Benchmarking to Break the Mold: Create Better Products, Faster

Want to release not just another updated product...but one that puts your brand on the map? The kind of product release that becomes a big moment in your career, setting the new standard in your category?

Yeah, we're here to think big. Because we've seen how companies who benchmark from the right perspective, can actually break the mold.

Contrary to popular belief, benchmarking isn't boring. Sure, if you only compare specs and features against competitors, you'll hardly learn anything pivotal for your product development research. But if you let consumers do the benchmarking, you will get a wave of new insights. 

Don't worry. We're not trying to overflow your already complex tech stack with another set of tools. By approaching benchmarking from a consumer-first perspective, you transform it from a standard R&D checklist item into a wellspring of innovative ideas. It doesn't add complexity—it adds clarity to your development process.

In this article, we'll show you how to conduct benchmarking that actually leads to significant product improvements, and can shape your development process—by shifting from ego-driven validation to consumer-led evolution. 

Stop Benchmarking to Validate — Start Benchmarking to Evolve

Even the most experienced product teams can sometimes fall into the validation trap. They use benchmarking to confirm, when it could be used as a discovery tool–if only you benchmark in the right context.

Of course, it's natural to want to confirm the strengths you've worked hard to build. But the most valuable benchmarking happens when we're equally interested in discovering what we've missed. And to ask: ''what did others do better than us?''–with an important distinction: in the eyes of the consumer.

When benchmarking becomes primarily confirmatory, certain limitations naturally emerge:

• Emphasis tends to shift toward metrics where products already perform well
• Areas where competitors have unique advantages may receive less attention
• Novel opportunities for innovation remain hidden in blind spots
• The subtle factors that actually drive consumer preference can be overlooked

Better benchmarking reveals possibilities for evolution. Not to catch up with competitors, but to make customers happier. When it uses candid feedback from people who simply tell you how a product fits (or doesn't fit) into their lives, the ripple effect of the changes you can make becomes huge.

Consider this insight that's often overlooked: some of the most valuable benchmarking data comes from people who prefer your competitors' products. There's tremendous value in understanding why competitors' loyal customers make the choices they do.

This is precisely where in-home usage testing reveals dimensions that lab-based tests simply can't capture. By observing how real people integrate products into their daily, messy and sometimes lazy routines, you gain visibility into the functional and emotional connections your competitors have established—the subtle factors that build lasting loyalty and could inform your next breakthrough.

How to Do Benchmarking Based on Reality

The environment where consumers use your product dramatically affects its performance. A skincare product tested in a clinical setting behaves differently than one applied in a steamy bathroom. A snack tested in isolation hits different than one eaten while sipping steaming hot coffee behind your desk.

Here's how to create benchmarking that reflects how products actually perform in the real world:

1. Run tests in authentic environments

In-home usage testing (IHUT) is your secret weapon for authentic benchmarking. When consumers test products in their own homes or day-to-day lives:

• They integrate products into existing routines
• They experience products alongside complementary items
• They notice friction points that don't appear in labs
• They provide feedback based on repeated use, not single experiences

2. Use side-by-side, forced-choice comparisons

Forget abstract rating scales. Real consumers don't think, "This is a 7.2 out of 10." They think, "I prefer this one over that one." Adapt your research to the way people think, instead of asking them to formulate their opinions in a set framework. Most people are terrible at that anyway. 

Sequential monadic testing allows consumers to evaluate products one after another, while monadic testing isolates products for unbiased evaluation. Both approaches have their place, but forced-choice comparisons—"Which do you prefer and why?"—often reveal the most actionable insights.

This approach mirrors how people actually make purchasing decisions. They don't analyze products in isolation—they choose between options. Like they would in the supermarket. 

3. Expand testing beyond comfort zones

The most valuable benchmarking often happens at the edges of uncertainty—with the prototype variation you're less confident about, or against competitors who are approaching the problem differently.

Product development teams are increasingly finding value in testing against a wider spectrum:

• The prototype variation that challenges conventional category thinking
• The competitor that's quietly gaining market share
• The value-oriented alternative that's resonating with price-conscious consumers
• The direct-to-consumer brand with an entirely different business model

When benchmarking includes these boundary-pushing comparisons, it surfaces innovation pathways that might otherwise remain unexplored, because you're measuring what you already know and thought of yourself.

