How To Spy On Your Rivals

Inc. doesn’t recommend corporate espionage—but if you can get creative while staying on the right side of the law, go for it. That’s what John Ross, CEO of Test Prep Insight, was thinking when he heard that one of his competitors was meeting with a potential buyer. Ross—who was also contemplating a sale of his Sacramento-based online education company, wanted to get some intel on the buyer. But how?

- By Gabrielle Bienasz

Hire a Rabbit.

He paid someone from errand service TaskRabbit $150 to go to the competitor’s New York City office on the day of the meeting and get the potential buyer’s name from the receptionist. The Tasker told the receptionist he had a package (a box of takeout menus) for the meeting participants coming in that day. It worked. “We ultimately didn’t act on this information, but it was nice to stay in the know,” Ross says.