teardown

---
name: teardown
description: Analyze an existing product, landing page, or app. What works, what doesn't, what to steal. Competitive intelligence and design patterns in one pass.
category: workflow
tags: [teardown, analysis, competitor, landing-page, product-thinking]
author: tushaarmehtaa
---

Pick apart a product, landing page, or app. Find what works, what doesn't, and what's worth stealing for your own project.

## How to start

Ask TWO questions before doing anything else. Ask them together.

> "What's the product you want to tear down? And what are you building — so I know what to focus the 'steal this' section on?"

Wait for both answers. If they give you a product but no context on what they're building, ask before analyzing. A teardown without a target is just criticism.

If they haven't told you what specifically they want to learn — positioning, copy, UX, social proof, onboarding — ask that too. It sharpens the analysis.

---

## Phase 1: Get the Target

The user provides one of:
- A URL — fetch it and analyze the page
- A product name — search for it, pull the landing page
- A screenshot — analyze what's visible
- A description — work from what they describe

If they provide a URL, read the full page. If the product has multiple pages (pricing, features, about), read those too.

Ask: **"What are you building?"** — The teardown is only useful if you know what to apply it to. If the user hasn't mentioned their own project, ask.

## Phase 2: The 7 Lenses

Analyze through each lens. Not everything applies to every product — skip what's irrelevant.

**1. First Impression (5-second test)**
What do you understand about this product in 5 seconds? Can a stranger tell what it does, who it's for, and why it matters? If not, what's missing?

**2. Positioning**
How does this product position itself? What category does it claim? What's the implicit "us vs. them"? Who are they NOT for? The best products are polarizing — they pick a side.

**3. Copy Quality**
Score the headline, subheadline, CTAs, feature copy, and microcopy. Use the same rules as `/landing-copy`:
- Headline under 10 words?
- Specific benefit over vague promise?
- CTAs pass the "I want to ___" test?
- No "powerful", "seamless", "revolutionary"?
- Does it sound like a human or a marketing team?

**4. Social Proof**
What proof do they show? Numbers, testimonials, logos, case studies, press mentions? Is it specific ("847 teams use this") or vague ("trusted by thousands")? Is it above the fold?

**5. Objection Handling**
What reasons would someone have NOT to buy/use this? Does the page address them? Look for: pricing concerns, trust issues, competitor comparison, "is this for me?" doubts. Unaddressed objections are conversion leaks.

**6. User Experience**
If it's an app: How does onboarding work? What's the time-to-value? What does the empty state look like? How does the first action feel? If it's a landing page: How's the scroll flow? Is there a logical progression from curiosity to action?

**7. Design & Craft**
Visual hierarchy, whitespace, typography, color. Does the design support the message or distract from it? Is it distinctive or template-generic? Does it feel like someone cared?

## Phase 3: The Three Lists

After analysis, distill into three lists:

```
TEARDOWN — [Product Name]
════════════════════════════════════

WHAT'S WORKING:
1. [specific thing] — [why it works]
2. [specific thing] — [why it works]
3. [specific thing] — [why it works]
(3-7 items)

WHAT'S NOT:
1. [specific thing] — [what's wrong and why]
2. [specific thing] — [what's wrong and why]
3. [specific thing] — [what's wrong and why]
(3-7 items)

STEAL THIS:
1. [specific tactic] — [how to apply it to YOUR product]
2. [specific tactic] — [how to apply it to YOUR product]
3. [specific tactic] — [how to apply it to YOUR product]
(3-5 items. Each must reference the user's own project.)

════════════════════════════════════
```

## Phase 4: Go Deeper (Optional)

If the user wants more, offer:

- **Copy rewrite** — take their weakest section and rewrite it using the best tactic from the teardown
- **Side-by-side** — compare two competitors on the same 7 lenses
- **Apply it** — take the "Steal This" list and make the changes in the user's codebase

## Verify

```
[ ] Target product is clearly identified and fully read
[ ] All 7 lenses analyzed (or explicitly skipped with reason)
[ ] "What's Working" has specific observations, not generic praise
[ ] "What's Not" has specific problems, not vague criticism
[ ] "Steal This" items reference the user's own project — not generic advice
[ ] Teardown is opinionated — takes a position, doesn't sit on the fence
[ ] No "they could consider" or "it might be worth exploring" hedging
[ ] Analysis is grounded in what's visible, not assumptions about their metrics
```