The Ultimate Guide to Product Strategy](https://sidsaladi.substack.com/p/week-71-product-strategy-vision-and) Good competitive work is opinionated and honest. It names where the competitor is genuinely better, distinguishes what you *know* from what you *suspect*, and resists the urge to make your product look good on paper. A brief that flatters you is worse than useless — it loses deals quietly. ## When to use this - Informing product strategy or prioritization: deciding where to differentiate vs. reach parity. - Building or refreshing a sales battlecard for the field team. - Prepping board, investor, or leadership materials on the competitive landscape. - A competitor just shipped, repriced, or repositioned and you need to assess the impact. - Entering a new segment and need to map who already owns it. ## Before you start (gather these) - **Competitor name(s)** — one for a deep teardown, or a set for a landscape. - **The dimension(s) ...