Pomio CRM keeps every deal with its value, stage, owner, source and notes, in board and list views. Most small teams already note why a deal was lost. Far fewer note who they were up against, and that is the half of the story that explains the reason.
Why one name is enough
Customers often talk to two or three suppliers. Recording all of them sounds thorough but nobody keeps it up. Ask one question instead: who is the customer most seriously comparing us with? One name per deal is easy to fill in and still adds up to a clear picture after a few months.
Use a fixed list, not free text
Free text turns one competitor into five spellings, and the report becomes useless. Keep a short list of the competitors you actually meet, plus “none” and “other”. When “other” shows up often for the same name, add it to the list. The same reasoning applies to a fixed list of labels.
When to fill it in
Not at the first call, because you usually do not know yet. Make it part of the step where you send a quote or proposal: by then the customer has normally said who else is in the picture. If they have not, ask. Most buyers answer that question openly.
Read it together with win and loss reasons
The competitor field is most useful next to a loss reason and a win reason. “Lost on price” against one supplier and “lost on features” against another are two different problems with two different fixes. One without the other leaves you guessing.
Look at it once a quarter
A quarter of deals is usually enough to see a pattern in a small team. Count per competitor how often you met them, how often you won and at which stage deals were lost. Share the result with whoever owns pricing and the sales pitch, and change one thing at a time.
Keep it in the weekly review
In the weekly pipeline review, ask for every deal that reached the proposal stage whether the competitor is filled in. It takes seconds and stops the field from going empty after the first month.
How Pomio CRM helps
In Pomio CRM every deal has a stage, owner, source, value and notes, and deals are linked to companies and contacts. Recording the main competitor on the deal itself keeps it in the same place as the rest of the sales context, so it is reviewed alongside stage and owner rather than in a separate spreadsheet.
A practical checklist
Keep a short fixed list of competitors plus “none” and “other”; record one main competitor per deal; fill it in when a proposal goes out; read it together with win and loss reasons; review the numbers once a quarter; check the field in the weekly pipeline review.
Further reading
What if the customer will not say who else they talk to?
Record “unknown”. A high share of “unknown” is useful information too: it means the team is not asking yet.
Should the customer doing nothing count as a competitor?
Yes. Add “no decision” or “stays with current situation” to the list. It is often the most common competitor of all.
Can the competitor change during a deal?
Yes. Update the field when the picture changes and note why, so the history stays readable.
Who maintains the list of competitors?
One person, usually the sales lead, so names do not drift and the list stays short.