Design and product work
Competitive analysis
Also calledCompetitor analysis, Market analysis
Studying how competitors and adjacent products solve the same problem, to learn what users already expect and where there is room to differ.
Competitive analysis looks at other products' flows, patterns, pricing and positioning. It tells you which conventions users already know, which mistakes others have made, and where everyone does the same thing badly.
Its main value is strategic. It helps a team decide where to match the market and where to deliberately do something different.
Common mistake
Copying a competitor's design because they are big. You see their interface, not their test results, and it may be performing worse than you think.