4. Add context to every metric

Some tools let you benchmark just about anything. You get overwhelming amounts of data that seems to be telling you a lot, but in reality it's just numbers. Don't focus on more data–focus on getting more context to your data. Because a performance metric without context is just a number. For example:

• Speed isn't universally better if it compromises quality
• Stronger flavor isn't better if it fatigues consumers over time
• More features aren't better if they create confusion

MaxDiff analysis can help determine which attributes truly drive preference in your category, and benchmarking analysis provides the competitive context to make those insights actionable.

Don't Just Compare Yourself to Market Leaders—Compare Yourself to What People Actually Choose

The reality of today's markets, whatever category your product is in, is far more nuanced than traditional market share reports might suggest. Sophisticated product teams are increasingly recognizing that consumer choice patterns don't always follow predictable category hierarchies.

The most insightful benchmarking often comes from studying the full spectrum of alternatives consumers consider, including:

• Emerging niche players introducing innovative features or novel approaches
• Private label offerings that deliver substantial value at accessible price points
• Sustainability-focused alternatives that align with evolving consumer values
• Digital-native brands creating distinctive unboxing and usage experiences

Here's how to identify the competitive set that reflects market reality:

1. Follow the switching patterns

Identify where your lost customers go. If a significant percentage of consumers who leave your brand migrate to a specific competitor, that competitor should be central to your benchmarking study—regardless of their overall market position.

2. Benchmark across price tiers

Don't just compare against products at your same price point. Consumer decisions often cross price tiers, especially during economic uncertainty.

Test your premium offering against mid-tier alternatives to understand the value equation. Is your added performance worth the price premium in consumers' minds? If not, what would make it so?

3. Include the outliers and innovators

The disruptive brand with 2% market share might be more relevant to your future than the legacy player with 30%.

Small but growing competitors often signal emerging consumer preferences before they become mainstream. By benchmarking against these signals early, you can evolve ahead of market shifts rather than playing catch-up.

How to Implement Effective Benchmarking, Step by Step

Upending your approach to benchmarking requires more than philosophy—it needs a practical framework. Here's how your team can use consumer-led benchmarking that inspires you to take bolder actions:

Step 1: Define clear objectives beyond "being better"

Start with specific questions:

• Which product attributes actually drive preference in daily use?
• How do our claims stack up in real-world conditions?
• Where are we overinvesting in features consumers don't value?
• What unexpected pain points emerge during extended use?

Step 2: Select the right competitive set

Choose competitors that represent:

• Your direct category competition
• Adjacent solutions to the same consumer need
• Different price tiers relevant to your consumer base
• Emerging alternatives gaining traction

Step 3: Design tests that reflect reality

Create testing protocols that:

• Allow for natural usage patterns
• Capture both immediate reactions and evolving perceptions
• Include forced-choice comparisons
• Gather both structured ratings and open-ended feedback

Step 4: Analyze for insight, not just validation

Look beyond the numbers to understand:

• Why certain features drive preference
• How context affects product performance
• Where competitors create emotional connections you're missing
• What unexpected usage patterns emerge

Step 5: Translate findings into action

Transform insights into:

• Product improvement priorities
• Innovation pathways
• Marketing message refinements
• Claims substantiation

The Future of Benchmarking Is Consumer-Led

It's not some shiny new technological advancement, or a more complex system that we're recommending. At its core, benchmarking is ''evolving'' from a competitive analysis exercise into a deeper exploration of consumer reality.

The shift from "How do we compare to competitors?" to "How can we be better for our consumers?" is a fundamental change in how leading brands approach product development. It isn't just a semantic difference—it's a strategic reorientation with profound implications.

Forward-thinking product teams recognize that product benchmarking transcends feature-by-feature comparisons. The most valuable insights come from understanding how products integrate into people's complex lives—and identifying opportunities to create more seamless, meaningful experiences. See how Highlight can help you implement consumer-led benchmarking that reveals what really matters to your audience (and what will leave your competitors panicking).

Learn More: IHUT Testing Explained: Real-World Feedback for Better Products