Who counts as a competitor
Every name gets a verdict. Direct rivals earn a column in the matrix. The rest are cut with the reason written down: a page that could not be read, an SEO-only angle narrower than your category, a launch directory that is one feature of yours.
The status quo stays on the list. For most products the real incumbent is a spreadsheet and manual posting.
Two get a deep dive
The closest match to your buyer, and the most developed offering in the category. Both are tested on three axes: same buyer, same outcome, same way of working. You see the score and which axis a rival failed.
The matrix
Category positioning, hero and subhead, pricing model, entry price, free option, top features, trust spine, distribution focus, growth trajectory. Your column sits next to theirs, in their words and yours.
Evidence
Hooks, prices and feature claims are quoted as written, and each piece of evidence carries an ID. Their landing page is mapped as the flow a visitor walks through.
Where a page could not be fetched, it says so.
Better and worse
Two columns for each rival, written against your product. A real free tier where yours is paid from day one. No customer proof where you publish results in public. No video engine where you ship one.
Where you can win
The positions worth taking, each naming the rival it works against: the gap nobody has productized, the proof none of them publishes, the pillar they only answer in an FAQ.
The counter-positions are named too, so you read about a rival’s advantage here and not in a lost deal.
Editing
Add a rival the research missed, cut one that is not really a competitor, correct a price that changed yesterday.