competitor-research▌
kostja94/marketing-skills · updated May 13, 2026
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Guides competitor research for SEO, content, backlinks, and positioning. Use when planning content, auditing articles, building links, or evaluating market position.
SEO Content: Competitor Research
Guides competitor research for SEO, content, backlinks, and positioning. Use when planning content, auditing articles, building links, or evaluating market position.
When invoking: On first use, if helpful, open with 1–2 sentences on what this skill covers and why it matters, then provide the main output. On subsequent use or when the user asks to skip, go directly to the main output.
Research Types
| Type | Purpose | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Keyword/topic | Topics competitors rank for; gaps | Keyword opportunities; content ideas |
| Content | Structure, length, gaps vs top rankers | Length target; H2 structure; content gaps |
| Backlink | Link profile; sites linking to competitors | Link gap; outreach targets |
| Pricing | Competitor pricing, positioning | Pricing context; differentiation |
| SEO metrics | Organic traffic, rankings vs competitors | Benchmark; opportunity areas |
Competitor Keyword / Topic Analysis
| Method | Practice |
|---|---|
| Reverse engineering | Analyze competitor titles, H1, URL; identify topics they rank for |
| SERP overlap | Keywords with overlapping top-ranking pages → same cluster; #4–10 = opportunity |
| site: operator | site:competitor.com to see indexed pages |
| Tool | Ahrefs, Semrush—competitor keyword overlap, gap analysis |
Output: Keyword opportunities; topics competitors cover that you don't.
Competitor Content Analysis
| Element | Check |
|---|---|
| Word count | Top 10 average; length target for your content |
| H2 structure | Topics covered; structure to adopt |
| Content gaps | What top rankers cover that you miss |
| Keyword placement | Primary keyword in title, H1, first 100 words |
| Format | Lists, tables, FAQ; match or improve |
Use when: Auditing or creating articles; see article-page-generator for Research Phase integration.
Competitor Article Fetch Workflow (for Article Analysis)
When analyzing or auditing a single article, use this lightweight workflow to obtain competitor articles:
- Obtain URLs: From user, project-context Section 11, or web search for
"[target keyword]"to find top-ranking pages - Fetch content: Use mcp_web_fetch or WebSearch to fetch 2–3 top-ranking pages
- Analyze: Word count, H2 structure, keyword placement, content gaps, CTA, schema
- Output: Competitor URLs, brief structure comparison, content gaps, length target, keyword opportunities
Output format: Competitor URLs; word count and H2 structure per URL; content gaps vs your article; recommended length target; keyword opportunities (terms top rankers use that your article misses).
Competitor Backlink Analysis
| Action | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Compare profiles | Your backlinks vs competitors |
| Link gap | Sites linking to competitors but not you |
| Opportunity | Outreach to those sites; content they might link to |
Tools: Ahrefs, Semrush—Link Intersect, competitor backlink reports. See backlink-analysis.
Competitor Pricing
| Use | Practice |
|---|---|
| Positioning | Where you sit vs competitors |
| Differentiation | Value prop when price differs |
| Alternatives pages | Who to include; how to position |
See pricing-strategy, alternatives-page-generator.
Data Sources
| Source | Use |
|---|---|
| SimilarWeb | Traffic, engagement, traffic sources by domain |
| Ahrefs | Competitor domains, backlinks, DR |
| SEMrush | Organic competitors, traffic share |
| GA | Referral traffic, acquisition by source |
| PostHog | Competitor feature usage (if tracked) |
Report Workflow
- Parse — Read Excel/CSV, infer domain, visits, traffic sources, etc. from headers
- Enrich — Web search, visit competitor sites; read
project-context.mdif present - Build — Structure data for report
- Generate — Output report in chosen format
Output Format
- Competitors identified
- Research type (keyword, content, backlink, pricing)
- Findings (gaps, opportunities, benchmarks)
- Recommendations (content to create, links to pursue, positioning)
Report Structure Reference
| Section | Content |
|---|---|
| Executive Summary | Key findings (top 3), top 3 recommendations |
| Competitor Overview | Competitor, category, market position, key strength |
| Product Comparison | Feature/capability vs Us vs Competitors |
| SWOT Analysis | Our strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats; competitor deep dives |
| Marketing & Messaging | Value prop, target audience, key channels |
| Gaps & Opportunities | Gap, opportunity, priority |
| Prioritized Recommendations | Recommendation, impact, effort, owner |
Related Skills
- keyword-research: Competitor reverse; keyword discovery
- article-page-generator: Competitor article analysis in Research Phase
- content-strategy: Competitor analysis for topic mapping
- content-optimization: Competitor length and structure as reference
- backlink-analysis: Competitor backlink comparison; link gap
- seo-monitoring: Competitive comparison; organic vs competitors
- alternatives-page-generator: Competitor selection; comparison framing
- migration-page-generator: Competitor migration paths
- pricing-strategy: Competitor pricing context
- affiliate-marketing: Find affiliates promoting competitors
- directories: Competitor info for directory submissions
How to use competitor-research on Cursor
AI-first code editor with Composer
Prerequisites
Before installing skills in Cursor, ensure your development environment meets these requirements:
- ›Cursor installed and configured on your development machine
- ›Node.js version 16.0+ with npm package manager (verify with
node --version) - ›Active project directory or workspace where you want to add competitor-research
Execute installation command
Execute the skills CLI command in your project's root directory to begin installation:
The skills CLI fetches competitor-research from GitHub repository kostja94/marketing-skills and configures it for Cursor.
Select Cursor when prompted
The CLI will show a list of available agents. Use arrow keys to navigate and space to select Cursor:
Verify installation
Confirm successful installation by checking the skill directory location:
Reload or restart Cursor to activate competitor-research. Access the skill through slash commands (e.g., /competitor-research) or your agent's skill management interface.
