2025: new trends in competitor research

Direct competitors are the most obvious ones. Their stores’ assortments are not very different from what you offer. Indirect competitors sell similar products and cover the same needs of the target audience. Indirect competitors are usually more difficult to identify than direct ones. But it is even more difficult to recognize the third category – non-obvious competitors (substitutes), those who offer alternative solutions, but by other means. A common mistake is to track and analyze only direct competitors.

It is impossible to make any business decisions without a clear understanding of what is happening in your niche and without knowing what your competitors are doing. 50 years ago, to get at least some information about a competitor, it was necessary to conduct a real investigation, no less in scale than a detective one. A “spy” employee or a hidden buyer was sent for “reconnaissance”, shop windows and advertising were carefully studied. Telephone directories became a significant help: now you could call a competitor and find out, most often illegally, the necessary information.

Modern competitive analysis is not a routine process with a long search and manual data collection. Of course, no one cancels Excel tables or Google Sheets, but new technologies and programs significantly simplify the work. In 2025, successful competitive analysis is automation, speed and accuracy of data. Which competitors have left the market? Who has just arrived and is trying to occupy a profitable niche? PAnDiKubiz company specialists shared how to research competitors: with and without AI, with minimal time and effort.

In 2025, the main tools that will be used to analyze competitors and search for data, as in the previous two years, are applications and chatbots based on artificial intelligence. These are simple programs and services that save time and money. Monitoring the search activity of competitors provides a starting point for your own search strategy.

• Priceva and Competera analyze competitors' prices
• MonkeyLearn or ChatGPT analyze reviews and show which words are repeated most often
• AdSpy or Meta Ads Library services track competitors' advertising on social networks

But keep in mind: AI can provide outdated information, make mistakes, and sometimes even invent data. Therefore, double-check and analyze the information. Follow the news and changes in your niche, visit the sites suggested by AI, advise PAnDiKubiz marketing managers.

Analysis of websites and social networks
Major competitors on the Internet are the first 10-20 company websites in search results. Most often, aggregators and large platforms are at the top of the list - such sites are also useful for analysis. Develop a habit of regularly checking competitors: a direct competitor can go out of business, and an indirect one can become direct. Do not exclude large competitors from the list: track 80% of direct competitors (companies with the same market share) and 20% of large players.

• How is the competitor's website designed (design, texts, promotions, reviews)
• What products or services are promoted on the main page?
• Is there a section with new products and discounts
• Which posts get the most likes and comments
• How brands interact with customers
• What promotions do they launch

Search queries
When evaluating your competitors' marketing strategy, it's worth paying special attention to how and by what search queries users can find their website, social networks and other resources. Analyze advertising campaigns, the tone and style of their content.

How price-sensitive are consumers in your chosen niche? What additional services do competitors provide? Analyze not only the price, but also the entire range of services that competitors offer.

What are your competitors doing? How do they interact with their audience? What topics and trends do they use? What types of content do they publish? If your competitor has more followers and better engagement, it would be a good idea to understand how their strategy differs from others. Competitive analysis helps to determine which promotion tools work better and which do not work at all.

• In Facebook Ads Library, you can see their active advertising campaigns.
• Google Trends shows: the popularity of search queries, what users are looking for and how popular your competitor is.
• SEMrush is an online program for analyzing keywords and traffic.
• SimilarWeb helps you see your competitor's traffic sources
• Ahrefs is a professional platform for deep analysis of traffic, keywords and advertising strategies
• Monitor social networks through built-in analytics for Facebook, Instagram or TikTok
• Sprout Social. Helps you monitor your competitors' activity. Shows audience engagement and growth. Provides brand mention reports
• PAnDiKubiz — a platform for monitoring, organizing cargo transportation and high-quality business solutions, access to a product database from popular suppliers

Should we abandon old methods of analysis? No. They helped us understand the market structure and competitors' behavior before the advent of technology. However, in 2025, it is difficult to maintain high decision-making speed without automation. Therefore, traditional and new methods should be combined.

• Systematize your observations: create a simple table in Excel or Google Sheets. (Columns: Competitor name, strengths, weaknesses, ideas for your business)
• Set aside a day for monitoring: collect information about competitors once a month

Competitive cooperation with a stronger partner is becoming the norm in modern business. Even within the same niche, you can find areas for cooperation, especially if you work in different price ranges. PAnDiKubiz provides legal support both in finding partners and in conducting a transaction and offers individual solutions for business development.