How product teams can use competitive intelligence more effectively

Competitive intelligence is used by many different departments within a typical organisation. Everyone from the sales team to the CEO has an interest in how competitors are performing.

But today we’re going to focus on product teams, and how they can benefit from an understanding of the marketplace and the threats and opportunities presented by competitors.

User-centric

Product teams are often user-centric. Much of the focus of the team, and the product manager in particular, is on the needs of the users.

Unsurprisingly, product managers also take a keen interest in knowing the market, so they can reconcile the claims and behaviours of customers with the evidence provided by competitors.

While some product teams will routinely conduct formal or ad-hoc competitor research, a competitive intelligence agency like Aqute can help gather a more systematic review of the entire market. This can provide a clearer counter-balance to the input from user groups and testing.

Position in the market

Understanding your position in the market is essential for product managers, who need to guide new features through development in the right way, at the right time, so they will find a home in the market.

A competitive intelligence agency has both the capacity and the know-how to provide a clear assessment of the entire market.

Demand for features

As we noted above, the customer-centric nature of a typical product team means that product managers usually have a solid understanding of the features that customers claim to want most. Competitive intelligence can help to confirm customer claims – or to provide a counterpoint – by providing evidence of the features most sought and bought right now.

Prioritising development

By combining customer feedback and market intelligence, product managers can confidently develop their roadmaps. Without access to competitive intelligence, product managers can inadvertently find themselves pursuing an outdated strategy, or being undermined by a competitor’s launch.

Justification and evidence

Product managers can easily find themselves pressured by marketing and sales professionals who clamour for certain features to take priority. Competitive intelligence can be a convenient tie-breaker when different teams are pushing in different directions. Rather than argue on instinct, product managers can rely on competitive intelligence as justification for key decisions.

Competitive intelligence from Aqute

Does your product team need support with competitive intelligence?

We can work flexibly to fill gaps in your own competitor research, or conduct an entire campaign from scratch. With hubs in San Francisco and London, as well as a network of experts around the world, we can help you gather intelligence on any scale.