Competitive Benchmarking

Competitive Benchmarking: The situation we all face

Competitive benchmarking shows that customer expectations aren’t defined by your rivals but by the most remarkable experience anyone has ever had – every interaction must be effortless, personalised, and instantly rewarding.

A perfect storm of market forces has reshaped expectations

• Macroeconomic pressures and digital-native disruptors have fragmented customer spend
• Post-pandemic behaviours have accelerated demand for flawless, personalised experiences
• Consumers now make snap judgments, switching brands after a single poor interaction

Today’s reality creates impossible-seeming demands

• Hyper-personalisation at first touch
• Zero-friction interactions that feel intuitive
• Instant trust-building despite growing data privacy concerns

The real challenge? Customers now judge you against three impossible standards at once: the seamless polish of FAANG tech giants (even as they stagnate), the lightning agility of digital-native disruptors (despite their growing pains & inability to sustain lifetime value), and the category-redefining experience innovations of market leaders in completely unrelated industries.

You’re not just competing with your rivals; you are being measured against every experience your customers have ever had, anywhere.

Onboarding is a critical moment of truth.

It’s no longer just a functional handoff to get to the first commercial transaction, it’s where customers decide whether to:

• Exchange data for delight – Does sharing my information feel like an unfair ask or like opening a special backstage pass?
• Turn from sceptic to supporter – Is this an experience worth spotlighting on social, or met with a meh?
• Opt into belonging – Does this feel like being welcomed into something special and unique, or just another dreary signup process?

 When customers feel instantly heard & understood, they don’t just engage, they:

• Share freely– Volunteering data because they expect personal rewards
• Advocate naturally– Telling friends without being asked
• Stay loyal– Overlooking small stumbles because the connection feels worth keeping and mutually beneficial

Problem: Why Brands Fail the Onboarding Test

Faced with rising expectations, companies typically make one of two mistakes:

The ‘Copycat Trap’

• Blindly replicating surface-level features from giants without their resilient adaptive infrastructure, resulting in half-baked experiences that erode trust.

The ‘Random Acts of CX’ Approach

• Prioritising novelty over solving the moments that truly lose customers, creating flashy but forgettable interactions.

 The root issue?

Most onboarding feels like a chore, paperwork for the brand, not a welcome mat for future revenue.

Implication: The Hidden Costs of Inaction

When onboarding fails to convert curiosity into commitment:

For Customers

• They silently categorise you as ‘just another option’, reducing lifetime value.

For Competitors

• You fund their R&D by handing them a blueprint of whatnot to do, especially if incidents make it into the trade press.

For Your Team

• You incur ‘friction debt’ spending 3X more to re-acquire customers you initially lost to poor UX.

Purple Square’s Competitive Benchmarking: Your Onboarding Game-Changer

We go beyond basic comparisons to transform onboarding into your most powerful growth lever. Here’s how we deliver your advantage:

1. Blind Spot Detection – Uncover the hidden friction points costing you conversions right now
2. Competitor Decoding – Reverse-engineer exactly how rivals are stealing your best customers
3. Cross-Industry Innovation – Adapt proven tactics from market leaders outside your category
4. Prioritised Transformation Roadmap – Implement the most valuable changes that will dramatically improve retention within one quarter

The Result?

Onboarding that doesn’t just work—it converts and retains your customers.

Your competitors aren’t waiting, and neither should you. Let’s audit your onboarding’s hidden leaks and launch your turnaround. Contact us today for a zero-fluff assessment.