Competitive landscape and assortment optimization
Assortments do not exist in a vacuum. Competitors' assortments determine where the opportunities are. Optimal assortment optimization factors in what competitors offer and where unoccupied positions exist.
Most TURF analyses look only at the company's own assortment. They ask which combination of our products maximizes our reach. But the consumer does not choose only among your products — they choose among all available alternatives in the category. An assortment that looks optimal in isolation can be pointless if competitors already cover the same needs.
Competition-integrated assortment optimization maps the entire available landscape and identifies white spaces — segments or needs that no one covers. It changes the optimization function from "maximize our reach" to "maximize our incremental reach given what competitors offer".
Reflect always conducts assortment analyses in their competitive context. We map competitor positions, measure consumers' perception of the entire available range, and identify positions where a new product creates genuinely new reach — not just moves volume from own products.
Key takeaways
- Assortments exist in a competitive landscape, not in a vacuum
- The consumer chooses among all alternatives in the category
- White spaces in the competitive landscape are the real opportunities
- Incremental reach vs absolute reach changes the recommendation
- Cannibalization risk against both own and competitor products
Example
A brewery group planned a new beer. TURF within their own assortment pointed to pale lager. But competitive analysis showed that pale lager was the most overcrowded segment. A positioning as session IPA — with lower internal reach but minimal competition — proved significantly more profitable.
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