Every quarter, I spent a week building a comprehensive competitive intelligence report for our exec team:
Contents:
- Competitor overview (40 slides)
- Detailed feature comparisons (18 slides)
- Pricing analysis (12 slides)
- Win/loss data deep-dive (15 slides)
- Market trends analysis (10 slides)
- Strategic recommendations (8 slides)
Total: 103 slides. Hours of work. Comprehensive coverage.
I presented it at the quarterly business review. Executives listened for 15 minutes, asked two questions, and moved on.
A week later, I asked our CEO: "Based on the competitive report, should we adjust our Q2 strategy?"
He paused. "Remind me what the key recommendations were?"
He'd forgotten. Not because he didn't care—because the report was too dense, too comprehensive, too full of data without clear implications.
I rebuilt my approach from scratch. Instead of comprehensive reports, I created executive briefings optimized for decision-making, not completeness.
The new format: 3 pages. 15 minutes to read. Actionable recommendations.
Executives actually read it. They referenced it in strategy discussions. They made decisions based on it.
Here's what works.
Why Comprehensive Competitive Reports Fail
The classic quarterly competitive report format:
Section 1: Executive summary (that's not actually a summary)
3 pages of dense text trying to summarize 100 slides. Still too long to be a real summary.
Section 2: Competitor profiles
10-15 slides per competitor covering history, funding, leadership, strategy, products, pricing. Comprehensive and boring.
Section 3: Feature comparison matrices
Massive spreadsheets with 50+ features compared across 6 competitors. Nobody can remember any of it.
Section 4: Market analysis
Industry trends, analyst perspectives, market sizing. Interesting but not actionable.
Section 5: Recommendations
Finally, on slide 98, the actual strategic recommendations. Most executives never get this far.
Why this fails:
Problem 1: Buried insights
The insights that matter are on slide 98. Executives skim slides 1-30 and check out.
Problem 2: Information overload
Humans can hold 3-5 key points in working memory. You're giving them 50+ data points.
Problem 3: No forcing function for decisions
Reports present data without forcing "based on this, we should do X."
Problem 4: Not scannable
Executives read in 3-minute blocks between meetings. Dense reports require uninterrupted focus they don't have.
The 3-Page Executive Competitive Briefing Format
I redesigned quarterly briefings to be readable in one sitting and immediately actionable.
Format:
Page 1: Strategic Summary (The "So What")
This is the only page some executives will read. It must stand alone.
Section 1: Quarter in review (3 bullets max)
What changed competitively this quarter:
Example:
- Competitor X acquired by Enterprise Co (impact: 12-month integration distraction, opportunity to win their customers)
- Competitor Y increased pricing 25% (impact: customers evaluating alternatives, we positioned as stable pricing)
- Competitor Z launched mobile app (impact: closed feature gap, we accelerated our mobile roadmap)
Section 2: Our competitive position (numbers + trend)
Win rate data that tells the story:
Example:
- Overall win rate: 54% (▲ from 48% last quarter)
- vs. Competitor X: 61% (▲ from 52% - acquisition creating opportunity)
- vs. Competitor Y: 58% (▲ from 44% - pricing positioning working)
- vs. Competitor Z: 42% (▼ from 47% - mobile app launch impacting deals)
Section 3: Strategic implications (what this means)
3-5 bullet interpretation:
Example:
- Competitor X acquisition = 6-12 month window to win their customers before integration stabilizes
- Our speed positioning is working (mentioned in 73% of wins)
- Mobile remains competitive gap (mentioned in 41% of losses vs. Competitor Z)
Section 4: Recommended actions (what we should do)
3-5 specific, actionable recommendations with owners:
Example:
- Launch customer acquisition campaign targeting Competitor X customers (Owner: Marketing, Timeline: April)
- Accelerate mobile roadmap to Q2 (Owner: Product, Timeline: ship by June)
- Maintain pricing stability positioning (Owner: PMM/Sales, Timeline: ongoing)
Page 1 total: 500 words max, readable in 3 minutes
Page 2: Win/Loss Intelligence (What Actually Drives Deals)
This page answers: "Why are we winning and losing?"
