Clip and collect marketing materials (brochures, ads, Web pages, and so on) from competitors and analyze them by using a claims table. Open up a spreadsheet (or draw a blank table on a piece of paper or poster board) and label the columns of this new table, one for each competitor.

Label each row with a feature, benefit, or claim. Enter key phrases or words from an ad in the appropriate cell. Include one to three of the most prominent or emphasized claims per competitor. When filled in, this claims table shows you, at a glance, what territory each competitor stakes out and how it does the staking. One may claim it’s the most efficient, another the most helpful, and so on.

Compare your own claims with those of your competitors. Are you impressive by comparison, or does a more dominant and impressive competitor’s claims overshadow you? Do your claims stand out as unique, or are you a me-too marketer without clear points of difference? The claims table helps you see yourself as customers do — through the lens of your marketing materials and in comparison to your competitors.

Using this table often delivers uncomfortable moments of truth that force you to rethink and improve your marketing approach. (But be careful to base your claims on genuine strengths, not just advertising fluff, by understanding what makes you strong – see the following section.)