Can I Test Competitors With Surmado?

Yes. You can run Signal, Scan, and Solutions on any public business to analyze their AI visibility, technical infrastructure, and strategic positioning. No permission needed (uses publicly available data).

Reading time: 16 minutes

What you’ll learn:

• How to reverse-engineer competitor content strategy by analyzing which persona queries they dominate (emergency 9/10 vs maintenance 3/10)
• The three-step competitive intelligence workflow: run Signal on competitor, run Scan on their website, use Solutions to analyze their public strategy moves
• Why testing competitors costs $125-175 vs $10K-25K traditional research, and delivers results in 45 minutes
• How to find opportunities in competitor weaknesses: missing LocalBusiness schema, 45 broken links, slow Core Web Vitals
• Legal and ethical considerations: all methods use public data (equivalent to googling their website), no hacking or credentials needed

What you learn: Competitor’s AI Presence Rate, website technical debt, positioning strategy, and content gaps you can exploit.

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Why Test Competitors

Competitive intelligence without expensive research:

Traditional competitive analysis:

• Hire research firm: $10K-25K
• Subscribe to competitive intelligence tools: $299-999/month
• Manual research: 40+ hours

Surmado competitive analysis:

• Signal competitor: $50 (AI visibility)
• Scan competitor: $25 or $50 (technical infrastructure)
• Solutions on their strategy: $50 (stress-test their approach)
• Total: $125-150 one-time

Time: 45 minutes total (3 reports × 15 minutes each)

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How to Test Competitors with Signal

Step 1: Run Signal on Competitor

What you need:

• Competitor’s business name
• Competitor’s website URL
• Competitor’s category (HVAC, SaaS, consulting, etc.)

What you test:

• Submit same persona queries you use for your own Signal
• OR use standard personas for their category

Example (HVAC competitor analysis):

Your Signal personas:

• “Emergency AC repair Phoenix same-day”
• “HVAC maintenance plans Phoenix”
• “Best HVAC companies for system replacement Phoenix”

Run competitor Signal with same personas to compare apples-to-apples.

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Step 2: Analyze Competitor’s AI Visibility

What Signal reveals about competitors:

Presence Rate comparison:

• Your Presence Rate: 58%
• Competitor A: 72% (beating you by 14 points)
• Competitor B: 45% (you’re beating them by 13 points)

Insight: Competitor A dominates AI search. Study what they’re doing.

Authority Score comparison:

• Your Authority Score: 68
• Competitor A: 82 (AI recommends them more confidently)
• Competitor B: 52 (AI hedges on recommending them)

Insight: Competitor A has strong brand equity in AI training data. Investigate why.

Platform-specific performance:

• ChatGPT: Competitor A 85% Presence, You 72%
• Perplexity: You 68% Presence, Competitor A 58%

Insight: You’re winning Perplexity, losing ChatGPT. Different strategies needed per platform.

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Step 3: Reverse-Engineer Competitor’s Content Strategy

What to look for in competitor Signal:

Which persona queries do they dominate?

• Competitor A mentioned in 9 of 10 “emergency repair” queries
• Competitor A mentioned in 3 of 10 “maintenance plan” queries

Insight: They’ve optimized for emergency positioning. You can own “preventive maintenance” niche.

What content are AI platforms citing?

• Signal report shows: “Perplexity cites Competitor A’s FAQ page ‘How to choose HVAC company’”
• Action: Create better FAQ page on same topic

What differentiators AI attributes to them?

