⏰ The 30-second version
- Every customer question has a fixed set of seats in the AI answer, and if you're not in them, a competitor is using that seat.
- The diagnostic is a four-quadrant grid — lay out your question list and sort into both answer / only me / only competitor / no one.
- The priorities are "only competitor" (being lost — reclaim) and "no one" (open territory — claim).
- Do it without the emotional drain — this is map-making, not envy.
What "losing" actually means
If AI mentions only a competing brand for "Can a protein shake replace a meal?", the competitor takes the first impression of every customer who asks that question. There's no second or third place like in search rankings — if you're not in the answer, you're at zero. That's why checking, question by question, "who's using that seat" becomes the new baseline of competitive analysis.
Drawing the four-quadrant grid: 30 minutes does it
Prepare a list of 30 questions (how to build it), throw each at the AI, and mark whether your brand and your competitor's brand appear. Then every question falls into one of four boxes.
| Quadrant | Meaning | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Both answer | Head-to-head zone | Win with a more specific answer |
| Only me | An asset to defend | Hold it with fresh content |
| Only competitor | Being lost | Reclaim with a better answer to the same question |
| No one | Open territory | Claim it by writing first |
Where to start: claiming beats reclaiming
Counterintuitively, it's more efficient to hit the "no one" box before the "only competitor" box. Reclaiming means fighting content that's already entrenched, while open territory is yours just by walking in. Grow your coverage through claiming to build momentum, then reclaim the lost questions closest to a buying decision first.
One tip when writing a reclaim piece — write content that answers more precisely, not content that attacks the competitor. AI has no interest in brand fights; it just picks the document that answered the question better.
By hand vs with a tool
Drawing the grid once is fine by hand (30 questions × 1–2 AIs is a half-day). The problem is maintenance — the map shifts every time you publish content and every time a competitor moves. Bulti's competitive comparison audit draws this grid automatically; just enter your page and your competitor's brand name. You don't even need the competitor's URL — the brand name is enough.
FAQ
Q. Shouldn't I compare against several competitors?
One — the one most on your mind — is enough to start. The shape of the grid doesn't change much when the rival changes, and the "no one" box holds regardless of who the rival is.
Q. Isn't the reason we're not mentioned that we're a small brand?
More often the cause is missing content, not size. Without a document that answers the question, even big brands get left out — which conversely means there's room for a small brand to get in.
Q. Once I write for a lost question, when do I reclaim it?
Think in terms of weeks, given the indexing cycle. If it doesn't happen at once, revise by raising the specificity of your answer (numbers, conditions, use situations).
Originally published at en.bultibulti.com. We run a free GEO audit there — it checks one of your pages against 30 buyer questions, no signup.
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