Analyzing SEO competitors is more important than marketers realize. Think of search engines as a free marketing insight tool that tells you how your search engine optimization could perform. By doing simple keyword and usability research, you can see what tactics are working and how to best utilize your time.
- What do you need to know about your competitor’s SEO?
- What they’re doing right
- What advantages your website has over your competitors and how to capitalize on it.
- What are your link opportunities?
Who are your SEO competitors? Find out by using iSpionage
The SEO tool to use: iSpionage
How:
- Go to ispionage.com and enter your URL
- Select Competitors on the top menu
- Switch from PPC to SEO, this is switching from your competitors on pay-per-click ads to search engine optimization
- Ispionage will show you the top 5 competitors for free
Next step: Now that we have our top SEO competitors, let’s find out if they’re beating your website in search results.
Find your SEO Competitor’s Keywords
The SEO tool to use: iSpionage
How:
- Click on competitors > Keyword & Domain Research
- Enter your competitor’s website URL
- Select “Organic Keywords”
- Now you have top keywords to view and compare to your website
Next Step: Try using these keywords on your own website. Then, track the keywords over time to see if you can beat your competitor on search rankings.
Find your SEO Competitor’s Keyword Density
The tool to use: Internet Marketing Ninjas – Keyword Density Tool
How:
- Enter your competitor’s URL to find out the keyword density of their website
- Once you find the density, then you’ll know how many times you should use the keyword on your website.
- Repeat these steps for at least 5 competitors to see the number to beat
Next Step:
Include the target keyword in titles, blogs, and other content. This is important because the more you use the keyword, the more search engines consider your website an expert on the subject. Therefore, it will help you beat competitors in search engine results!
Analyze your SEO Competitor’s Content
The SEO tool to use: You’re the tool
How:
This step is a bit manual and is going to take time. The more you know your competitors content, the better you will be at making SEO decisions. Here are the things you want to check for:
- Word Count: See how many words your SEO competitor uses in a blog post. They may be making a mistake by producing content with too low or too high of a word count. What should you do? Well, Whole Whale recommends content to be at least 600 words in order to be competitive. Remember, you don’t want your content to be too long just for the sake of word count.
- Unique Content: Are your competitors focusing on one topic? Find topics that they haven’t covered in depth and dedicate a month to that topic. While creating content on your website you do not want to be spammy by doing 10 blogs on SEO competitors. Instead, dedicate a whole month to writing content about SEO.
- Media: Are your competitors using photos and videos? The better the user experience, the better your SEO. If you don’t see a lot of Youtube embed content on the website, fire up that camera because you will be able to beat those SEO competitors with great video content.
Is your competitor’s website mobile friendly?
The SEO tool to use: Google’s mobile-friendly test
How:
- Go to Google’s mobile-friendly test and enter your competitor’s URL
- Find out if they have a lot of flaws in their mobile design
Next Step:
If your competitors do not have a mobile optimized website, this is an easy opportunity to beat the competition in mobile search. Google and many other search engines take design into account in regard to rankings. This may be the best time for you to get that website redesign and increase your mobile search engine rankings.
SEO Competitor Analysis
Now you’ve learned a few strategies and tools to find out more about your SEO competitors. Start writing that content, including those keywords, and become an SEO expert.