• Signal report: “ChatGPT describes Competitor A as ‘24/7 emergency service, veteran-owned’”
• Insight: They’ve successfully branded “24/7” and “veteran-owned” differentiators

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How to Test Competitors with Scan

Step 1: Run Scan on Competitor Website

What you can test:

• Any publicly accessible website
• Competitor’s homepage, landing pages, blog
• No login/password needed (Scan tests public pages)

What you learn:

• Technical SEO gaps (broken links, missing schema, sitemap issues)
• Performance problems (slow Core Web Vitals)
• Accessibility violations (WCAG compliance)
• Security issues (HTTPS, headers)

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Step 2: Find Opportunities in Competitor’s Weaknesses

Example Scan findings (competitor website):

Technical SEO issues found:

• Missing LocalBusiness schema (not eligible for map pack)
• 45 broken links (link equity lost)
• Sitemap missing 30 blog posts (Google hasn’t indexed)

Your opportunity:

• Add LocalBusiness schema to YOUR site (you’ll rank in map pack, they won’t)
• Create content targeting topics their blog posts cover (Google will index yours, not theirs)

Performance issues found:

• LCP: 6.2 seconds (target: 2.5s) - Very slow
• CLS: 0.45 (target: 0.1) - Layout shifts badly
• Page weight: 8MB average (4x industry benchmark)

Your opportunity:

• Optimize YOUR site for speed (Google ranks faster sites higher)
• Advertise speed: “Our site loads 3x faster than [Competitor]”

Accessibility violations found:

• 890 images missing alt text
• Color contrast fails on 18 elements
• WCAG 2.1 AA: 67 violations

Your opportunity:

• Make YOUR site WCAG compliant (legal advantage, better UX)
• Target customers who care about accessibility

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Step 3: Benchmark Your Site vs Competitor

Compare Scan scores:

Metric	Your Site	Competitor A	Competitor B
Overall Score	78/100	65/100	82/100
Technical SEO	85/100	58/100	90/100
Performance	72/100	52/100	88/100
Accessibility	68/100	45/100	75/100
Security	90/100	80/100	95/100

Analysis:

• You beat Competitor A across all categories (clear advantage)
• Competitor B beats you on Performance and Security (learn from them)
• Focus improvement: Match Competitor B’s Performance score (72 → 88)

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How to Test Competitors with Solutions

Step 1: Analyze Competitor’s Public Strategy

What you can submit to Solutions:

• Competitor’s pricing strategy (from their website)
• Competitor’s positioning (from their homepage, about page)
• Competitor’s growth moves (new features, market expansion)

Example Solutions submission:

“Competitor A recently launched freemium tier (previously all paid).

Context:

• Competitor A: $2M ARR, 40-person team
• Freemium pricing: Free for 5 users, $50/user/month for 6+ users
• Their previous pricing: $500/month flat fee

Question: Why did they do this? Is this a smart move? Should we follow?”

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Step 2: Get AI Analysis of Competitor’s Strategy

Solutions output (analyzing competitor’s freemium launch):

CFO AI perspective:

“Freemium cannibalizes existing customers. If 30% of $500/month customers downgrade to free (5 users), that’s -$180K ARR.

To break even, they need 3,600 free users converting at 3% → 108 new paid users at $300/month avg = +$32K MRR = +$384K ARR.

Math works IF they can acquire 3,600 free users. But free user acquisition cost still ~$50 CAC (ads, onboarding). Investment: 3,600 × $50 = $180K.

Verdict: Risky move. High upfront cost, uncertain payoff.”

Market Realist AI perspective:

“Freemium works when:

1. Viral growth loops exist (users invite users)
2. Time-to-value is fast (users see value in minutes)
3. Upgrade triggers are clear (hit 6 users, must pay)

Does Competitor A have these? Unknown. If their product has strong network effects, freemium could work. If not, it’s a distraction.”

Game Theorist AI perspective:

“Why launch freemium now? Two possibilities:

Possibility 1: Growth slowing

• Paid acquisition saturated
• Freemium is desperation play to restart growth
• Signal: Competitor A is struggling

Possibility 2: Well-funded expansion

• Raised Series B, can afford customer acquisition
• Freemium is land-grab strategy (capture market before competitors)
• Signal: Competitor A is aggressive, well-capitalized

Your response: If Possibility 1, don’t follow (they’re failing). If Possibility 2, consider defensiveness (match freemium or differentiate).”

