COMPETITIVE BRAND AUDIT TEMPLATE

Use this template to perform an analysis of your competitors’ brands, evaluate the comparative strength of your own brand, and identify opportunities for your brand to distinguish itself in the marketplace.

Evaluate your top three competitors’ brands by filling in the four brand-audit sections in the table below.

BRAND CORE IDENTITY

Answer the following questions about the verbal qualities of your competitors’ brands to help you assess whether improvements might need to be made to your own brand’s core identity.
COMPETITOR BRAND 1	COMPETITOR BRAND 2	COMPETITOR BRAND 3
What does the competitor’s brand evoke in the marketplace?
What values does the competitor seem to convey through their brand?
What is the “Why” (purpose, belief, etc.) evoked by the competitor’s brand? Here is an example of a “Why”: “Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently.”
How effective is the competitor’s brand in the marketplace? Why? How?
What is the primary image conveyed by the competitor’s brand?
What distinguishes the competitor’s brand from their competition?
Who is the competitor’s “target audience”?
How effective is the competitor at reaching their target audience through their branding?
On a scale of 1–10 (“1” being “not very effective” and “10” being “highly effective”), how would you rate the effectiveness of the core offerings of your competitor’s brand?

VERBAL IDENTITY

Answer the following questions about the verbal qualities of your competitor’s brand to help you assess whether improvements need to be made to your own brand’s messaging.
COMPETITOR BRAND 1	COMPETITOR BRAND 2	COMPETITOR BRAND 3
How would you describe the tone of the competitor’s brand?
What is the competitor’s tagline?
Is the competitor’s tagline effective? Why / why not?
What other “key messaging” does the competitor’s brand offer?
What is the competitor’s value proposition?
What are the main selling points of the competitor’s brand?
Overall, on a scale of 1–10 (“1” being “not very effective” and “10” being “highly effective”), how would you rate the effectiveness of the verbal identity of the competitor’s brand?

VISUAL IDENTITY

Answer the following questions about the visual identity of your competitor’s brand to help you assess whether improvements could be made to your own brand’s visual presence in the marketplace.
COMPETITOR BRAND 1	COMPETITOR BRAND 2	COMPETITOR BRAND 3
What imagery and verbiage is/isn’t working for the competitor’s logo?
What is the “color palette” of the competitor’s logo? Is it effective? Why / why not?
What typography does the competitor use for their brand? Is it effective? Why / why not?
How well is the competitor’s brand reflected visually in the marketplace? Is it effective? Why / why not?
How well does the competitor’s brand differentiate itself from the competition?
Overall, on a scale of 1–10 (“1” being “not very effective” and “10” being “highly effective”), how would you rate the effectiveness of the verbal identity of the competitor’s brand?

BRAND EVALUATION

COMPETITOR BRAND 1	COMPETITOR BRAND 2	COMPETITOR BRAND 3
Overall, how effective do you think the competitor’s brand is? Why?
What are your key takeaways from evaluating the brands of your competitors?
If you had to choose one thing, what would be your first action item to improve your own brand?
Having evaluated your competitors’ brands, how do you think you can improve your own brand?
Make any additional notes here about your own brand or those of your competitors.

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