Market Research Starter

Free market research toolkit — competitor audit, positioning matrix, evidence grading, and customer interview scripts. Upgrade to Pro for automated scraping + summaries.

Market Research — Starter Kit

Validate your market position with 4 proven frameworks. No tools required — just honest analysis.

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Quick Start

1. Pick a framework below (Competitor Audit, Evidence Grading, Interviews, or Positioning)
2. Follow the steps — fill in the blanks for your product
3. Optional: Store findings in Company Brain (clawhub install company-brain-os)

Time to first insight: ~20 minutes

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1. Competitor Audit Framework

Best for: Understanding where you stand before building anything

Step 1: List 5 competitors

• Direct (same product, same market)
• Indirect (solves same problem differently)
• Aspirational (where you want to be in 2 years)

Step 2: Rate each on 4 axes

Axis	Score 1-5	Evidence Required
Price	Lower = 1, Higher = 5	Screenshot of pricing page
Features	Fewer = 1, More = 5	Feature comparison list
Speed	Slower = 1, Faster = 5	Measured or estimated
Trust	Unknown = 1, Proven = 5	Reviews, case studies, age

Step 3: Plot your position

Draw a 2×2 matrix:

• X-axis: Price (low → high)
• Y-axis: Speed/feature density (low → high)
• Mark where you are today
• Mark where competitors are
• Mark where you want to be in 6 months

Rule: If you can't provide evidence for a score, it doesn't count.

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2. Evidence Grading System

Best for: Separating opinions from facts in research

Grades

Grade	Description	Example
A	Primary data you collected	Customer interview recording
B	Secondary data with source	Industry report with link
C	Anecdotal but specific	"3 customers said..."
D	Generic hearsay	"Everyone knows..."
F	Unverifiable	"I heard that..."

Usage

• Every claim in your strategy doc gets a grade
• No D or F evidence in investor/lender materials
• C evidence gets upgraded to B before external use

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3. Customer Interview Script

Best for: Finding real pain points (not what you assume)

Opener

text

Hi [NAME], thanks for taking 15 minutes.
We're researching [TOPIC] — not selling anything.
I'd love to understand your current process.

Core Questions

1. "Walk me through how you currently handle [PROBLEM]"
   • Listen for friction, workarounds, manual steps
2. "What happens if you don't solve this?"
   • Listen for cost of inaction (better than asking about value)
3. "Have you tried anything else?"
   • Listen for churn reasons from competitors
4. "If you had a magic wand..."
   • Listen for dream state (not constrained by reality)
5. "Who else should I talk to?"
   • Source next interviews

Rules

• Never pitch during interviews
• Never lead the witness ("Don't you think...")
• Record with permission, grade evidence later

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4. Positioning Matrix Template

Best for: Finding the gap nobody owns

Template

text

For [TARGET AUDIENCE]
who [PAIN POINT]
our product is a [CATEGORY]
that [KEY BENEFIT]
unlike [COMPETITOR]
we [DIFFERENTIATOR]

Example (CertainLogic)

text

For technical founders
who need to prevent AI hallucinations in production
our product is a deterministic knowledge engine
that answers questions with verified facts, not guesses
unlike general LLM wrappers
we prove every answer with traceable sources

Gap Analysis

After filling in competitors' positioning:

• Is there a quadrant nobody owns?
• Is "faster" already claimed? Claim "more certain"
• Is "cheaper" already claimed? Claim "zero waste"

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Integration with Company Brain

This starter kit works better with a brain:

bash

clawhub install certainlogicai/company-brain-os

Brain-enhanced market research:

• Faster audits: Brain stores competitor data you collect
• Evidence library: Interview notes get graded and stored
• Positioning validation: Brain cross-checks claims against stored facts

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Upgrade Path

Feature	Starter (Free)	Pro (Coming Soon)
Templates	4 frameworks	12+ frameworks
Analysis	Manual grading	Auto-grading via brain
Data	Your own research	Web scraping + summarization
Reports	Markdown export	PDF + presentation export
Collaboration	Solo	Team shared brain

Pro version: Not yet available. Get notified at certainlogic.ai/brain

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Built by CertainLogic — we dogfood this on ourselves.