Who This Helps
If you're a founder operator drowning in ideas and need to pick one experiment that actually moves the needle, this is for you. The Strategy Basics: Competitive Map course is built for busy people who want compact evidence, not endless analysis.
Mini Case
Meet Aisha. She runs a SaaS startup with 3 customer segments and 5 competitors. Every Monday, she lists 10 possible experiments—new feature, pricing tweak, ad channel, partnership. She picks one by gut feel. Last quarter, she wasted 7 weeks on a feature that only 12% of users wanted. Ouch.
After building her Competitive Map (one page, one afternoon), she saw exactly where she wins and loses. Her next experiment? A pricing change for her strongest segment. It boosted trial-to-paid conversion by 30% in 3 weeks.
Do This Now (5 Steps)
- Map your market signal – Pick one recent shift (customer complaint, competitor move, industry trend). Write it down.
- Choose your competitor set – Not every logo. Just the 3-5 that fight for the same customer dollar.
- Pick one customer segment wedge – The group where you win most. Ignore the rest for now.
- Build a differentiation grid – List your top 3 strengths vs. each competitor. Use real evidence (reviews, data, calls).
- Identify your strategic tradeoff – What are you explicitly NOT doing? That's your focus for the next experiment.
Avoid These Traps
- The "all competitors" trap – You don't need 20 logos. 3-5 is plenty. More noise, less signal.
- The "everything is a priority" trap – If every experiment feels urgent, none is. Use your grid to pick one.
- The "no evidence" trap – Gut feel is fine for dinner, not for strategy. Back your pick with one data point.
- The "perfect map" trap – Done is better than perfect. A rough map today beats a polished one next month.
Your Win by Friday
By Friday, you'll have a one-page Competitive Map that shows your best move. You'll know exactly which experiment to run next—and why. No more guessing. No more wasted weeks. Just one focused bet with real evidence.
And hey, you might even free up your Monday morning for something fun.