How to Perform a Competitive Analysis in Excel?

Ahoy there, fellow business sharks!

I assume you are swimming deep in the vast ocean of commerce. Therefore, you know how crucial it is to stay ahead of the pack.

And what better way to do that than performing a competitive analysis?

It’s like playing a chess game with real money at stake. Trust me; you don’t want to make a wrong move and end up as chum for the competition.

So, let me guide you on how to perform a competitive analysis. We’ll dive deep into market research, product features, marketing strategies, and more.

We’ll thoroughly evaluate your competitors, identifying their areas of excellence and limitations to leverage them to your advantage. With the right tools and techniques, you can master the art of competitive analysis. Consequently, gain the upper hand in the market.

Think of it as your business spy mission, minus the tuxedo and fancy gadgets.

Are you ready to swim with the big fish?

Let’s dive in.

What is a Competitive Analysis?

Competitive analysis involves comprehensively evaluating your competitors’ products, marketing strategies, pricing, and industry trends. Consequently, identify opportunities and threats in your market.

Think of competitive analysis like a game of chess.

A skilled chess player uses their knowledge of the opponent to make strategic moves. Similarly, competitive analysis gives you insights to make informed decisions and differentiate your business from the competition.

Benefits of Competitive Analysis

Competitive analysis offers several benefits:

1. Identifying market opportunities: By analyzing competitors’ offerings, you can identify gaps in the market or areas where rivals fall short. This enables you to identify new opportunities and develop strategies to capitalize on them.
2. Understanding customer preferences: By studying competitors’ marketing strategies and interactions, you can gain insights into customer preferences and behaviors. This understanding helps tailor products, services, and marketing efforts to meet customer needs better.
3. Assessing strengths and weaknesses: Competitive analysis allows you to assess your strengths and weaknesses compared to competitors objectively. This evaluation helps identify areas for improvement and potential competitive advantages.
4. Adapting marketing strategies: By analyzing competitors’ marketing tactics, you can identify and adapt successful approaches to your marketing strategies. This can include identifying effective advertising channels, pricing strategies, or promotional activities.
5. Mitigating risks and threats: Competitive analysis helps you identify potential threats and risks in the market. By understanding the actions and strategies of competitors, you can proactively respond to market changes and competitive challenges.
6. Informing strategic decision-making: Competitive analysis provides valuable insights that can inform strategic decision-making processes. This includes identifying new target markets, adjusting pricing strategies, developing unique value propositions, or enhancing product offerings.

Competitive Analysis Examples

Let’s explore real-world competitive analysis examples and discuss how you can apply these insights to your business.

• Comparison Bar Chart

A Comparison Bar Chart is a graphical representation that compares multiple data sets or categories. It consists of rectangular bars of varying lengths, each representing a specific data point or category. The length of the bars corresponds to the magnitude or value of the data under comparison.

Comparison Bar charts find common use in illustrating and analyzing quantitative data. This allows for easy visual comparisons between different categories or data sets.

Example

Let’s say you have quarterly traffic data for your website compared to your competitor’s.

Quarters	Companies	Traffic
Q1	Your Company	250986
Q1	Competitor 1	26106
Q1	Competitor 2	95563
Q2	Your Company	160466
Q2	Competitor 1	78874
Q2	Competitor 2	71263
Q3	Your Company	223179
Q3	Competitor 1	134726
Q3	Competitor 2	121635
Q4	Your Company	201495
Q4	Competitor 1	32707
Q4	Competitor 2	208904

Below is an illustration of a Comparison Bar Chart of the data.

• Stacked Bar Chart

A Stacked Bar Chart presents multiple data sets as stacked bars. Each bar represents a category or a data point. The total height of each bar represents the combined value of the data sets under comparison. The bars are divided into segments, each representing a specific component or subcategory within the data set. Stacked Bar charts are useful for showing the composition or distribution of data within different categories.

Example

Let’s say you have the market share data of your company and your competitor’s company, as shown below.

Countries	Companies	Garments	Electronics	Toys
USA	Your Company	56	37	7
USA	Competitor’s Company	25	11	64
Canada	Your Company	52	38	10
Canada	Competitor’s Company	52	34	14
UK	Your Company	53	22	25
UK	Competitor’s Company	32	35	33
UAE	Your Company	27	24	49
UAE	Competitor’s Company	44	26	31

You can map this data on a Stacked Bar Chart visualization for effortless gleaning of insights.

• Radar Chart

A Radar Chart is also known as a Spider Chart or Web Chart. It is a graphical representation that displays multivariate data in a two-dimensional format. It consists of a series of equiangular spokes, with each spoke representing a different variable or dimension. The data values for each variable are plotted along these spokes. Then the resulting data points connect to form a polygon shape. Radar charts are useful for comparing and visualizing strengths and weaknesses across multiple categories.

Example

Let’s say you have sales data distributed in different months and product categories, as shown below.

