You probably already know all about SWOT analysis. You can even have your demographic oppositions, market share, and sales figures at hand. But have you ever applied the same kind of strict methodology to analyze the visual presence of your competitors in the market? A graphic design audit is a fantastic and relatively easy way to get a clear picture of how your competitors are perceived, what key messages they’re communicating and how you look when you’re around them. It’s also a valuable exercise that tells you about the kind of communication your customers regularly receive from your top competitors.

So how do you do it?

The first step to a graphic design audit is compiling all the sales and marketing collateral you can find from the competition. This includes browsing through their website and taking screenshots of key pages, subscribing to their mailing lists, getting their brochures, purchasing their products so you can see the packaging, etc. etc.

According to Peter L. Phillips, author of “Creating the Perfect Design Brief: Managing Design for Strategic Advantage,” one of the best, least expensive, and fastest methods is to attend every industry trade show. There is nothing illegal, unprofessional, or immoral about this practice. After all, business is simply a game that we are playing to win!

Mr. Phillips also suggests using your sales force members to find out what the competition is doing.
As they come into direct contact with customers every day, they can often obtain competitive customer literature. They just need to know what you need and of course why you need it.

So once you’ve collected the information, what do you do with it?

The best way to start is by putting your competitor information on the wall and analyzing them one by one. Invite as many people as possible from your sales, marketing, and business teams to give their individual feedback on what design elements work great for the competition and what weaknesses they can see. By beginning your analysis of your competitors first, you’ll develop a bit of objectivity so that you can then turn the same harsh criticism on yourself.

Look for ways the layout and language make a document unique. Do they have a friendly appearance that reflects a more personalized service? Do they look more professional than you? Why? Is it because the page is less cluttered, the colors are more subdued, or for some other reason? Is their website easier to navigate than yours? What do you think were their reasons behind these choices? Is there something you can learn from them? More importantly, how are these competitors using design to gain a competitive advantage?

Now comes the hard part: using the same analysis on yourself. Reassure your staff that this isn’t an exercise where they need to defend their work, it’s simply a way to gain useful information that could give you a competitive advantage that improves your bottom line. This aspect of the audit is sometimes a bit tricky, so you may need an independent opinion from a graphic design company that understands the process to help you.

It is amazing the amount of strategic information that this process can generate. It will give you new ideas and a fresh perspective that can influence how you approach your marketing for the year. And considering that many companies think of graphic design as an annoying inconvenience, if you’re the first to use this more strategic approach, you’ll find that it’s another tool to help you stay one step ahead of the competition.