Security & Verification Notice
We perform automated surface-level scans (Gen AI Scanner, Socket, Snyk) during installation. These checks detect common vulnerabilities but do not guarantee complete security. Always review skill source code and verify the publisher's reputation before production use.
Skills execute code in your development environment. Always verify the publisher's identity, review recent commits, and test in isolated environments before production deployment.
List & Monetize Your Skill
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Use Cases▌
User Story & Requirements Generation
Create detailed user stories, acceptance criteria, and feature specs
Example
Generate user stories for 'password reset feature' with acceptance criteria, edge cases, and test scenarios
Reduce spec writing time by 50%, ensure comprehensive coverage
Competitive Analysis
Research competitors, compare features, identify gaps
Example
Analyze 5 competitor products, create feature comparison matrix, suggest differentiation opportunities
Complete competitive research in 2 hours instead of 2 days
Roadmap Prioritization
Evaluate features using frameworks (RICE, ICE, Kano) and create prioritized backlogs
Example
Score 20 feature ideas using RICE framework, generate prioritized roadmap with rationale
Make data-driven prioritization decisions faster
Stakeholder Communication
Draft PRDs, status updates, and stakeholder presentations
Example
Create executive summary of Q3 roadmap, monthly progress report, feature launch announcement
Save 3-5 hours/week on communication overhead
Implementation Guide▌
Prerequisites
- ›Claude Desktop or compatible AI client
- ›Access to product documentation and roadmap tools (Jira, Notion, etc.)
- ›Understanding of product management frameworks (RICE, Jobs-to-be-Done, etc.)
- ›Stakeholder contact information and communication channels
Time Estimate
30-60 minutes to see productivity improvements
Installation Steps
- 1.Install product management skill
- 2.Start with user story generation for known feature
- 3.Progress to competitive analysis: research 2-3 competitors
- 4.Use for roadmap prioritization: apply RICE/ICE scoring
- 5.Draft stakeholder communications and refine based on feedback
- 6.Build template library for recurring PM tasks
- 7.Share effective prompts with product team
Common Pitfalls
- ⚠Not validating competitive research—verify facts before sharing
- ⚠Accepting user stories without involving engineering team
- ⚠Over-relying on frameworks without qualitative judgment
- ⚠Not customizing outputs to company culture and communication style
- ⚠Skipping stakeholder validation of generated requirements
Best Practices▌
✓ Do
- +Validate research and competitive analysis with real data
- +Collaborate with engineering when generating technical requirements
- +Customize frameworks and templates to your company context
- +Use skill for first drafts, refine with stakeholder input
- +Document successful prompt patterns for PM tasks
- +Combine AI efficiency with human judgment and intuition
✗ Don't
- −Don't publish competitive analysis without fact-checking
- −Don't finalize user stories without engineering review
- −Don't make prioritization decisions solely on AI scoring
- −Don't skip customer validation of generated requirements
- −Don't ignore company-specific context and culture
💡 Pro Tips
- ★Provide context: company goals, constraints, customer feedback
- ★Ask for alternatives: 'Show 3 ways to prioritize this roadmap'
- ★Request stakeholder-specific formatting: 'Executive summary vs. engineering spec'
- ★Use skill for 70% generation + 30% customization to company needs
When to Use This▌
✓ Use When
Use for user story writing, competitive research, roadmap prioritization, stakeholder communication, and PRD drafting. Best for reducing repetitive documentation and research work.
✗ Avoid When
Avoid for strategic product vision (requires deep customer empathy), pricing decisions (needs market and financial expertise), or when face-to-face customer discovery is more valuable than speed.
Learning Path▌
- 1Basic: user stories, feature specs, status updates
- 2Intermediate: competitive analysis, prioritization frameworks, PRDs
- 3Advanced: product strategy, go-to-market planning, OKR setting
- 4Expert: product vision, market positioning, business model innovation
Discussion
Product Hunt–style comments (not star reviews)- No comments yet — start the thread.
Ratings
4.5★★★★★60 reviews- ★★★★★Chaitanya Patil· Dec 28, 2024
I recommend competitor-research for anyone iterating fast on agent tooling; clear intent and a small, reviewable surface area.
- ★★★★★Arya Gupta· Dec 20, 2024
Useful defaults in competitor-research — fewer surprises than typical one-off scripts, and it plays nicely with `npx skills` flows.
- ★★★★★Min Mensah· Dec 20, 2024
Solid pick for teams standardizing on skills: competitor-research is focused, and the summary matches what you get after install.
- ★★★★★Min Rahman· Dec 16, 2024
competitor-research fits our agent workflows well — practical, well scoped, and easy to wire into existing repos.
- ★★★★★Carlos Anderson· Dec 4, 2024
competitor-research is among the better-maintained entries we tried; worth keeping pinned for repeat workflows.
- ★★★★★Ama Khan· Nov 27, 2024
Keeps context tight: competitor-research is the kind of skill you can hand to a new teammate without a long onboarding doc.
- ★★★★★Aarav Jain· Nov 23, 2024
Solid pick for teams standardizing on skills: competitor-research is focused, and the summary matches what you get after install.
- ★★★★★Piyush G· Nov 19, 2024
Useful defaults in competitor-research — fewer surprises than typical one-off scripts, and it plays nicely with `npx skills` flows.
- ★★★★★Maya Verma· Nov 15, 2024
Registry listing for competitor-research matched our evaluation — installs cleanly and behaves as described in the markdown.
- ★★★★★Maya Srinivasan· Nov 11, 2024
I recommend competitor-research for anyone iterating fast on agent tooling; clear intent and a small, reviewable surface area.
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