Competitive Monitoring

---
name: competitive-monitoring
description: Tracks competitor page changes over time. Captures snapshots, detects diffs, alerts on significant changes. Use when monitoring competitive intelligence, pricing changes, or feature tracking.
context: fork
agent: market-intelligence
version: 1.0.0
author: OrchestKit AI Agent Hub
tags: [competitive-intelligence, monitoring, diff, tracking, pricing]
user-invocable: true
allowedTools: [Bash, Read, Write, WebFetch]
---

# Competitive Monitoring

Track competitor websites for changes in pricing, features, positioning, and content.

## Quick Start

```bash
# Capture initial snapshot
/ork:competitive-monitoring capture https://competitor.com/pricing

# Check for changes (compares to last snapshot)
/ork:competitive-monitoring diff https://competitor.com/pricing

# View change history
/ork:competitive-monitoring history competitor.com
```

## Core Concepts

### Snapshot
A point-in-time capture of a webpage including:
- **Text content** - Main body text
- **Structured data** - Pricing tiers, feature lists, etc.
- **Screenshot** - Visual state
- **Metadata** - Timestamp, URL, capture method

### Diff
Comparison between two snapshots showing:
- **Added content** - New text, features, prices
- **Removed content** - Deleted sections
- **Changed content** - Modified values
- **Visual changes** - Layout/design shifts

### Change Classification

| Severity | Examples | Action |
|----------|----------|--------|
| **Critical** | Price increase/decrease, major feature change | Immediate alert |
| **High** | New feature added, feature removed | Review required |
| **Medium** | Copy changes, positioning shift | Note for analysis |
| **Low** | Typos, minor styling | Log only |

## Workflow

### Step 1: Initial Capture

```bash
# Create snapshots directory
mkdir -p .competitive-intel/snapshots

# Capture competitor pricing page
agent-browser open https://competitor.com/pricing
agent-browser wait --load networkidle

# Save text content
agent-browser get text body > .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).txt

# Save screenshot
agent-browser screenshot .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).png

# Extract structured pricing data
agent-browser eval "JSON.stringify(
  Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('.pricing-tier')).map(tier => ({
    name: tier.querySelector('h3')?.innerText,
    price: tier.querySelector('.price')?.innerText,
    features: Array.from(tier.querySelectorAll('li')).map(li => li.innerText)
  }))
)" > .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).json

agent-browser close
```

### Step 2: Diff Detection

```bash
# Get latest two snapshots
LATEST=$(ls -t .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-*.txt | head -1)
PREVIOUS=$(ls -t .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-*.txt | head -2 | tail -1)

# Text diff
diff -u "$PREVIOUS" "$LATEST" > .competitive-intel/diffs/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).diff

# Check if significant changes
if [ -s ".competitive-intel/diffs/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).diff" ]; then
  echo "Changes detected!"
  cat ".competitive-intel/diffs/competitor-pricing-$(date +%Y%m%d).diff"
fi
```

### Step 3: Structured Comparison

```bash
# Compare JSON pricing data
LATEST_JSON=$(ls -t .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-*.json | head -1)
PREVIOUS_JSON=$(ls -t .competitive-intel/snapshots/competitor-pricing-*.json | head -2 | tail -1)

# Use jq to compare
jq -s '
  .[0] as $old | .[1] as $new |
  {
    price_changes: [
      $new[] | . as $tier |
      ($old[] | select(.name == $tier.name)) as $old_tier |
      select($old_tier.price != $tier.price) |
      {name: .name, old_price: $old_tier.price, new_price: .price}
    ],
    new_tiers: [$new[] | select(.name as $n | $old | map(.name) | index($n) | not)],
    removed_tiers: [$old[] | select(.name as $n | $new | map(.name) | index($n) | not)]
  }
' "$PREVIOUS_JSON" "$LATEST_JSON"
```

