Why You Need a Competitive SEO Analysis?
- It shows you exactly where you stand in your market
- You’ll find gaps in your current strategy
- You can spot new ranking opportunities
- It helps you set realistic SEO goals
- You’ll save time by learning from other’s successes and failures
Let’s break these points down. When you know where you stand, you can make informed decisions about your SEO investments. Finding gaps helps you spot missed opportunities that your competitors haven’t noticed yet. New ranking opportunities mean you can target keywords your competitors have overlooked. Setting realistic goals keeps your strategy focused and achievable. And learning from others’ experiences means you won’t waste time on tactics that don’t work.
Step 1: Identify Your True Competitors
- List your direct business competitors
- Find your SEO competitors through keyword research
- Look for websites ranking for your target keywords
- Check websites with similar content themes
- Analyse websites targeting your audience
Your SEO competitors might be different from your business competitors. For example, if you sell handmade jewellery, you’re not just competing with other jewellery makers – you’re also competing with craft blogs, fashion magazines, and gift guides that rank for your keywords. Make a spreadsheet with both types of competitors to get a complete picture.
Step 2: Analyse Their Keywords
- Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to extract competitor keywords
- Group keywords by search intent
- Check keyword difficulty scores
- Look for long-tail keyword opportunities
- Compare keyword overlap between competitors
Your keyword analysis should go beyond just collecting terms. Look at how competitors group their content themes. For example, if you notice a competitor ranks well for “beginner yoga poses” and related terms, they might have built strong topical authority in that area. You can either compete directly or find related niches they’ve missed.
Step 3: Study Their Content Strategy
- Review their content formats
- Check their content update frequency
- Analyse their content length and depth
- Look at their internal linking structure
- Examine their content gaps
Content analysis reveals patterns in what works. If you see a competitor consistently ranking with 2,500-word guides, that’s a clue about what Google values in your niche. But don’t just copy – improve. If their guides lack real-world examples or expert quotes, that’s your chance to create something better.
Step 4: Technical SEO Comparison
- Check their site speed using PageSpeed Insights
- Look at their site structure
- Analyse their URL patterns
- Review their mobile optimisation
- Check their schema markup
Technical SEO often makes the difference between good and great rankings. If you notice a competitor’s site loads in 2 seconds while yours takes 5, that’s a clear area for improvement. Use tools like Screaming Frog to dig deep into their technical setup.
Step 5: Examine Their Link Profile
- Look at their backlink sources
- Analyse link quality and relevance
- Check their anchor text distribution
- Find their guest posting strategies
- Identify their PR approaches
Getting quality backlinks remains crucial for SEO success. If you notice a competitor got links from industry associations or high-authority news sites, look into how they did it. Maybe they’re creating original research that naturally attracts links, or perhaps they’re actively building relationships with journalists.
Step 6: Social Media and Brand Signals
- Check their social media presence
- Look at their brand mentions
- Review their online reputation
- Analyse their engagement rates
- Study their content-sharing patterns
While social signals aren’t direct ranking factors, they affect your overall online presence. If competitors get lots of social shares on specific types of content, that’s valuable intelligence about what your audience wants to see and share.
Step 7: Track and Monitor Changes
- Set up tracking for competitor rankings
- Monitor their new content
- Watch for technical changes
- Keep tabs on their backlink growth
- Note their website updates
SEO isn’t a one-time task. Create a system to monitor competitors regularly. Set up alerts for when they publish new content or get new backlinks. This helps you stay ahead of all the changes in your market.
Step 8: Turn Insights into Action
- Create an action plan based on the findings
- Prioritise quick wins
- Plan long-term strategy changes
- Set measurable goals
- Schedule regular review periods
Don’t let your analysis gather dust. If you find that competitors rank well with how-to videos, start creating better video content. If they’re missing local SEO opportunities, focus there. Turn every insight into a specific action item.
Step 9: Analyse Traffic Patterns and Conversion Strategies
- Study their traffic sources using tools like SimilarWeb
- Examine their conversion funnels
- Review their call-to-action placement
- Analyse their user flow
- Check their landing page strategies
Understanding how competitors turn traffic into customers is crucial. Use tools like SimilarWeb or Alexa to estimate their traffic sources. If you notice they get 40% of traffic from organic search but 30% from referrals, investigate those referral sources. They might have partnerships you could replicate.
Look at their conversion funnels. How many steps do visitors take before becoming customers? What free resources do they offer? If competitors offer ebooks, case studies, or free tools, analyse how they use these assets to capture leads.
Study their call-to-action placement. Are they using exit-intent popups? How about sticky headers with offers? Notice where they place their strongest CTAs and how they phrase them. Their A/B testing has likely revealed what works best.
Check their landing pages for different traffic sources. Smart competitors create specific pages for different audience segments. They might have separate pages for organic traffic versus paid traffic; each optimised for different conversion goals.
Conclusion
A thorough SEO competitive analysis gives you the insights needed to make smart decisions about your digital marketing strategy. By understanding what works in your market and what doesn’t, you can focus your efforts on where they’ll have the biggest impact. Remember, the goal isn’t to copy your competitors – it’s to learn from them and do better. Ready to turn these insights into higher rankings and more traffic for your website?
Contact Us at Rankingeek Marketing Agency today, and let our expert team help you create a data-driven SEO strategy that puts you ahead of the competition. Whether you need a complete SEO overhaul or help with specific aspects of your digital marketing, we’re here to help you achieve your goals.