Section 1: Top win themes (why customers choose us)
Based on win/loss interviews, top 3 reasons customers chose us:
Example:
-
Speed to first launch (mentioned in 67% of wins)
- Customer quote: "We launched our first product in 5 days vs. 3 weeks with Competitor X"
- Implication: Continue emphasizing speed differentiation
-
Purpose-built for PMMs (mentioned in 54% of wins)
- Customer quote: "Other tools are generic PM software. This understands product marketing workflows"
- Implication: Maintain GTM-specific positioning
-
Responsive support (mentioned in 48% of wins)
- Customer quote: "We get answers in hours, not days like with competitors"
- Implication: Support speed is competitive advantage
Section 2: Top loss themes (why we lose)
Top 3 reasons we lost competitive deals:
Example:
-
Enterprise features (mentioned in 41% of losses)
- Specific gaps: Advanced permissions, SSO, audit logs
- Implication: Product decision needed—build for enterprise or own mid-market?
-
Brand recognition (mentioned in 28% of losses)
- Larger competitors perceived as "safer choice" for enterprise
- Implication: Build enterprise customer case studies, target analyst relations
-
Mobile app (mentioned in 24% of losses)
- Competitors have native mobile apps, we don't
- Implication: Accelerate mobile roadmap (already recommended page 1)
Section 3: Positioning what's working
Sales talk tracks that correlate with wins:
Example:
- "Launch your first product this week, not next month" (speed positioning) = 68% win rate when used
- "Built for product marketers, not project managers" (specialization) = 64% win rate when used
Page 2 total: 600 words max, readable in 4 minutes
Page 3: Competitive Landscape Changes (What to Watch)
This page answers: "What's changing and what should we prepare for?"
Section 1: Competitor moves this quarter
Significant competitive changes with strategic assessment:
Example:
Competitor X: Acquired by Enterprise Co ($180M)
- Short-term (0-6 months): Integration chaos, customer churn opportunity
- Long-term (12+ months): Likely stronger with parent resources
- Our response: Aggressive customer acquisition campaign (next 6 months)
Competitor Y: Launched AI features
- Assessment: Marketing positioning > actual substance (minimal AI in product demos)
- Customer reaction: Mixed—some excited, most don't care about AI hype
- Our response: Focus on outcomes ("launch 40% faster") vs. AI buzzwords
Competitor Z: Increased pricing 25%
- Assessment: Moving upmarket, testing pricing power
- Customer reaction: Seeing complaints in G2 reviews, inquiries from their customers
- Our response: Emphasize pricing stability, target their price-sensitive customers
Section 2: Market trends to watch
3 broader market shifts that might affect competitive dynamics:
Example:
- Remote/distributed teams = increasing demand for async collaboration (affects product roadmap)
- PLG adoption = more buyers want to try before buying (affects our trial strategy)
- AI hype cycle = buyers asking about AI even when not relevant (affects our positioning)
Section 3: Next quarter priorities
Top 3 competitive intelligence priorities for next quarter:
Example:
- Monitor Competitor X customer churn and conversion opportunity
- Track Competitor Z's upmarket positioning (are they abandoning mid-market?)
- Analyze effectiveness of our mobile roadmap acceleration
Page 3 total: 500 words max, readable in 3 minutes
Total briefing: 3 pages, ~1,600 words, 10 minutes to read
How to Create This Briefing Efficiently
You might think: "A 3-page briefing seems simple, but I bet it takes forever to create."
Actually, it takes less time than comprehensive reports because it's focused.
My process (4 hours total):
Hour 1: Gather data
- Pull win rate data from CRM dashboard (10 min)
- Review win/loss interview notes from quarter (30 min)
- Check competitive monitoring alerts/Slack channel for significant changes (20 min)
Hour 2: Identify patterns
- Code win/loss interviews for themes (30 min)
- Identify top 3 win reasons and top 3 loss reasons (15 min)
- Determine which competitive moves matter vs. noise (15 min)
Hour 3: Draft briefing
- Write Page 1: Strategic summary and recommendations (30 min)
- Write Page 2: Win/loss intelligence (20 min)
- Write Page 3: Competitive landscape (10 min)
Hour 4: Review and refine
- Edit for clarity and conciseness (20 min)
- Add data visualizations (simple charts, not complex) (20 min)
- Get feedback from sales leader (15 min)
- Final review (5 min)
4 hours vs. 20-30 hours for comprehensive report
Benefit: I can do this every quarter without burning out.