## Monitoring Targets

### Pricing Pages
```bash
# Extract pricing structure
agent-browser eval "JSON.stringify({
  tiers: Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('[class*=pricing], [class*=plan]')).map(t => ({
    name: t.querySelector('h2, h3, [class*=title]')?.innerText?.trim(),
    price: t.querySelector('[class*=price], [class*=cost]')?.innerText?.trim(),
    period: t.querySelector('[class*=period], [class*=billing]')?.innerText?.trim(),
    cta: t.querySelector('button, [class*=cta]')?.innerText?.trim()
  }))
})"
```

### Feature Pages
```bash
# Extract feature list
agent-browser eval "JSON.stringify({
  features: Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('[class*=feature] h3, [class*=feature] h4')).map(f => f.innerText?.trim()),
  categories: Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('[class*=category]')).map(c => ({
    name: c.querySelector('h2, h3')?.innerText?.trim(),
    items: Array.from(c.querySelectorAll('li')).map(li => li.innerText?.trim())
  }))
})"
```

### Changelog/Release Notes
```bash
# Extract recent releases
agent-browser eval "JSON.stringify({
  releases: Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('[class*=release], [class*=changelog] > div')).slice(0, 10).map(r => ({
    version: r.querySelector('[class*=version], h2, h3')?.innerText?.trim(),
    date: r.querySelector('[class*=date], time')?.innerText?.trim(),
    notes: r.querySelector('[class*=notes], [class*=description]')?.innerText?.trim()?.slice(0, 200)
  }))
})"
```

## Storage Pattern

```
.competitive-intel/
├── config.json           # Monitored URLs and schedules
├── snapshots/
│   ├── competitor-a/
│   │   ├── pricing-0201.txt
│   │   ├── pricing-0201.json
│   │   └── pricing-0201.png
│   └── competitor-b/
│       └── ...
├── diffs/
│   ├── competitor-a/
│   │   └── pricing-0201.diff
│   └── competitor-b/
│       └── ...
└── reports/
    └── weekly-0201.md
```

## Config File

```json
{
  "monitors": [
    {
      "name": "Competitor A Pricing",
      "url": "https://competitor-a.com/pricing",
      "frequency": "daily",
      "selectors": {
        "pricing": ".pricing-tier",
        "features": ".feature-list li"
      },
      "alerts": {
        "price_change": "critical",
        "new_feature": "high",
        "copy_change": "low"
      }
    }
  ],
  "storage": ".competitive-intel",
  "retention_days": 90
}
```

## Change Report Template

```markdown
# Competitive Change Report

**Date:** -02-04
**Competitor:** Competitor A
**URL:** https://competitor-a.com/pricing

## Summary
- **Critical Changes:** 1 (price increase)
- **High Changes:** 2 (new features)
- **Medium Changes:** 0
- **Low Changes:** 3 (copy updates)

## Critical: Price Change Detected

| Tier | Previous | Current | Change |
|------|----------|---------|--------|
| Pro  | $29/mo   | $39/mo  | +34%   |

## High: New Features Added

1. **AI Assistant** - Added to Pro tier
2. **API Access** - Now available in Team tier

## Recommendation
- Update competitive positioning
- Review our pricing strategy
- Consider matching new AI feature
```

## Integration with Memory

Store findings in knowledge graph for persistence:

```bash
# After detecting changes, store in memory
mcp__memory__add_node(
  name="Competitor A Price Increase -02",
  type="competitive_intelligence",
  content="Pro tier increased from $29 to $39 (+34%)"
)

# Query historical changes
mcp__memory__search_nodes(query="competitor pricing changes ")
```

## Automation Ideas

### Scheduled Monitoring (via cron/CI)
```yaml
# .github/workflows/competitive-monitor.yml
name: Competitive Monitor
on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 9 * * *'  # Daily at 9 AM
jobs:
  monitor:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - run: npm install -g agent-browser
      - run: agent-browser install
      - run: ./scripts/run-competitive-monitor.sh
      - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: competitive-intel
          path: .competitive-intel/
```

## Related Skills

- `web-research-workflow` - Decides WebFetch vs browser
- `browser-content-capture` - Detailed capture patterns
- `market-analysis-patterns` - Analysis frameworks

---

**Version:** 1.0.0 (February )