Competitor analysis
A competitor analysis that starts with a simple test: when a customer searches for what you sell, who else shows up? I map those businesses, their offers, prices and ads, and find a spot you can hold without a price war.
Free: a 30-minute call, an action plan and a price range in writing.
Six things your rivals
reveal publicly
Who appears in the Maps pack and organic results for your main services, from a few different zip codes in your area.
What they say in Google and Meta ads, which offers they push and how long the ads have been running, via the public ad libraries.
Packages, guarantees they promise, financing, free estimates, turnaround times. What makes a customer pick them.
Published price lists, quote forms and the hints buyers leave in reviews about what they paid.
What customers praise and complain about on Google, Yelp, BBB, Angi or Houzz. Complaints are your openings.
How fast it loads on a phone, how easy it is to call or book, and whether the first screen says anything specific.
From a list of names
to a clear position
As part of a plan
or one question
Prices in US dollars, final.
Competitor analysis inside the full plan, alongside the audit, customer research, channels and budget.
- 3 to 5 competitors compared
- Positioning recommendation
- Channel and budget plan
- Walkthrough on Zoom
One focused question, for example how to answer a new competitor that just opened nearby.
- First 30 minutes free
- Written next steps
Competitor analysis from the buyer's side
Most owners know their competitors by reputation: who has the big trucks, who sponsors the high school team, who undercuts on price. A useful competitor analysis looks at something different, namely what a customer sees in the ten minutes before calling someone. That is a short list of names on a phone screen, a few ads, star ratings and two or three websites opened in tabs.
So I start there. I search for your main services from several zip codes in your area, at different times, and record who appears in the Maps pack, in the ads and in the organic results. The businesses that keep showing up are your real competition, whether you consider them rivals or not.
Where I look
- Google Search and Maps. Rankings, categories, review counts and how each profile is filled out.
- Ad libraries. Google's Ads Transparency Center and Meta's Ad Library show which ads are live and for how long.
- Directories. Yelp, BBB, Angi, Thumbtack, Houzz or the directories specific to your trade, depending on where your buyers check.
- Websites. What the first screen promises, how easy it is to call, book or request a quote, and how the site behaves on a phone.
- Reviews. The repeated complaints are the most valuable data. If three competitors keep getting "never called back", fast follow-up becomes your message.
Turning the table into a decision
All of this goes into one table, one row per competitor, the same columns for each. The table itself is not the deliverable. The decision is: which position you take, which message goes with it and where you say it. Often the answer is a narrower focus. A remodeler who competes with everyone for "kitchen remodel" may win clearly on "kitchen remodel for older homes" or a defined set of suburbs.
That decision flows straight into your value proposition and the ads. If you also want the rest of the plan, see the full marketing strategy.
Local markets in the US
Competition looks very different from one metro to the next. In a large city, a dentist may face dozens of practices within a few miles plus aggressive group practices; in a small town, the same dentist competes with two offices and the drive to the next city. Franchises and national chains add another layer: they bring brand recognition and budgets, but their local pages are often thin copies of each other.
For service-area businesses, the analysis also covers where competitors claim to work. Many list a whole region on their Google profile but only have reviews from a few suburbs. That gap is where local SEO can pay off fastest.
Mistakes when comparing
The most common one is benchmarking against the wrong company: the market leader with ten times your budget instead of the business that actually takes your calls. The second is copying. If you mirror a competitor's ads, you split the same audience and raise each other's click prices. The third is staring at price only. Buyers rarely choose the cheapest option when the stakes are high; they choose the one that feels safest, and that comes from reviews, clarity and response speed.
What happens next
You get the comparison table, the recommended position and specific changes for your website, Google profile and ads. Under the audit and strategy at $1,900, the competitor work is one part of a larger plan. If you prefer to try it on your own first, my guide on local competitor research walks through the same steps.
Keep going
Competitor analysis
questions
How many competitors should I compare?
Usually three to five. Fewer and you miss the pattern, more and the table turns into noise. I pick the ones that actually show up next to you in search and Maps, plus any rival your customers mention by name, even if they never rank.
Can you see how much competitors spend on ads?
Not precisely, and anyone who promises exact figures is guessing. The public ad libraries from Google and Meta show which ads run and for how long. Combined with how often a rival appears in search results, that gives a fair sense of who invests seriously and who tests now and then.
Will you just copy what competitors do?
No. The point is to find what they all do the same way, so you can do something else. If every plumber in town promises fast service, saying fast service makes you invisible. The analysis shows which promise nobody owns yet.
What if my competitors are national chains?
Then you probably cannot outspend them, and you should not try. Chains are often slower to reply, less personal and less flexible. A local business can win on speed, a named owner, a narrow specialty and a tight service area, and the plan leans on exactly that.
Does competitor analysis cost extra?
No. It is part of the $1,900 audit and strategy. If you only need a quick read on one rival, a consultation at $65 an hour works, and the first 30-minute call is free.
See your market
the way buyers do
Tell me your service and area. I reply within one business day. Or book a free 30-minute consultation first.