How to Present the Briefing
The briefing is designed to be read asynchronously, but I still present it at QBR:
Presentation format (15 minutes):
Minutes 1-5: Page 1 walkthrough
- What changed this quarter (key competitive moves)
- Our win rate trend (showing improvement or decline)
- Strategic implications
- Recommended actions
Minutes 6-10: Page 2 highlights
- Top 2 win themes (what's working)
- Top 2 loss themes (what we need to address)
- Positioning that drives wins
Minutes 11-15: Discussion
- Exec team discussion on recommendations
- Decide: Approve recommendations, modify, or table
- Assign owners and timelines
Key difference from old approach:
Old: 45-minute presentation, 5-minute discussion New: 15-minute presentation, 30-minute discussion
The briefing format shifts time from presentation to decision-making.
How to Make Briefings Actionable
The briefing only matters if it drives action. Here's how I ensure follow-through:
Tactic 1: Recommendations have owners
Every recommendation includes:
- Specific action
- Owner (person responsible)
- Timeline (when it should happen)
- Success metric (how we'll know it worked)
Example: Recommendation: Launch customer acquisition campaign targeting Competitor X customers Owner: Marketing (Sarah) Timeline: Campaign launch by April 15 Success metric: Convert 15+ Competitor X customers by end of Q2
Tactic 2: Track recommendation implementation
In next quarter's briefing, I include:
"Q1 Recommendations: Implementation Status"
- ✅ Mobile roadmap accelerated (shipped May 15, 2 weeks ahead of schedule)
- ✅ Competitor X acquisition campaign (converted 18 customers, exceeded goal)
- ⏳ Enterprise feature development (on track for Q3 delivery)
This creates accountability and shows briefings drive real outcomes.
Tactic 3: Monthly check-ins
I don't wait until next quarter. Monthly, I send brief update:
"Competitive Intelligence: Monthly Update"
- Win rate vs. each competitor (tracking toward quarterly goals)
- Progress on quarterly recommendations
- New competitive developments requiring attention
For teams managing quarterly competitive briefings across multiple executives or business units, platforms like Segment8 help centralize competitive data and generate executive-ready insights automatically.
Common Executive Briefing Mistakes
Mistake 1: Making it a data dump
Executives don't need all the data. They need interpretation and recommendations.
Fix: Lead with "So what" and "Do this," not with raw data.
Mistake 2: No clear recommendations
Ending with "Here's what's happening in the market" without "Here's what we should do about it."
Fix: Every briefing must have 3-5 specific, actionable recommendations.
Mistake 3: Too much detail
"Let me walk you through our 47-feature comparison matrix..."
Fix: 3 pages max. If executives want more detail, they'll ask.
Mistake 4: Not connecting to business metrics
Competitive intelligence that doesn't tie to revenue, win rate, or strategic goals feels academic.
Fix: Always connect competitive insights to business outcomes.
Mistake 5: One-time report vs. ongoing narrative
Treating each quarterly briefing as standalone instead of ongoing story.
Fix: Reference last quarter's briefing, show trends, track recommendation outcomes.
Measuring Briefing Effectiveness
How do you know if your briefing format works?
Metric 1: Executive engagement
Do executives actually read it?
Old format: ~30% of executives read full report New format: ~90% of executives read full briefing
Metric 2: Discussion time
How much time spent discussing vs. presenting?
Old format: 45 min presentation, 5 min discussion New format: 15 min presentation, 30 min discussion
Metric 3: Actions taken
How many recommendations get implemented?
Old format: 2-3 recommendations per quarter, 40% implementation rate New format: 3-5 recommendations per quarter, 85% implementation rate
Metric 4: Strategic influence
How often does competitive intelligence influence major decisions?
Examples:
- Mobile roadmap acceleration (directly from competitive briefing)
- Competitor X acquisition response campaign (directly from briefing)
- Pricing strategy maintenance (validated by win rate data in briefing)
The Bottom Line on Executive Competitive Briefings
Executives don't need comprehensive competitive reports. They need:
What changed (competitive landscape shifts) What it means (strategic implications) What to do (specific recommendations)
The format:
- 3 pages max
- 10 minutes to read
- 3-5 actionable recommendations
- Owners and timelines
- Connected to business metrics
Time to create: 4 hours quarterly (vs. 20-30 hours for comprehensive reports)
Impact: Higher executive engagement, more recommendations implemented, better strategic decisions.
Most PMMs create comprehensive competitive reports that executives skim and forget. The smart ones create focused briefings that executives read, discuss, and act on.
You don't need more data. You need clearer insights and more actionable recommendations.