competitive-advantage

Apply the six-dimension moat test: value, evidence, resistance, accumulation, capture, and durability. An advantage qualifies as a moat only when it demonstrates resistance to imitation or substitution over a stated time horizon; otherwise it is classified as an edge or capability.

An edge is a current advantage with value and evidence but weak or unknown resistance to copying. A capability is a repeatable ability to produce an outcome. A moat is an edge whose benefit demonstrably resists imitation or substitution over the relevant time horizon.

Choose two to four compatible advantages, draw explicit causal arrows between them, and close the loop into a flywheel where evidence supports one. Resolve tensions between opposing strategies, such as affordability versus luxury, by separating them by customer, layer, or phase.

Yes, the framework applies to products, companies, open-source projects, careers, and communities. You define the arena by naming the contested resource, the real alternatives including non-consumption and substitutes, and the time horizon.

Common failures include treating a visible feature as a moat, collecting catalog labels without causal mechanisms, citing current scale as the explanation, ignoring value capture, and analyzing statically without considering alternatives, environment, and time horizon.