The “Competitor Spy” Alert

What It Is

The Competitor Spy Alert monitors website behavior of contacts already in your pipeline or active deals. When they visit comparison pages, competitor content, or 'how to cancel' pages, the deal owner gets an immediate alert with context to intervene. It's your early warning system for competitive threats.

Why It Matters

By the time a prospect tells you they're evaluating a competitor, they're already 70% decided. This playbook catches them in the research phase—when you can still shape their evaluation criteria and address concerns before they harden into objections.

Who It's For

• Sales teams in competitive markets
• Account Executives managing multiple deals
• Customer Success teams monitoring renewal risk
• Companies with comparison or competitor content on their site

Required Tools

• CRM with contact tracking (HubSpot/Salesforce)
• Website tracking with contact identification
• Slack or email for alerts
• Comparison/competitor pages on your site

Required Fields/Properties

• Contact-to-deal mapping in CRM
• Page URL patterns for competitive content
• Deal owner assignments
• Alert thresholds and priority rules

Definitions Required

• Which pages indicate competitive evaluation
• Which pages indicate churn risk (for customers)
• Alert priority levels by deal stage
• Response playbooks for different scenarios

Slack Alert: Prospect Viewing Competitor Page

🚨 *COMPETITIVE ALERT*

*Contact:* {{contact_name}}
*Company:* {{company_name}}
*Deal:* {{deal_name}} ({{deal_stage}})
*Deal Value:* ${{deal_amount}}

*Page Viewed:* {{page_title}}
*URL:* {{page_url}}
*Time:* Just now

⚠️ *Priority:* {{priority_level}}

💡 *Recommended Action:* Call immediately with competitive positioning. Reference our advantages in {{competitive_area}}.

📋 <{{battle_card_url}}|View Battle Card> | <{{crm_link}}|Open Deal>

Slack Alert: Customer Viewing Cancel Page

🔴 *CHURN RISK DETECTED*

*Customer:* {{company_name}}
*Contact:* {{contact_name}} ({{contact_title}})
*ARR:* ${{contract_value}}
*Renewal Date:* {{renewal_date}}

*Page Viewed:* How to Cancel / Downgrade
*Time:* Just now

🚨 *Action Required:* Immediate CSM outreach. Do not wait.

💡 *Suggested Approach:* Call to check in on their experience. Do not mention you saw the page visit.

<{{crm_link}}|View Account> | <{{cs_notes_link}}|Recent CS Notes>

Response Script: Competitive Intervention Call

Hi {{first_name}}, it's {{your_name}} from {{your_company}}.

I wanted to check in on your evaluation. I know you're doing your due diligence—which is exactly what you should do—and I wanted to make sure I'm answering the right questions.

[If they admit to evaluating competitor:]

Totally understand. A lot of our customers evaluated {{competitor}} before choosing us. The main difference they found was [key differentiator]. Would it be helpful if I walked you through that comparison?

[If they deny or deflect:]

No problem—just wanted to make sure you have everything you need. Any questions come up that I can help clarify?

Competitive Page Priority Matrix

| Page Type | Deal Stage | Priority | Alert Channel | Response SLA |
|-----------|------------|----------|---------------|-------------|
| Competitor Comparison | Negotiation | Critical | Slack DM + SMS | 15 min |
| Competitor Comparison | Proposal | High | Slack DM | 1 hour |
| Competitor Comparison | Discovery | Medium | Slack Channel | 4 hours |
| Pricing Page | Customer | High | CSM Slack | 2 hours |
| Cancel Page | Customer | Critical | CSM DM + Manager | 15 min |
| Downgrade Page | Customer | High | CSM Slack | 1 hour |

Test Cases Checklist

• Known contact in active deal visits /vs-competitor → deal owner receives Slack DM
• Identified company (not contact) visits comparison page → alert to territory rep
• Customer visits cancel page → CSM receives critical alert
• Contact not in any deal visits comparison page → no alert (or low priority)
• Multiple pages viewed in session → single consolidated alert

Common Failure Modes

• Alert fatigue from low-intent signals: Not every comparison page view is a red flag. Weight by deal stage and contact role. A SDR in discovery viewing comparison is normal research.
• Reps not responding to alerts: If reps ignore alerts, the system fails. Track response rates and coach underperformers. Consider gamification or manager visibility.
• Visitor not identified: Many visitors won't be matched to contacts. Focus on high-value deals where tracking is more complete. Use IP matching as supplement.
• Awkward outreach revealing surveillance: Never say 'I saw you visited our competitor page.' Focus on 'checking in' or 'making sure you have what you need.' Be helpful, not creepy.

Troubleshooting Tips

• If alerts aren't firing: Verify website tracking is passing contact IDs correctly
• If too many alerts: Tighten deal stage and page filters to reduce noise
• If response rates low: Review alert formatting and recommended actions—make it easier to act
• If win rate impact unclear: Ensure outcomes are being logged against alerts

KPIs to Track

• Alert Response Rate: >80% of high-priority alerts receive response within SLA
• Win Rate on Alerted Deals: Track win rate on deals with competitive alerts vs. baseline
• Churn Save Rate: >25% of cancel-page alerts result in retention
• Time-to-Response: <15 minutes for critical alerts, <1 hour for high priority
• Competitive Intel Gathered: Log insights from competitive conversations for product team

Suggested Dashboard Widgets

• Weekly Competitive Alerts: Count of alerts fired by competitor mentioned and outcome
• Rep Response Leaderboard: Ranking of reps by alert response rate and speed
• At-Risk Deal Monitor: Real-time list of deals with recent competitive activity
• Competitor Trend Analysis: Which competitor pages are being viewed most frequently