Automating your competitive intelligence is easier than ever — and you don’t need to be a tech expert to do it.
When you run a small or medium-sized business, every minute counts. Between your customers, your team, your billing, your projects… there’s rarely any time left for “monitoring”. And yet, you know: knowing what your competitors are doing is crucial.
The good news? Today, thanks to simple tools like ChatGPT and Notion, it’s possible to automate 80% of your monitoring work. Without being a tech pro. Without blowing your budget. And without spending more than 15 minutes a week.
Why automate your competitive intelligence is essential (even for small businesses)?
Competitive intelligence is not a luxury. It’s a strategic tool for :
- Anticipate your competitors’ moves (new products, services, promotions…)
- Detect market opportunities before others do
- Make informed price adjustments
- Be intelligently inspired by what works elsewhere (and avoid their mistakes)
Here’s an example from one of our customers, a carpenter who lost several jobs before realizing that his competitor was offering free installation. Today, he automatically monitors his 5 main competitors, and adjusts his offer as soon as a change is spotted.
The usual brakes on wakefulness… swept away
Monitoring used to be :
- Time-consuming (hours spent reading newsletters or scouring networks)
- Complicated (expensive, overly technical tools)
- Discouraging (information scattered and never analyzed)
Today, with ChatGPT and Notion, you can :
✅ Gather
✅ Summarize
✅ Classify
✅ Act
All this, with free or almost free tools.
The winning duo: ChatGPT + Notion
Use ChatGPT to automate your competitive intelligence
What you can ask it:
- “Analyze this competitor site and summarize for me the new features, promos, offers”
- “What are the differentiating elements in this product sheet?”
- “Summarize this competitor’s latest LinkedIn posts”.
He answers in plain language, point by point. Time-saving.
Notion – your centralized dashboard
What you organize :
- Competitor database
- History of their marketing actions
- Monthly alerts or checklists
- Notes on opportunities or actions to be taken
Intuitive, headache-free interface.
How to automate your competitive intelligence in 5 steps
1. List your competitors
Start with 5 to 7. No more than that.
Tip: keep an eye on “small” or new entrants, who are often more innovative.
2. Create a database in Notion
Useful columns :
- Name
- Site / Networks
- New products
- Price list
- Last actions
- Spotted opportunities
- Last update
3. Ask ChatGPT (or automate)
Simple method: ask ChatGPT directly to analyze a page or post.
Advanced method: with a tool like Zapier or Make :
- Automatically scan sites/pages
- Send to ChatGPT
- Result injected into Notion
4. Add Google Alerts
Useful keywords: competitor names, industry expressions, offer types.
Alerts are sent by e-mail → you copy them into ChatGPT → summary → Notion.
5. Analyze and take action
Once a month:
- Take stock in Notion
- Identify key developments
- Note what you can test, improve or adapt
Tip: ask ChatGPT to “Make me a summary report on what I’ve observed this month” based on your notes. It gives you a clear, ready-to-use document.
Example 1: Sophie, manager of an independent decorating boutique in Colmar
Sophie had noticed a drop in footfall in her store, despite its attractive window display.
- Thanks to her automated monitoring system, she spotted that a competitor was regularly organizing free creative workshops.
- She decided to launch her own “Saturday DIY” sessions, relayed on Instagram and via a newsletter.
- ChatGPT helps her write the content and Notion centralizes customer feedback.
➡️ In 2 months: +25% in-store traffic and a 3-fold increase in the email base.
What not to do
- Copy your competitors indiscriminately
- Leave your Notion board without updating it
- Monitor without taking concrete action
- Ignore public customer reviews (a treasure trove of information on what’s going wrong)
Your toolbox
Essentials (free or very affordable) :
- ChatGPT (free or Pro version at €20/month)
- Notion (free starter version)
- Google Alerts
For further information (optional):
Zapier, Make, IFTTT: automation
Feedly: follow blogs or press sites
Wayback Machine: view older versions of a site
And now for action?
Your market is changing. So do your competitors. You don’t need to spend hours on it. You just need to be smart and well-equipped.
Would you like a ready-to-use template (Notion table + customized prompts for your business)?
Contact us here for express assistance