Looking at the Competition?

Hello! And happy Tuesday, or whatever day you are tuning in. I have been having a lot of conversations lately about “the competition.” Which isn’t all that surprising as 2026 is still pretty new, and as entrepreneurs we are curious by nature. We want to know what others are doing, and if we are missing out on something that could shift business in the best possible way. 

I know I often look to my competitors for inspiration and because I love seeing their success. In all honesty I don’t actually see them as competitors, I see others in the branding and web design world who are doing really fabulous work as ambassadors who make this industry stronger. I love seeing what they create, and knowing that when I chat with someone who isn’t a great fit for me, there are others out there I can trust to send them to. 

But I haven’t always had this view point into the competition. Early on competition scared me. Even though I would say, “There’s more than enough work for us all,” each time someone got the contract over me, it stung and I would doubt my own abilities.

Other times I have looked at competitors and wondered, “Why the heck are they copying me?” 

Both of these reactions can easily lead me down a road that isn’t all that healthy for me or for my business, and I know based on recent conversations that I am not the only one who has felt that. 

As I said in the intro today… Looking at the competition can be a really smart strategic move, it’s what happens after we look that can quickly lead us into a maze of doubt and confusion with no clear exit marked. 

So today I thought we could take a look at our competitors together. 

We are going to first take a look at the ugly side of our thoughts so we can quickly recognize the warning signs and pivot in a new direction. 

I also want to touch briefly on the “Why are they copying me?” thoughts, because they are likely to come up at some point for all of us, and that actually isn’t as bad as we think it is. 

Finally, we are going to take a look why your competitor may actually be overshadowing you, and how you can use this to make strategic decisions for your business that are intentionally focused on your goals. 

Before we get into all of that, let’s take a moment for introductions, just in case you are new around here. 

I am Teresa Schlup, the Original Caffeine Creative. I am a Brand Strategist, Web Designer, podcaster and often the Business Bestie by your side. I primarily work with solo small businesses owners because I know what a lonely road this can be. 

Being a doin' it all solo small business owner isn't for the faint of heart! As a solo entrepreneur following a dream there are a lot of…

• Late nights and early mornings
• Skipping weekends
• Cutting holidays short
• Feeling like you’re never good enough
• Always aiming higher and higher…
• And never quite sure you will get there. 

But I also know you can get there. I have witnessed countless other solo small business owners make things happen, and I know you can make things happen too. 

If you are in the market for branding essentials, or a website, I would like to invite you to check out my brand new fancy schmancy website at caffeinecreative.io. There you can find more about my services, and if they feel like what you are looking for, you can book a free no strings attached coffee chat with me where we can talk about possibilities. 

And thank you all, new and returning listeners for being here today. I love our conversations here and outside of The Solo Grind. 

The competition isn’t the enemy.  

I know we are conditioned to see them as a threat to our success, but that really isn’t true. There is more than enough work for us all, and when our competitors are out there doing a really great job, they are strengthening our industry. 

As a web designer, I have come in contact with a lot of people who don’t trust web designers, because there are some really shiesty ones out there. So when I come across another web designer who is really good and takes good care of their clients, I am grateful to them. 

When we look at the competition as the enemy, we are operating in a scarcity mindset that will never serve us well, and as solo business owners I think we need to be especially mindful of this, because we are the whole team behind our business. We don’t have others around to bounce ideas off of or talk through issues within the business. We may have a few people we can reach out to, but for the most part we are on our own. So when our thoughts spin out of control, there is likely no one around to witness that and bring us back to thinking clearly. 

And one of the most likely moments for us to slip into a fear based scarcity mindset is when we take a look at what our competitors are doing. 

We look for proof that we are “doing it wrong” 

It may start off as a simple curiosity, as we start poking around to see what others are doing in social media, or how they structured their website. But if we aren’t careful that curiosity can shift into fear and next thing we know we think we are doing everything wrong!

Soon rather than analyzing what others are doing from a strategic perspective, we begin looking for confirmation that they are in fact better than us. 

We look at…

• How many followers they have 
• The number of likes, comments and shares they have
• How often they post and what they post 
• Their email list size, or what we assume it is 
• Their perceived lifestyle or success

We see all of this as proof that they are better than us, smarter than us, and much more successful than us. 

We are so focused on how successful they are compared to us that what we don’t see that they are painting a picture of success that is not entirely accurate. They may certainly be kicking butt in the world of business, but it's not all easy peasy. They have challenges, struggles and fears of their own, they just aren’t sharing that for the world to see. 

