How to Research Competitors for a Startup or SaaS Product

Step 1 — Find them (all of them)

Cast a wider net than you think.

• Direct: same problem, same audience, similar solution
• Indirect: same problem, different solution (spreadsheets count)
• Adjacent: same audience, related problem
• Aspirational: brands your customers admire

Step 2 — Read the reviews they'd rather you didn't

Pull 20-40 reviews from G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, Product Hunt, and Reddit. Read only the 1-star, 2-star, and 3-star ones. That is where the wedge lives — the recurring frustrations customers accept because they have no alternative.

Step 3 — Map positioning on two axes

Pick the two axes that matter most in your market — often price vs power, or generalist vs specialist. Plot each competitor. Empty quadrants are opportunities; crowded ones are dogfights.

Step 4 — Deconstruct their pricing and packaging

Note their price floor, ceiling, and value metric. If everyone charges per seat, per-usage may be your wedge. If everyone charges per usage, a flat rate can be. Pricing is a positioning tool as much as a revenue tool.

Step 5 — Pick your one-sentence wedge

Complete this sentence: 'For [specific customer], we are the only [category] that [unique thing] because [defensible reason].' If you cannot fill it in without hedging, keep looking.

Forge AI automates steps 1-4 and hands you a first-draft wedge you can refine.