Do You Know Who Your True Competitors Are?

In a race, it’s easy to keep an eye on the runners just ahead of and behind you. But they aren’t the only competitors to look out for. Some opponents will pick up speed in the final miles. And by the time they make it onto your radar, it could be too late. 

Likewise, your brand’s direct competitors — the ones you know about — may not be your biggest threat. The indirect competitors lurking in your blind spot could pose a bigger problem. 

Understand the difference between direct and indirect competitors, and learn how to identify yours. 

Direct vs. indirect competitors 

Direct competitors are the brands that offer similar products or services. For example:

Direct competitors tend to be obvious. It’s harder to determine who your indirect competitors are. 

In that case, what are indirect competitors? Indirect competitors offer alternative solutions to the same consumer needs you serve. These brands may not be in your industry, but they address the same problems that you do (and serve some of the same customers). 

Example: McDonald’s competitors

Consider the direct and indirect competitors of McDonald’s. As a fast food industry giant, McDonald’s directly competes with a number of key players, including Burger King, Wendy’s, Taco Bell and Chick-fil-A.

These brands are direct competitors due to their similarities in price, experience and food quality. (Chick-fil-A might feel healthier, but it’s still far from farm-to-table.)

Indirect competitors are more diverse. Depending on the customer’s need, McDonald’s could also be competing with: 

• Sit-down restaurants 
• Fast casual chains like Chipotle
• Grocery stores
• Meal kits like HelloFresh

Maybe the customer wants a budget-friendly meal, or maybe they’re looking for a quick treat. The job the consumer wants to get done will impact the alternative solutions they consider. In other words, indirect competitors depend on what the customer needs. 

How to identify your indirect competitors 

To know your indirect competitors, you must deeply understand your consumers and their needs. This is easier said than done. It requires an effective framework for consumer research. 

Jobs-to-be-Done offers a structured approach to competitive analysis. You can use it to:

• Understand your consumers’ needs (these directly impact the job to be done)
• Identify competitors (the other products or services that can get the job done)
• Gain a competitive edge (be the solution that people choose to complete the job)

Learn how to apply the Jobs-to-be-Done framework to gain competitive insights, step by step:

1. Know the jobs you’re hired for
2. Research alternative options to your solution
3. Test alternative solutions 

 New to this framework? Read this guide to Jobs-to-be-Done first.

Step 1: Know the jobs you’re hired for

You can’t win if you don’t play. And in order to play, you have to know the rules of the game. You have to know what jobs your product is hired for. 

To identify your jobs (and the consumer needs you serve), conduct in-depth interviews with customers. Ask questions like: 

• What were you looking to achieve from purchasing this product or service?
• What triggered you to look for a solution like this one?
• If everything went well, what would the end result look like? 

You’ll probably find that different people hire you for different jobs. Scale the insights from your in-depth interviews to nail down the handful of jobs you’re chosen to get done.

Step 2: Research alternative options to your solution 

Now that you’re clear on your consumers’ needs, explore the other options on the market that satisfy those needs. Consider these as starting points: 

• Other solutions your customers considered 
• Work-arounds being used to meet those needs
• The solutions they tried before you or switched to you from

Then think outside the box. Interview questions like “What other companies did you consider?” often prompt surface-level answers. For deeper insights, focus on consumer needs — especially those that haven’t been met by other solutions. These will often reveal hidden indirect competitors. 

For example, LA Fitness might find that members who like swimming laps are more likely to cancel in the summer when outdoor pools open. Or they may find that many of their members are considering switching to specialized studios with a stronger community, like Orange Theory. 

Remember, your indirect competitors don’t offer the same products or services as you do. They offer consumers an alternative way to get the job done. 

Step 3: Test alternative solutions 

Analyze the other products or services that get the job done for consumers and determine opportunities to innovate, improve your product or expand your services. 

Bring stakeholders together (including customers) in design thinking workshops to:

• Discuss unmet needs
• Identify challenges and work-arounds 
• Build prototypes of new solutions
• Test and iterate 

The value in this type of market research isn’t just the insights — it’s the opportunities you uncover as a result. 

Putting it into practice: Using JTBD to identify McDonald’s competitors 

How might McDonald’s apply this framework to identify their indirect competitors? 

Start with the jobs. Consumers might hire McDonald’s in search of: 

• Convenience: Quick food that they don’t have to make themselves. 
• Budget-friendly food: A satisfying meal that won’t break the bank. 
• Comfort food: A tasty and familiar option. 
• A family-friendly environment: They want something to keep the kids entertained while they relax for a minute.

(Disclaimer: We haven’t conducted in-depth interviews with McDonald’s customers, so these are speculative for the purposes of the example. Jobs should come from interviews, not assumptions.)

Based on these consumer needs, McDonald’s has a wide range of potential competitors.

• Customers in search of convenience might also consider...
  • Leftovers
  • TV dinner
  • A meal from Whole Foods’ hot section
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• Budget-conscious customers might instead...
  • Buy groceries to make dinner themselves
  • Warm up leftovers
  • Hit up a local restaurant for a happy-hour special
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• Consumers who want comfort food may also consider...
  • Their favorite takeout
  • Stopping by their parents’ house for mom’s cooking 
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• The family-friendly crowd might ditch food altogether and opt to...
  • Take their kids to a trampoline park or head to the playground to burn some energy
  • Stop by Goodwill to pick up some second-hand happy meal toys

The importance of knowing your competitors 

Why does this work matter? Why should brands invest resources into understanding the products and services they’re truly up against? 

These competitive insights can translate to:

• Informed innovation: Use market opportunities and unmet consumer needs as a jumping-off point for innovation. Think of brands like Bumble and Netflix. Both brands changed the game in their markets by meeting unmet needs. 
• Strategic advantages: This work helps you anticipate changes in the market, adapt and avoid disruption. Imagine if Blockbuster had seen the writing on the wall sooner with Netflix — maybe it could have adapted and survived the impact.
• Effective marketing: By uncovering all of the choices available to your audience, you can differentiate and build better messaging. Snickers’ iconic “You’re not you when you’re hungry” campaign wasn’t born in a boardroom — it was born from Jobs-to-be-Done research.

Don’t fall victim to blind spots 

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