Should you dissect your competitors by industries that are most bound to encounter them in?

That's one way you can segment competitors. A few others you may want to consider:

• Persona that's most likely to purchase the competitor
• Company size that's most likely to purchase the competitor
• Cost of competitor
• Region where the competitor is most popular
• Products that the competitor offers

Try building out a market map that shows, visually, where you run into competitors most. See who shows up most frequently—those are likely competitors that you should keep an eye on.

If you see different competitors by industry, then yes. At a previous company we realized that when we expanded into different industries (e.g. going from Tech to Healthcare), the competitive landscape changed somewhat. By doing a win/loss analysis we figured out that most deals that we lost, were 80% of the time going to a vendor we had never heard before. As we dug into it, we realized that the vendor had its origins in the healthcare space and since inception had never ventured out of that industry so it was not surprising we were completely unaware of them. As we interviewed customers, we then discovered why they were successful, how customers used them, what they liked and disliked about the vendor and we crafted a different competitive positioning for that particular market.

So as you venture to other industries is important to take stock of the players there and possibly create new messaging, positioning, pitch decks, demos, etc. that match the expectations of your customers.

This question blends market strategy with competitive strategy. Yes, it’s common to pursue industries that align with your GTM strategy. (Pro-Tip! Check out my AMA on GTM strategy here). In doing so, you’ll run into competitors who’s GTM strategy may be similar to yours. That could include industries or geo-locations. If you’re just starting your competitive analysis from scratch, then prioritizing competitors who show in your target market is a great place to start. However, don’t stop there when deciding which competitors do go deep on with your analysis. Prioritization of competition should start with data from sales and customers. Which competitors are coming up in deals? Which competitors do your customers ask most about during sales calls? You need to answer these questions during your competitive analysis and before your can prioritize where to spend your time across competitors.

Pro-Tip: Include your sales team in the decision making when prioritizing which competitors to analyze first or with the most detail.

It can be helpful to dissect your competitors by the industries in which you are most likely to encounter them, as this can provide valuable insights into their strengths and weaknesses, as well as their strategies and tactics. By understanding the industries in which your competitors operate, you can better position your own products and services in the market, and tailor your marketing and sales efforts to address the unique needs and pain points of those industries. Additionally, studying your competitors in the industries in which you are most likely to encounter them can help you identify potential partnerships, alliances, or co-marketing opportunities that can help you reach new customers and expand your market share.

If you're asking this question, it sounds like your sellers are likely to see different competitors in different industries. I would ask:

• Do the use cases differ for customers in different industries? Do you and your competitors have different relative strengths in different industries, on buying criteria that carry different weights?
• Would your sellers need to run different competitive plays based on the industry they're selling to?

If you answered yes to either of these questions, you may need to build competitive playbooks by industry. If the only differences to your sellers are the mix of competitors they're likely to see in a particular deal or the number of logos your competitor will be putting on a slide, you probably don't need separate analyses or playbooks .