5 Steps to Get the Most Out of SEO Competitor Analysis

Website Strategies

Using Competitor Analysis to Know Where You Stand and Why

Wow. You’ve created awesome content.

You’ve carefully selected your keywords. Your website has been fine-tuned with the latest technical SEO tweaks.

So why is your competitor’s website ranking higher? Your SEO specialist should be able to tell you.

After all, your website isn’t alone out there. Everything you do for SEO only benefits your business if it beats your competition.

What can competitor analysis do for you?

If your competitors are at the head of the pack instead of you, ask your SEO consultant for a competitor analysis. Once you get that competitor analysis report, here are five ways to put it to good use.

      1. Find New Keywords. Of course, you’ve conducted intensive keyword research. You know the common terms that consumers use when they are researching your product or service. But, there’s always room to discover something new.  Maybe your competitors have already done that for you. A competitor analysis using tools like SpyFu will show you their best performing keywords. Then your content writers can get to work.
      2. Identify Potential Backlinks. Hey, if a website is willing to link to your competitor’s mediocre product, then they should be interested in linking to you. Use the list of backlinks in your competitor analysis report as a contact list for your link outreach efforts. This information can also be used to guide your paid ad buys. Don’t let your competitor be the only name on the page!
      3. Check Their Cred. Web pages vary in their overall authority. You can use competitor analysis to determine not only how you rank for a specific keyword search, but also how you measure up in terms of credibility. Do search engine algorithms “see” your website as a reliable source or is your competitor viewed as the authority?
      4. Peek at Their Audience. Where are your competitors’ website visitors coming from? If you find the answer to this question, then you can start reaching out to those visitors, too. Now, you can’t find out the exact details of every visitor. But, your SEO consultant can put together a solid website visitor and traffic analysis using a combination of different tools.
      5. Stay Agile. When you employ ongoing competitor analysis as part of your strategy, you can respond quickly to changes. Tracking your competitors’ week to week performance for specific keywords can reveal when and if they are attempting to counter your SEO efforts. Keep an eye on the status of keywords you’ve recently won top ranking for; your competitors may attempt to retake them. Once you take the lead, use monitoring to keep it.

Do You Need Competitor Analysis?

Should you be using competitor analysis when planning your SEO strategy? Absolutely.

Full-service web optimization firms such as Website Strategies in Australia include competitive analysis in their SEO audit and optimization services for a reason. Because not matter how well you and your team have done their jobs, if a competitor is outranking you, you aren’t getting the payoff.

Don’t wait until your ranking drops to begin researching your competition. Know the plays before they’re made and stay on top.