Comparing to competitors

Customers have listed the following when their goals were competitive analysis:

• "We want an ironclad evaluation of our site search. We would like to use Amazon as a benchmark to compare against."
• "Gain user insight into main competitors, an established provider, and a new startup. Where does our product stand versus the competition in specific markets; what is valued in the competition?"

This is another typical goal for a usability study: measuring a digital interface against the competition’s product. It is smart to benchmark where one stands with regard to the competition, and to identify what the competition potentially does better.