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Step 3: Decide Your Counter-Strategy

Based on Solutions analysis of competitor’s move:

Option A: Match competitor (launch freemium too)

• Pro: Don’t lose customers to their freemium
• Con: Same financial risks they’re taking

Option B: Differentiate (keep paid-only, emphasize premium)

• Pro: Avoid freemium economics trap
• Con: May lose price-sensitive customers

Option C: Hybrid (trial, not freemium)

• Pro: Low-risk way to test free acquisition
• Con: Lower conversion than freemium (time-limited)

Solutions helps you think through competitor moves without blindly copying.

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Competitive Intelligence Use Cases

Use Case 1: New Market Entry

Scenario: Competitor expands to new city (Las Vegas).

Test with Signal:

• Run Signal on competitor in Las Vegas market
• Personas: “Best HVAC Las Vegas”, “Emergency AC repair Las Vegas”
• See if they’ve gained AI visibility yet

Finding:

• Competitor’s Las Vegas Presence Rate: 12% (very low, just entered)
• Incumbent competitors: 68-72% Presence

Insight: Competitor hasn’t established AI presence yet. You can enter Las Vegas and beat them if you move fast.

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Use Case 2: Pricing Strategy Validation

Scenario: Competitor raises prices 25%.

Test with Solutions:

• Submit competitor’s new pricing to Solutions
• Ask: “Why would they raise prices? Is this smart?”

Solutions analysis:

• CFO AI: “25% price increase = -15% volume (elasticity) BUT +6% revenue if elasticity is accurate”
• Market Realist AI: “Price increases work if: (1) product differentiated, (2) switching costs high, (3) no cheaper alternatives. Does competitor have these?”

Your decision:

• If competitor has strong moat: Don’t compete on price (you’ll lose)
• If competitor is commoditized: Undercut their new prices (capture their churned customers)

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Use Case 3: Content Gap Analysis

Scenario: Competitor ranks well in Google for “async project management”.

Test with Scan:

• Run Scan on competitor’s blog
• Analyze their content strategy (topics, keywords, schema)

Finding:

• Competitor has 40 blog posts on “async workflows”
• All posts have HowTo schema markup
• FAQ schema on 15 posts

Insight: They’ve invested heavily in async content + schema. You need to match or exceed to compete.

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Ethical and Legal Considerations

Is it legal to test competitors?

Yes. Surmado uses publicly available data only:

• Signal: Tests how AI platforms respond to public queries
• Scan: Crawls publicly accessible website pages
• Solutions: Analyzes public information (pricing, positioning from website)

Equivalent to:

• Googling competitor
• Reading competitor’s website
• Checking competitor’s pricing page

No hacking, no credentials, no private data. All public information.

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Is it ethical?

Yes. Competitive intelligence is standard business practice:

• Companies research competitors constantly
• You’re analyzing public information (anyone can access)
• No deception (you’re not pretending to be customer)

Not ethical:

• Creating fake accounts to test competitor’s product
• Hacking competitor’s systems
• Impersonating competitor

Surmado doesn’t do any of these. Public data analysis only.

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Limitations of Competitor Testing

What you CAN’T learn from Surmado:

Signal limitations:

• Competitor’s traffic numbers (use SimilarWeb for this)
• Competitor’s conversion rates (they don’t publish this)
• Competitor’s customer satisfaction (use review sites)

Scan limitations:

• Competitor’s backend technology (server, database)
• Competitor’s security beyond basics (comprehensive pentest needed)
• Competitor’s authenticated pages (login-only features)

Solutions limitations:

• Competitor’s internal motivations (why they made decision)
• Competitor’s financial position (unless public company)
• Competitor’s future roadmap (unless announced publicly)

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Best Practices for Competitor Testing

1. Test top 3-5 competitors (not just one)

• Benchmark against multiple competitors
• Find patterns (what do leaders have in common?)

