Competitor Intelligence Briefer

Generate structured, actionable competitive intelligence briefings using only web search. No API keys, no paid tools, no LinkedIn scraping — just thorough research synthesized into a briefing that tells you what your competitors are doing and what you should do about it.

When to Use This Skill

• "Research my competitors"
• "What are my competitors doing?"
• "Analyze the competitive landscape for [industry/product]"
• "Who are the top players in [market]?"
• "Compare [Company A] vs [Company B]"
• "What's [competitor] up to lately?"
• "Prepare a competitive briefing"
• "Scout the competition for my [business type]"

Inputs

Ask the user for (if not already provided):

1. Their business/product — what they do, who they serve
2. Known competitors — any competitors they already know about (optional)
3. Focus areas — what matters most to them (optional, default to all)

If the user gives you a business description but no competitor names, discover competitors through research.

Research Process

Phase 1: Competitor Discovery (if needed)

Search for competitors using queries like:

• [industry] competitors [year]
• [product type] alternatives
• best [product/service type] companies
• [known competitor] vs

Identify 3-5 primary competitors. For each, confirm they are genuinely competing for the same customers.

Phase 2: Per-Competitor Deep Dive

For EACH competitor, research these dimensions. Use multiple searches per competitor — do not rely on a single search.

#### 2a. Company Overview

• What they do (in one sentence)
• Founded when, where based
• Company size (employees, funding if applicable)
• Target customer profile

Search: [competitor name] company overview, [competitor name] about

#### 2b. Product & Pricing

• Core product/service offering
• Pricing model and price points (search their pricing page)
• Free tier or trial availability
• Key features or unique selling points

Search: [competitor name] pricing, [competitor name] features, [competitor name] review [year]

#### 2c. Market Positioning

• How they describe themselves (tagline, homepage messaging)
• What market category they claim
• Key differentiators they emphasise

Search: [competitor name] homepage, site:[competitor domain]

#### 2d. Content & Marketing Strategy

• Blog frequency and topics
• Social media presence and engagement
• Content formats (video, podcast, newsletter, etc.)
• SEO visibility — what terms they rank for

Search: [competitor name] blog, [competitor name] social media, [competitor name] youtube OR podcast

#### 2e. Recent Moves (Last 90 Days)

• New product launches or features
• Partnerships or integrations announced
• Funding rounds or acquisitions
• Leadership changes
• Press coverage

Search: [competitor name] news [year], [competitor name] launch OR announce

#### 2f. Hiring Signals

• What roles they're hiring for (indicates strategic direction)
• Hiring volume (growing or stable)

Search: [competitor name] careers, [competitor name] hiring

#### 2g. Customer Sentiment

• What customers praise
• Common complaints or weaknesses
• Review scores on relevant platforms

Search: [competitor name] reviews, [competitor name] complaints, [competitor name] reddit

Phase 3: Comparative Analysis

After researching all competitors, synthesize:

1. Positioning Map — how each competitor positions relative to others (premium vs budget, simple vs feature-rich, etc.)
2. Feature Gap Analysis — what features/services are common vs unique
3. Pricing Comparison — side-by-side pricing if available
4. Strength/Weakness Matrix — each competitor's strongest and weakest dimensions

Phase 4: Strategic Recommendations

Based on the research, provide:

1. Market Gaps — underserved segments or unmet needs you spotted
2. Competitive Advantages — where the user's business could win
3. Threats to Watch — competitors making aggressive moves
4. Quick Wins — specific, actionable things the user could do this week
5. Long-term Plays — strategic positions worth building toward

Output Format

Structure the briefing as follows:

# Competitive Intelligence Briefing
## [User's Business/Market]
### Generated: [Date]

---

## Executive Summary
[3-5 sentence overview of the competitive landscape and key findings]

---

## Competitor Profiles

### [Competitor 1 Name]
- **What they do:** [one sentence]
- **Size:** [employees/funding/revenue if known]
- **Target customer:** [who they serve]
- **Pricing:** [model and price points]
- **Key strengths:** [2-3 bullets]
- **Key weaknesses:** [2-3 bullets]
- **Recent moves:** [notable activity in last 90 days]
- **Hiring signals:** [what roles, what it suggests]

[Repeat for each competitor]

---

## Comparative Analysis

### Positioning Map
[Describe where each player sits — e.g. "X targets enterprise at premium pricing while Y focuses on SMBs with freemium"]

### Feature Comparison
| Feature | Competitor 1 | Competitor 2 | Competitor 3 | Your Business |
|---------|-------------|-------------|-------------|---------------|
| [Feature] | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ |

### Pricing Comparison
[Side-by-side pricing table or summary]

---

## Strategic Recommendations

### Market Gaps
[Opportunities no one is addressing well]

### Your Competitive Advantages
[Where you can win based on what competitors lack]

### Threats to Watch
[Competitors making moves that could impact you]

### Quick Wins (This Week)
1. [Specific actionable item]
2. [Specific actionable item]
3. [Specific actionable item]

### Long-term Plays (3-6 Months)
1. [Strategic recommendation]
2. [Strategic recommendation]

---

## Sources
[List key sources referenced during research]

Important Guidelines

• Be specific, not generic. Every recommendation should reference actual findings from the research. "Improve your marketing" is useless. "Competitor X is ranking for [keyword] with [content type] — you should create [specific content]" is actionable.
• Flag uncertainty. If you couldn't find pricing, say so. If information seems outdated, note it. Never fabricate data.
• Prioritise recency. A blog post from last month matters more than a review from 2022. Always note when information was published.
• Research thoroughly but don't loop. Use 3-5 searches per competitor, but cap total research at 15-20 searches maximum. Once you have solid data on the major players, STOP researching and compile. Perfectionism kills delivery — a good briefing now beats a perfect briefing never. If some data is missing, note the gap and move on.
• Compile promptly. After completing your research searches, immediately write the briefing. Do not run additional "just one more" searches. The research phase and the writing phase are separate — finish one before starting the other.
• Review before saving. Scan the final output for formatting artifacts, encoding glitches, repeated phrases, or broken markdown tables. Fix any issues before saving.
• Save the briefing. If the agent supports file output, save the briefing as a markdown file the user can keep.