UX Strategy, 2nd Edition

Chapter 5. Analyzing the Competition

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Analyzing the Competition

[Analysis is] the skilled application of scientific and non-scientific methods and processes by which individuals interpret data or information to produce insightful intelligence findings and actionable recommendations for decision makers.*

—BABETTE BENSOUSSAN AND CRAIG FLEISHER,BUSINESS AND COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

After doing a thorough investigation of the marketplace, it’s time to pull out of the micro and into the macro. In this chapter, I’m going to show you how to apply systematic techniques for extracting key findings from all the research you conducted in Chapter 4. By the end of this chapter, you will understand how to perform competitive benchmarking, identify industry trends, and unearth business models you may not have considered. My goal is to prepare you to take a stance on the viability of your product in the marketplace so that you can make recommendations about how to move forward—in other words, conducting Tenet 1: Business Strategy (Figure 5-1).

FIGURE 5-1

Tenet 1: Business Strategy

The Blockbuster Value Proposition, Part 2

Let’s jump back to the drama we left in Chapter 3 in which our UX strategist, Jaime, talks to Paul, a big-time movie producer, about Paul’s shopping-site idea for the wealthy busy man. They’re on a Hollywood back lot, and Paul’s just revealed how his value proposition ...