2. Re-test quarterly

• Competitors change strategies
• Track competitor improvements over time
• Adjust your strategy accordingly

3. Focus on learnings, not copying

• Understand WHY competitor is winning (not just that they are)
• Adapt their strengths to your context (don’t blindly copy)

4. Test YOUR business too

• Compare competitor Signal to YOUR Signal
• Identify where you’re ahead and where you’re behind

5. Act on insights

• Don’t just research (implement learnings)
• Prioritize gaps with highest competitive impact

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Pricing for Competitor Analysis

Comprehensive competitor analysis:

• Signal on competitor: $50 (AI visibility)
• Scan on competitor: $25 or $50 (technical infrastructure)
• Solutions on their strategy: $50-75 (strategic analysis)
• Total: $125-175 per competitor

Recommended cadence:

• Top competitor: Quarterly testing ($500-700/year)
• Secondary competitors: Semi-annual ($250-350/year each)

ROI:

• Traditional competitive intelligence: $10K-25K per year
• Surmado competitor testing: $1K-2K per year (5-10x competitors)
• Savings: $8K-23K annually

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The Bottom Line

You can test any competitor with Surmado using publicly available data:

Signal: Reveals competitor’s AI visibility, persona performance, content strategy Scan: Exposes technical weaknesses, performance gaps, accessibility issues Solutions: Analyzes competitor’s strategic moves (pricing, expansion, positioning)

Legal: Yes (public data only) Ethical: Yes (standard competitive intelligence) Actionable: Yes (use learnings to improve your strategy)

$125-175 per competitor for analysis across 7 AI platforms vs $10K-25K traditional research.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can competitors see that I tested them?

No. Surmado testing leaves no trace:

• Signal: Queries go to AI platforms (ChatGPT, Claude), not competitor
• Scan: Web crawler like Google (competitor sees normal bot traffic, not attributed to you)
• Solutions: Analyzes public info (no interaction with competitor)

Competitor won’t know you ran Surmado reports on them.

Will Surmado notify competitors?

No. Surmado doesn’t contact businesses being tested. Process is:

1. You submit competitor’s business name/URL
2. Surmado runs tests (Signal, Scan)
3. You receive report
4. Competitor never contacted

What if competitor tests ME?

They can. Works both ways:

• Competitor can run Signal on your business
• Competitor can run Scan on your website
• You won’t know (same as you testing them)

Competitive intelligence is mutual. Stay ahead by constantly improving (not hiding).

Can I test international competitors?

Yes. Surmado works globally:

Signal: Test competitors in any language

• Example: German competitor, submit German persona queries
• Signal tests how German AI platforms respond

Scan: Test websites in any country

• Example: Australian competitor’s website
• Scan checks technical SEO, performance, accessibility

Solutions: Analyze international strategies

• Example: Japanese competitor’s pricing
• Solutions models cultural and market differences

Should I test myself first or competitors first?

Test yourself first (baseline):

1. Run Signal on YOUR business (understand your position)
2. Run Signal on top 3 competitors (benchmark against them)
3. Compare: Where are you ahead? Where behind?

Then prioritize improvements based on competitor gaps.

Example:

• Your Signal: 58% Presence Rate
• Competitor A: 72% Presence Rate (you’re behind 14 points)
• Competitor B: 45% Presence Rate (you’re ahead 13 points)

Priority: Study Competitor A’s strategy (they’re beating you). Don’t worry about Competitor B (you’re already ahead).

How often should I test competitors?

Depends on industry pace:

Fast-moving (tech, e-commerce): Quarterly

• Competitors launch features quickly
• Positioning changes frequently
• Budget: $500-700/year per competitor

Moderate (professional services): Semi-annual

• Strategies evolve slower
• Major changes twice per year
• Budget: $250-350/year per competitor

Slow-moving (industrial, B2B): Annual

• Competitors rarely shift strategies
• One analysis across 7 AI platforms per year
• Budget: $125-175/year per competitor

Can I test competitors’ ads or social media?

Not with Surmado (wrong tool).

Surmado tests:

• AI platform visibility (Signal)
• Website technical quality (Scan)
• Public strategy analysis (Solutions)

For ads/social, use:

• Facebook Ad Library (see competitor ads)
• Google Ads Transparency (search ads)
• Social listening tools (Mention, Brand24)

Surmado complements but doesn’t replace ad intelligence tools.

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Ready to analyze competitors? Run a Signal report ($50) on your top competitor and discover their AI visibility strategy, content gaps, and positioning weaknesses.