Who This Helps
This is for you, Team Lead. You have an analytics routine that works, but it's starting to feel like a treadmill. You run the same reports, see the same trends, and the team keeps asking, "What's next?" You need a way to prioritize experiments so every sprint moves the needle.
Mini Case
Meet Aisha. She leads a product analytics team of five. Every week, they pull data, spot a few changes, and run an experiment. But last quarter, 3 out of 5 experiments had zero impact. Aisha realized she was picking moves based on gut, not on where her product actually wins or loses.
She built a competitive map using the Strategy Basics: Competitive Map course. She mapped her product against two main competitors across three customer segments. The map showed a clear gap: her team was 12% slower on a key feature that mattered most to their highest-value segment. That one insight helped her prioritize a single experiment: speed up that feature. The result? A 7-day sprint that boosted retention by 8%.
Do This Now (5 Steps)
- List your top three competitors. Not every logo in the market. Just the ones your customers compare you to most.
- Pick one customer segment wedge. Use the Customer Segment Wedge mission from the course. Focus on the group that brings the most revenue or growth.
- Build a simple grid. Write your product and competitors across the top. Down the side, list 3-5 features or attributes that matter to that segment.
- Score each cell. Use a scale of 1-5. Be honest. Where do you lose? Where do you win?
- Pick one gap. Find the cell where you score lowest and the competitor scores highest. That's your next experiment.
Avoid These Traps
- Don't map every competitor. Three is plenty. More than that and you'll drown in noise.
- Don't use vague attributes. "UX" is too broad. Use specific things like "setup time" or "report load speed."
- Don't skip the evidence. If you score a 4, have a data point to back it up. Gut scores lead to gut experiments.
- Don't forget to revisit. Markets shift. Update your map every quarter.
Your Win by Friday
By Friday, you'll have a one-page competitive map that shows exactly where to run your next experiment. Your team will stop guessing and start moving. And you'll have a repeatable routine to prioritize every sprint from now on.
And hey, if you can make the map fun—add some emojis for the wins and losses—your team might actually enjoy strategy time.