Mining for New Competitive Opportunities Using AI

Posted by | Michael Ratcliffe

How can AI tools like natural language processing (NLP), machine learning (ML), and large language models (LLMs) transform customer reviews into powerful competitive intelligence?  By using AI to break up unprompted customer feedback into meaningful fragments, tools such as Fuld’s CompeteAI solution enables companies to uncover patterns, identify gaps, and discover unexpected opportunities.  

Tapping into unprompted customer insights 

Traditional market research often begins with predefined questions, but AI flips this approach. It starts with what customers say organically—capturing their unfiltered opinions, preferences, and frustrations. Online reviews, forums, and social media comments offer a raw, honest perspective on what customers value, dislike, or expect. Using advanced AI tools, companies can analyze thousands of these reviews to reveal customer insights from AI, such as market trends, competitive weaknesses, and untapped opportunities. 

What AI reveals in customer reviews 

Custom-built AI tools go beyond basic sentiment analysis to provide deep, actionable insights through AI analysis of customer reviews for a specific marketplace, defined by groups of competitive products. These tools break down unstructured data—customer reviews—into structured, meaningful outputs across the customer reviews for all target products.  

Key capabilities include: 

• Breaking down reviews: Isolating positive and negative feedback within reviews by using AI to isolate meaningful fragments from hundreds or even thousands of reviews. 
• Ranking features: Evaluating product or service features based on these fragments and how they drive customer preferences using a range of statistical techniques. 
• Competitor comparison: Highlighting how your offerings stack up against competitors on shared customer priorities both at a top-line level and at a detailed specific functionality level 
• Spotting rare insights: Identifying unique comments that reveal new use cases, unmet needs or very specific issue areas, as well as trends over time. 

This approach avoids limiting research around pre-research assumptions, grounding insights in real customer experiences and providing a clear, evidence-based view of the market. 

Case study: Water filtering device market 

One example of the use of this service was an analysis of the market for a simple home water filtering device, which provided the client with the clear message that: 

• This needed to be redesigned to be a dual water filter and softening device, creating a product that would not only meet customer unmet needs but also be unique in this market. 
• Its use could be expanded into new market segments such as pet cleaning stations or RVs, again with no direct competitors. 

An interactive dashboard allowed client teams to explore these insights, drilling down into specific comments, comparing sentiment across features or products, and tracking trends over time. 

Case study: Healthcare clinic market 

The approach isn’t limited to products—it’s equally powerful for service-based industries. In a healthcare provider case study, the service was used to compare reviews of the provider’s clinic network against local competitors. The analysis pinpointed where the client’s clinics were falling short and why, uncovering: 

• Staff professionalism in handling wait time as it gradually increases over the day was the strongest driver of sentiment. 
• Specific staff members were identified as receiving frequent praise or criticism which HR could immediately act on. 
• Comparison with nearby competitive clinics identified which areas of operations were the top priority for the client to improve in order to attract patients from competitors. 

AI organized and analyzed the reviews into four stages—pre-visit, in-clinic, post-visit, and ongoing relationship—clearly identifying pain points which could be tied to specific reviews. Including the date of reviews helped overcome concerns about the in reliability of the data source.  

The power of rare comments 

Some of the most valuable insights came from comments mentioned only rarely but which captured new ideas on product or service improvements. Far from being outliers, these “signals” often revealed innovative ideas or important unmet needs. For example: 

• In a skincare projects, users unexpectedly reported concerns over specific molecular ingredients which allowed the client’s R&D team to rethink their strategy around a new product’s formulation.  

Why general AI tools aren’t enough 

While off-the-shelf AI tools such as ChatGPT or Claude can summarize general trends in reviews, they fall short compared to specialized competitive intelligence tools. They lack: 

• Consistency and repeatability: Custom AI ensures reliable, standardized results. 
• Data control and privacy: Tailored solutions protect sensitive client data. 
• Real-time updates: Custom systems track specific products or services dynamically. 
• Competitor tracking: Specialized tools monitor competitors over time with precision. 

Fuld’s four-step AI-driven process addresses these gaps: collect and clean data, analyze it with multiple AI models, visualize results in interactive dashboards, and enable real-time exploration. 

This structured approach handles large datasets, ensures repeatability, and scales cost-effectively as new data is added. 

A smarter starting point for research 

AI-driven review analysis doesn’t replace traditional market research—it enhances it, demonstrating the value of AI in market research. By starting with a 360-degree view of unprompted customer feedback, businesses can: 

• Identify the true drivers of five-star and one-star reviews. 
• Spot unresolved critical issues competitors have overlooked. 
• Track sentiment shifts over time. 
• Refine product design and marketing using authentic customer language. 
• Focus subsequent research on high-impact areas. 

By grounding decisions in the voices of real customers, Fuld can help you to exploit AI to empower your key products or services to uncover competitive opportunities and threats with precision and confidence in a secure and custom environment. 

Watch the replay of our webinar, Mining for New Competitive Opportunities Using AI, here.

Tags: AI & Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, competitive strategy consulting, Consumer Products & Retail