Months	Your Website	Competitors Website
Jan	614000	646000
Feb	579000	740000
Mar	753000	954000
Apr	956000	616000
May	545000	880000
Jun	697000	531000
Jul	677000	462000
Aug	742000	962000
Sep	512000	688000
Oct	750000	553000
Nov	659000	518000
Dec	849000	457000

You can map this data on a Radar Chart, as shown below.

How to Do Competitor Analysis in Excel?

In business strategy, the quest for competitive advantage reigns supreme. To navigate the intricate landscape of rival companies, harnessing the power of data analysis is essential. And what better ally to assist in this endeavor than the ubiquitous Excel spreadsheet?

But with so much data to sift through, Excel analysis becomes challenging.

Enter ChartExpo, your go-to tool for conducting comprehensive competitor analysis right within the familiar confines of Excel. With ChartExpo’s intuitive features and user-friendly interface, you can gather and organize competitor data effortlessly. Then analyze their strengths and weaknesses, and unveil invaluable insights that can shape your business strategies.

Benefits of Using ChartExpo

• ChartExpo provides a wide array of visualizations, allowing you to select the most relevant one for your data. This simplifies both data analysis and presentation, enhancing their effectiveness.
• The user-friendly interface of ChartExpo enables the effortless creation of insightful data visualizations, even without any coding experience.
• With ChartExpo’s customization options, you can create one-of-a-kind visualizations tailored to your preferences.
• ChartExpo has a cost-effective pricing model, including a free 7-day trial and a $10 monthly plan.

How to Install ChartExpo in Excel?

1. Open your Excel application.
2. Open the worksheet and click the “Insert” menu.
3. You’ll see the “My Apps” option.
4. In the office Add-ins window, click “Store” and search for ChartExpo on my Apps Store.
5. Click the “Add” button to install ChartExpo in your Excel.

ChartExpo charts are available both in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. Please use the following CTA’s to install the tool of your choice and create beautiful visualizations in a few clicks in your favorite tool.

Let’s create a Radar Chart visualization of your data and glean valuable insights.

• To get started with ChartExpo, install ChartExpo in Excel.
• Now Click on My Apps from the INSERT menu.

• Choose ChartExpo from My Apps, then click Insert.

• Upon loading, select “Radar Chart” from the list of charts.

• Select the data from the sheet, then click the “Create Chart From Selection” button.

• The Radar Chart will appear as below.

• Click the Edit Chart button to modify your chart.
• Click the pencil icon next to the Chart Header to change the title.
• It will open the properties dialog. Add a heading in Line 1 of the Text section and enable the Show. Give the appropriate title of your chart and click the Apply button.

• Click the Save Changes button to persist the changes.
• To enlarge the size of the dots in the Radar Chart, click the “Settings” button. Expand the “Curve Point” property and toggle the “Show” option.

• Click the “Apply” button to keep the modifications.
• The final chart will appear below.

Insights

• In January, your and your competitor’s websites had almost the same amount of traffic.
• In five months, namely February, March, May, August, and September, your competitor’s website outperformed yours. This could be attributed to their larger user base.
• Your website performed better than your competitor’s in six months of the year – April, June, July, October, November, and December. Thanks to your consistently higher levels of traffic.

FAQs

What is a competitive analysis?

A competitive analysis is a strategic assessment of competitors in a specific market or industry. It involves evaluating their strengths, weaknesses, products, pricing, and marketing strategies. Consequently, gain insights for informing strategic decisions and gaining a competitive edge.

What should a competitive analysis include?

A competitive analysis should include an evaluation of the following competitor aspects;

• Strengths and weaknesses.
• Product or service offerings.
• Pricing strategies.
• Distribution channels.
• Marketing tactics.
• Market share.
• Overall performance.

It should also identify opportunities and threats in the market that can inform strategic decision-making.

What are the benefits of performing a competitive analysis?

Performing a competitive analysis offers several benefits;

• Identifying market opportunities.
• Understanding customer preferences.
• Assessing strengths and weaknesses.
• Adapting marketing strategies.
• Mitigating risks and threats.
• Informing strategic decision-making.

Wrap Up

Performing a competitive analysis is vital for any business aiming to thrive in a competitive market. By following a systematic approach, you can effectively conduct a comprehensive analysis and gain valuable insights.

First, identify your key competitors. Then gather relevant data on their products, pricing, distribution channels, marketing strategies, and overall performance. Lastly, analyze this data to identify patterns, strengths, and weaknesses.

It’s also essential to compare your business against competitors. This helps you identify areas where you have a competitive advantage and areas where you need improvement. Consequently, understand how to position your business in the market.

Remember that performing a competitive analysis is an ongoing process. Markets and competitors evolve, and updating and reassessing your analysis to stay ahead regularly is crucial.

Conclusively, the art of competitive analysis is as old as the business itself. With the advent of the internet, data analysis has become a highly specialized field.

Unfortunately, Excel is not capable of handling large data sets.

Fortunately, with ChartExpo, you can easily conduct a competitive analysis in Excel and produce fantastic results.