Two-axis tier model — commercial intensity × local saturation

Core insight: A plumber and a SaaS company are both "hard" for OPPOSITE reasons; a one-number difficulty score destroys that information.

The two axes:

• Axis A — Commercial intensity. Proxy: CPC tier + organic KD. Captures Legal / Insurance / SaaS — high willingness to pay, deep-pocketed competitors, high keyword authority barrier.
• Axis B — Local saturation. Proxy: typical 3-pack review bar + pack crowding. Captures trades / restaurants / dentists — geographically bounded competition, high review bar.

Output examples:

• Legal = "High commercial / Low-moderate local."
• Plumber = "Moderate-high commercial / High local."
• Accountant = "Low commercial / Low local = OPEN."
• SaaS = "High commercial / N/A local."

Why this matters for Candid: This is the keystone design recommendation of the vertical brief. The widget MUST emit TWO axis scores, not collapse them into one number. Otherwise the same "Hard" output covers a SaaS founder who needs Tier 3 differentiation work and a plumber who needs Tier 2 review velocity — totally different recommendations.