And I have seen up close that some who brag about sensational accomplishments like 5 figure weekend launches, and 7 figure businesses, don’t actually make that much profit once the expenses are covered. Years ago I was working with a coach who spent almost 10K on launching a new product, only to make a few hundred dollars. 

So that success we see isn’t always real, and yet that is the version of success we are measuring ourselves against. 

Busy Work Goes Into Overdrive 

Once we convince ourselves we are doing everything wrong, we start believing that we are behind, and need to catch up quickly. So we dive into busy work that doesn’t really help shift the success of our business. 

That busy work could be… 

• Creating more content just for the sake of more 
• Chasing trends that don’t align with our business or our goals 
• Learning more with new courses, programs, masterclasses, that aren’t really teaching us anything “new” 
• Polishing behind-the-scenes details that clients never see or feel
• Saying yes to things, even when we know a solid “no thank you” would serve us better. 

This makes us feel productive, and because we feel more productive we believe we are making good decisions, but there is no real clear direction in what we are doing. Our energy is scattered and we are all over the place making changes. 

This is something I see a lot and next week, I am going to share some tips on how you can ditch the busy work and get down to real business! 

We start mimicking instead of thinking

Our business begins to reshape into something that mirrors what we can see the competition doing, or what we think they are doing. 

We may change our… 

• Branding to look more like their branding 
• Rewriting website copy without a clear goal in mind 
• Rearranging our page navigation “just in case” the order is wrong
• Change our whole approach to marketing to what they are doing
• Switching to or implementing new tools someone else swears by 
• Changing our services and offering to mirror what we think they are doing

All of these changes are made because we think that is how we are “SUPPOSED” to do things, and there is actually a phrase for this. It’s called Competition Shadow, and if you are like me and love reading really dry research papers, there was a fascinating study published in the National Library of Medicine on this in which the researchers took a look at fear and hope and how they impact decision making in entrepreneurs. 

READ THE STUDY: Competition Shadow: Anchoring to Fear Versus Hope in Estimating Rivals in Competition 

All of this doubt, fear and busy work to “feel” productive works against our success

Our confidence is shaken, and the foundation we have built our business on begins to crumble. What is even worse is we begin to lose sight of all we have accomplished, and stop measuring success based on what matters most, and start chasing things that do little to nothing to move our business forward.  

What we don’t realize is that… Our competitors probably aren’t doing better work than us. They’ve just made it easier for people to notice what they are doing because they show up consistently and sound like themselves. 

Shift your mindset to healthy competition 

We’ve all been in an ugly mindset regarding our competition. It’s called being human and as a human our thoughts don’t always support us. Thankfully we have control over our thoughts and the power to flip the script into something that is supportive. 

While doing my research for today’s episode I came across an article that covered this beautifully. It’s an older article on Medium but still very relevant and worth a read. I’ll add the link to my show notes but let me sum it up here… 

In this article by Tim Denning, he shares that our competition isn’t actually the problem we think they are. It is us obsessing over them that is the real problem. Worrying about what they are doing only brings us down and drains our energy. Energy that could be used to build something solid and real. There’s room for more than one business to succeed, and we don’t have to win every opportunity to be successful. In fact, losing deals, watching others stumble, and even working alongside competitors can sharpen our clarity and strengthen what we do. 

READ THE ARTICLE: Your Competition Is Magnificent

What about the competitors who are shadowing us… 

We talked briefly about Competition Shadowing, and there are two sides to that. One is where we do it to the competition, and I think we’ve all done that to some degree, even though we don’t want to admit it. 

The other side is when they are shadowing, or copycating us. 

I remember the first time this happened to me. I was maybe six months into my Life Coaching business, and starting to build some real success, when out of the blue I saw a fellow coach and collaborator, offering one of my programs with a slightly different name, and for less money. 

It was so blatant and obvious that my phone rang off the hook with calls from others in our circle who only fueled my anger and indignation. I was so hurt by this that I could think of little else, until my straight talking husband said something that stopped me in my tracks…

“Honey if you can’t handle someone copying you, I’m not sure you're cut out of this business thing.” 

That hurt too, but he was 100% right. When you are doing something great, others will take notice of it, and some of those people are going to try to recreate it for themselves. Some will straight up copy everything you do, where others will be a lot more subtle. Some won’t realize they are even copying you, because that actually aren’t. You just inspired them. 

I have come across podcast episodes or blog posts where people I know well create something that mirrors closely to something I have shared recently, and I see it that we are just in sync, sharing a message that matters. 

