Welcome to the 70th issue of Soloist Sundays, a bimonthly newsletter focusing on longevity, balance and success on your terms for independent consultants, creatives and freelancers.

I'm your writer and host, Matthew Fenton. Thank you for being here. Today's post is about a 5-minute read.

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My last post, Who’s Your Real Competition, resulted in a number of emails from readers who wanted me to go a little deeper in certain areas. So, that’s what we’ll be doing in the next few editions of Soloist Sundays.

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Though I think it’s a mistake to overestimate our traditional competitors – awareness and authority can largely neutralize them – I do recommend conducting a competitive audit about once a year.

An audit will give you a read on how your competitors go to market – and will provide inspiration for your own decision-making.

Competitive Audit: Dos and Don’ts

Here are some tips for conducting a competitive audit that’s both lightweight and useful:

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DON’T: Just dive right in. Without guardrails, an audit can become an unending series of rabbit-holes: “This guy has an interesting lead magnet – I better download that. Wow, cool animation. Do I need an animation? Oh, hello, manifesto! Why don’t I have a manifesto? Let’s write a manifesto NOW.” And so on.

DO: Start with an objective – a simple statement of why you’re conducting the audit and how you’ll use it.

Fill in these blanks:

“I will use this audit to learn __. With that learning, I will __.”

For the audit we’ll use as an example today, this statement would read:

“I will use this audit to learn the positioning of competitive offerings. With that learning, I will improve my own website and communications.”

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DON’T: Feel you must audit “the universe.” I tried that once, reviewing several dozen competitors. It was a waste of time, and joyless and demotivating to boot.

DO: Keep it to no more than 10 competitors that you bump up against (or are likely to). Maybe throw in a few that you aspire to. These can be other local suppliers, prominent names within your niche, etc.

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DON’T: Let it constrain you. You’re not here to paint by other people’s numbers.

DO: Use it to feel inspired. I can’t stress this point enough. Done correctly, a competitive audit should leave you with two kinds of inspiration: Recognition of good work (“I can learn from what I’ve seen”) and reinforcement of your strengths (“I have something valuable to bring to the party”).

A Competitive Audit in Action

Again, in today’s example, we’ll be auditing the positioning of competitive offerings, which is the most common kind of audit for soloists like us.

Here's a Word doc that you can download to conduct your own competitive audit, and to follow along with the example below.

​Click here to download the Competitive Audit grid.​

I try to keep these things simple. Down the left-hand side of the grid, you’ll list the names of your relevant competitors. Across the top, you’ll list the key categories to audit.

The categories will change depending on the type of audit you’re conducting; if you were auditing visual identity or content strategy, you’d use different categories. But it helps to know what you’re hunting for before you leave the lodge.

Some commentary on each category:

Target

Since communication is defined by its intended audience, it’s always best to start with the target.

Some of your competitors will be overt about who they’re targeting. Others will require you to work a bit, and sometimes you still won’t be able to figure it out. (Never a great sign!)

If they use specific language to identify their target, include it verbatim. I put an “(O)” at the end, to indicate “overt.” If I’m making a guess, I’ll capture their target in my own language, followed by an “(I)” to indicate “inferred.”

Offering and Pricing

I cluster offering and pricing, since it’s not unusual for your competitors to offer multiple services, each at a different price point.

Pricing can be tough to confirm. Your competitors may not disclose it at all. Or they may list only the floor (“starting at $12k”). Capture what you can, but don’t obsess over it.

Problem / Solution Framing

Typically, a communications choice will be made: To emphasize either the problem the prospect wants to avoid, or the solution they seek to enjoy.

I tend toward the latter, since I credit my audience for being intelligent enough that I don’t need to agitate their problem. (Also, I have a personal aversion to salesmen or landing pages that do this – it can feel manipulative and condescending.)

But there’s no one right approach. So note which path (if either) that they take.

Benefits

What promises are your competitors making? Specifically, what benefits will their clients enjoy after an engagement?

Compound benefits are common in our line of work. And benefits may be numeric, functional, emotional or higher-order. Again, you’re likely to come across several different approaches.

Points of Difference

How do your competitors signal that they’re different than, and superior to, other alternatives?

Look for cohesion between their offering, benefits and points of difference. Some will do this better than others.

You’ll also get a sense of who they’re framing their difference against – other independents, small agencies, larger consultancies, inertia, the status quo, etc.

Proof Points

Proof points convince the prospect that you’ll actually deliver on your promises. Some familiar forms: Testimonials; case studies; pedigree; third-party recognition; and process logic.

You’ll also see, conclusively, that all proof points are not created equal. For example, a testimonial from some rando named “Ted L.” is not nearly as effective as one from “Ted Leo, CEO, Biomusicology Inc.”

I like…

This is the “credit where it’s due” category. What impresses you about the approach this competitor has taken? What serves as positive inspiration for you? This is also a good spot to capture things that don’t fit neatly into the other categories.

I don’t like…

This is the “not for me” category: Massive blocks of text, a smug tone of voice, outlandish promises, etc. This is every bit as valuable as any other form of inspiration, so don’t skip this step.

And that’s it! With no more than ten competitors, and eight focused categories by which to evaluate them, you can complete a very useful audit in a matter of hours.

After the Competitive Audit

An audit is only valuable if you put it to use – the sooner, the better.

After an audit, I like to make a short list of action steps. The last two columns – “I like…” and “I don’t like…” come in particularly handy here.

Review your audit, make a punch list, and get after it. If your list of action steps is lengthy, narrow it down to the 3-5 most impactful changes. You can come back to the rest later.

But the important thing is to turn information into action. Otherwise, the audit is a waste of your time.

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I hope this has simplified the audit process for you. Questions or thoughts on the above? Just drop me a note back.

Today Is the Day!

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If you enjoyed this newsletter, the best compliment you could pay me would be to share it with one person who you think would benefit from it.

​Click here to view or share this post at the Winning Solo website.

Matthew Fenton

Founder & Chief Soloist, Winning Solo​

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P.S. I'm dipping a toe in the LinkedIn pool. If you'd like to check out a few recent posts:
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​Here's what I wrote about our decision to relocate to Oregon. Freelancing made this possible.

​And here's my take on the annual Super Bowl advertising hubbub. TL/DR: It's focused on the wrong things, irrelevant to 99% of us, and a poor use of almost everyone's time.

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With 26 years as an independent consultant, I can work with you to improve just about any aspect of your freelance business. You can learn more about my coaching services here.

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