How to Conduct a Competitive Intelligence Analysis: Tools, Strategies, and Practical Cases

In today’s business landscape, defined by a highly competitive and rapidly evolving global market, companies cannot afford to navigate blindly. Competitive intelligence is an essential strategic tool for gathering, analyzing, and interpreting data about competitors, markets, and future trends. It enables businesses to anticipate competitor moves, make better-informed decisions, and proactively plan their strategies.

What is Competitive Intelligence?

Competitive intelligence, often translated as “intelligenza competitiva” in Italian, involves collecting information not only about what competitors are doing but also about what they plan to do in the future, thus anticipating technological and market changes. More specifically, competitive intelligence is a systematic process aimed at gathering and analyzing data about competitors and markets to help companies better understand their competitive environment and make more effective decisions. This term encompasses various techniques for data analysis and collection, ranging from sales and financial analysis to direct observation of competitor behavior and the use of advanced technological tools like patent monitoring.

There are several types of competitive analyses based on the data being examined:

• Market Analysis: Focuses on understanding a company’s positioning within its sector, identifying opportunities and threats, monitoring emerging trends, and evaluating competitors’ overall offerings.
• Economic-Financial Analysis: Centers on public financial data, such as balance sheets and quarterly reports, to assess competitors’ economic health and profitability.
• Sales Analysis: Studies competitors’ sales performance to identify their flagship products, pricing strategies, and consumer preferences.
• Technological Analysis: Aims to monitor the adoption of new technologies and innovations, often using sources like patents to predict future technological developments by competitors.

Technological Analysis: A Pillar of Competitive Intelligence

One of the most promising and valuable areas of competitive intelligence is the analysis of emerging technologies. This can be conducted using various data sources, but patent databases are among the most strategically valuable. Competitive intelligence tools focused on patent analysis provide invaluable insights into which technologies are under development, where companies are investing in R&D, and which areas of innovation hold the most promise for specific industries or technologies.

Patents have a decisive competitive advantage: they offer a forward-looking perspective, showcasing not only the technologies currently available in the market but also those that might be commercialized in the future. But what gives patents their predictive power? Let’s find out.

Why Do Patents Offer a Forward-Looking View of the Market?

Patents are an extraordinarily rich source of information, often overlooked during the early stages of competitive intelligence analysis. Monitoring patents provides clear insights into both commercialized technologies and those that may become available within a 3-5 year timeframe. This is because patent publication reveals the technical innovations companies are seeking to protect and, in many cases, monetize in the future.

For instance, a company might notice that a competitor has filed a series of patents on a new emerging technology. This signal suggests that within a few years, this technology could become central to the industry, enabling the company to prepare accordingly by developing competing technologies or adapting its product offerings.

Competitive Intelligence Tools for Patent Analysis

Thanks to the advent of advanced digital tools, companies can now perform patent analyses more quickly and efficiently. Several competitive intelligence tools allow for the analysis of global patent databases and the extraction of strategic insights. These include:

• Patent Monitoring Platforms: These platforms enable real-time tracking of newly filed and approved patent applications, providing information on who is innovating in which technological areas.
• Technological Trend Analysis Software: These tools identify emerging patterns and trends within the patent landscape by monitoring the frequency of patent filings in specific sectors or technology categories.
• Custom Competitive Analysis Tools: Solutions developed by specialized companies like Erre Quadro provide tailored patent analysis and competitive intelligence services across various industrial sectors.

Case Study: BLM GROUP’s Approach to Competitive Intelligence

A practical example of applied competitive intelligence is BLM GROUP, a leader in the production of tube bending and laser cutting machines. The company has made competitive intelligence a cornerstone of its growth and innovation strategy, with a particular focus on patent monitoring implemented through artificial intelligence.

As part of its efforts to monitor competitors and conduct patent analyses in its areas of expertise, BLM GROUP adopted Innovation Reveal, a modular platform developed by Erre Quadro, to perform advanced patent monitoring of its competitors. Using this platform, the company can identify emerging technological trends, analyze competitor patents, and adjust its product development strategy accordingly.

One successful example involves the development of technologies for a specific cutting application, which involves micro interruptions along the cutting path to prevent part detachment. While this micro-junction technique is well-known, it can be slow, with room for improvement in both quality and speed, especially as material thickness increases.

During its patent monitoring activities, BLM GROUP identified competitor collaborations and areas of R&D interest through co-assignment analysis. By studying competitors’ technical solutions, BLM GROUP was able to implement and refine these solutions, avoiding patent violations and improving quality and efficiency.

Conclusion: Integrating Competitive Intelligence into Business Strategy

In an increasingly competitive and ever-changing market, adopting a competitive intelligence strategy is essential for all companies. Using advanced tools such as patent monitoring platforms and technological trend analysis software provides a forward-looking view of the market and helps anticipate competitors’ moves. However, it’s important to remember that competitive intelligence goes beyond data collection: its true value lies in transforming this information into concrete actions that help businesses differentiate themselves, innovate, and grow over time.