But what if it isn’t subtle mirroring? What if it is flat out indisputable copying? 

The obvious answer is to take legal action, and that is definitely a route to consider, especially if it is an exact copy of your work. As I am not a lawyer, I don’t think I should step into advising how to go about doing that, but I do want to address this from a mindset perspective, because only when you have a clear head can you address this issue in the best possible way. 

We’ve all heard the quote from Oscar Wilde… “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”

But many of us have not heard the full quote… 

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.” Oscar Wilde

When someone is mimicking you, they see you are someone greater than themselves. Someone they aspire to be and can model themselves after. The trouble with their approach is they are trying to be someone they are not… they are trying to be you. And as Dr. Seuss said in his Happy Birthday to You! book… 

“There is no one alive who is you-er than You!". Dr. Seuss

While they might see a little success from copying you, and that is a huge maybe, it won’t be sustainable. 

Here is how I approach the “mimickers” and “copycats”… 

• Recognize they do not have the entrepreneurial maturity I have
• Invite them to coffee. Whether this is an in person or virtual coffee, I want them to know the real me. Seeing me as a person rather than competition usually brings the copying to a quiet end. 
• Keep doing things to the best of my ability. They cannot keep up with me by copying me, and eventually they will find their own way or copy someone else. 

Now that our mindset is in the right place, let’s take a strategic look at the competition. 

What we can learn from the competition when we take the time to do a healthy competitor comparison. 

Start by defining who actually matters

Not everyone in your industry is your direct competitor, so comparing yourself and your business to someone who is targeting a different customer demographic than you is a waste of time. 

What you want to look for is businesses that… 

• Serve a similar audience 
• Offer a similar services
• Has an investment range close to yours  

This one I can’t stress enough, because all too often we compare ourselves to someone who just isn’t in the same circle as us. We may achieve their level of success someday, but that takes time and we have to put in the time to get there, just like they did. 

Look at the patterns, not individuals

Focusing all of your attention on one particular competitor is one of the quickest ways to fall into competition shadowing, or negative thinking. Instead, look at several businesses similar to your own. This could even be businesses that are outside of your service area, as long as their business supports the same types of clients. 

As you look at these businesses, ask yourself, what…

• Shows up repeatedly
• Feels familiar and comfortable
• Feels overused or outdated

Look at the client journey, not just the marketing

What our competitors share about their client journey can be incredibly revealing about your own potential clients. Simply spend a little time reading through their testimonials, client wins, case studies or even the stories that share how a project didn’t go as planned, and you will see patterns start to appear. 

Things like… 

• Frustrations or struggles their clients had before hiring that business 
• How their clients felt heard, seen, understood and supported 
• The little surprises their clients didn’t expect but truly appreciated 
• How clear the process was, or how it exceeded expectations

Look for any specific mentions of communication, guidance, clarity or ease, because this is what your own potential clients are looking for in you. 

Notice what they choose to simplify

Strong businesses simplify on purpose. When things are simple they are easier to manage, especially when you are a solo business owner. 

Take a look at… 

• How many offers or services they have 
• The boundaries they have in place
• The steps they share to get started

From here, you can look at your own processes and systems, and look for opportunities for improvement that will create the kind of customer experience your potential clients are looking for in a way that is in alignment with your own goals. 

The opportunities for improvement might also come from something they aren’t doing, that you know you can do well 

Pay attention to what they stopped doing

There are a lot of reasons we stop doing things in our business. Perhaps it was a service not in alignment with our goals, or one we didn’t enjoy. Or maybe we realized that it was something our dream clients are just not looking for. Our competition is doing the same, and what they stop doing can be very telling. 

Take a look at what they no longer offer and see if you can spot the pattern. Sometimes it highlights an opening where you can stand out by continuing to offer what they stopped doing. Other times it signals a real change in the market and helps you decide where your time and energy are better spent.

When we look at our competition from a healthy mindset, we feel energized and inspired. 

We stop guessing and reacting. We also start making strategic decisions that strengthen our business. 

If you take one thing from today’s conversation, I hope it is this… 

The goal was never to build a business that looks like someone else’s. It is to build a business that works for you. 

And that brings us to the end of today’s episode. Thank you for spending part of your day with me. If this conversation got you thinking, I’d love to hear about it. Reach out, text me through your podcast app, or email me at theperfectblend@caffeinecreative.io. And as always feel free to share this episode with another solo business owner as we may be in business on our own but we don’t have to do it all by ourselves. 

Have a fabulous week my friends and I will see you next week!