Competitive Analysis

Frameworks for analyzing competitive position and industry dynamics.

When to Use Porter's vs. SWOT

Framework Use When

Porter's Five Forces Evaluating industry attractiveness; new market entry; strategic positioning

SWOT Internal capability assessment; go/no-go decisions; strategy planning

Competitive Landscape Map Visualizing whitespace; investor decks; positioning against specific competitors

Competitor Profiles Battlecards for sales; feature gap analysis; threat assessment

Use Porter's to understand the structural forces shaping the industry. Use SWOT to assess your specific position within it. Combine both for a complete picture.

Porter's Five Forces Template

Porter's Five Forces: [Industry/Market]

1. Competitive Rivalry — Intensity: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

2. Threat of New Entrants — Threat Level: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

3. Bargaining Power of Suppliers — Power: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

[Key suppliers, switching cost, concentration]

4. Bargaining Power of Buyers — Power: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

[Price sensitivity, alternatives available, buyer concentration]

5. Threat of Substitutes — Threat: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

[Alternative ways customers solve the same problem]

Overall Industry Attractiveness: X/10

[Summary: which forces are most significant and why]

SWOT Analysis

+-------------------------+-------------------------+ | STRENGTHS | WEAKNESSES | | (Internal +) | (Internal -) | | * What we do well | * Where we lack | | * Unique resources | * Resource gaps | | * Competitive advantages| * Capability limits | +-------------------------+-------------------------+ | OPPORTUNITIES | THREATS | | (External +) | (External -) | | * Market trends | * Competitive pressure | | * Unmet needs | * Regulatory changes | | * Technology shifts | * Economic factors | +-------------------------+-------------------------+

TOWS Matrix (SWOT to Strategy)

Strengths Weaknesses

Opportunities SO: Use strengths to capture opportunities WO: Fix weaknesses to unlock opportunities

Threats ST: Use strengths to mitigate threats WT: Minimize weaknesses, avoid threats

Competitor Profile Template

Competitor: [Name]

Overview

• Founded: [Year] | Funding: $[Amount] | Employees: [N]
• Target customer: [Segment]
• Pricing: [Model and range]

Strengths / Weaknesses

• [Strength 1]
• [Strength 2]

• [Weakness 1]
• [Weakness 2]

Threat Assessment: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

• [Why this threat level]
• [Our differentiation vs. this competitor]

Competitive Landscape Map

Plot competitors on two axes that matter most to buyers (e.g., price vs. features, ease of use vs. power):

                HIGH PRICE
                    |
 Premium Leaders    |    Luxury Niche

+-------------+ | +-------------+ | [Comp A] | | | [Comp B] | +-------------+ | +-------------+ | LOW ────────────────────+──────────────────── HIGH FEATURES | FEATURES | +-------------+ | +-------------+ | [Comp C] | | | [US] | +-------------+ | +-------------+ Budget Options | Value Leaders | LOW PRICE

Identify whitespace — quadrants with no incumbents that align with unmet buyer needs.

GitHub Signals for Competitive Tracking

Star count and momentum

gh api repos/owner/repo --jq '{stars: .stargazers_count, forks: .forks_count}'

Shipping velocity (recent releases)

gh release list --repo owner/repo --limit 5

Community size

gh api repos/owner/repo/contributors --jq 'length'

Signal Check Frequency

Star growth Weekly

Release notes Per release

Pricing changes Monthly

Feature launches Per announcement

Full analysis Quarterly

References

• Competitive Analysis Rules — Porter's, SWOT, landscape map, competitor profile templates

• Competitive Analysis Guide — Research methodology, data sources, update cadence

Related Skills

• ork:market-sizing — Quantify opportunity size alongside competitive landscape

• ork:business-case — Build financial justification informed by competitive position

• ork:product-frameworks — Full product strategy toolkit (value prop, prioritization, OKRs)

Version: 1.0.0