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SEO & Analytics Competitive Analysis Cheat Sheet

A comprehensive cheat sheet outlining key strategies and tools for conducting competitive analysis in SEO and analytics. It covers identifying competitors, analyzing their content, backlinks, keyword strategies, and technical SEO, as well as benchmarking performance and uncovering growth opportunities.

Identifying Competitors

Direct vs. Indirect Competitors

Direct Competitors

Businesses that offer similar products/services to the same target audience.

Indirect Competitors

Businesses that offer different products/services but satisfy the same customer need.

Example (Direct)

Two coffee shops in the same neighborhood.

Example (Indirect)

A coffee shop and a tea house.

Methods for Competitor Discovery

  • Google Search: Identify websites ranking for your target keywords.
  • Industry Reports: Explore market research and reports to find key players.
  • Customer Surveys: Ask customers about their alternative choices.
  • Social Media Listening: Monitor mentions of competitors.
  • Tools: Use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and SpyFu to identify competitors based on keyword overlap and domain authority.

Tools for Competitor Identification

SEMrush

Identifies competitors based on keyword overlap, traffic, and backlink profiles.

Ahrefs

Reveals competing domains based on backlink analysis and keyword rankings.

SpyFu

Focuses on competitor keyword strategies and advertising spend.

Similarweb

Provides insights into competitor website traffic, engagement metrics, and traffic sources.

Content Analysis

Content Types and Formats

Analyze the types of content your competitors are creating:

  • Blog Posts: Evaluate topic relevance, length, and engagement.
  • Videos: Assess production quality, topics covered, and viewer engagement.
  • Infographics: Determine visual appeal, data presentation, and shareability.
  • Ebooks/Whitepapers: Analyze depth of information, lead generation tactics, and perceived value.
  • Podcasts: Evaluate audio quality, guest selection, and listener engagement.

Keyword Targeting

Identify Target Keywords

Determine the keywords your competitors are targeting in their content. Use tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs.

Analyze Keyword Density

Check how frequently keywords are used within the content. Avoid keyword stuffing.

Assess Keyword Placement

Evaluate where keywords are placed (e.g., title, headings, body).

Long-Tail Keywords

Identify opportunities to target long-tail keywords that competitors may be overlooking.

Content Performance Metrics

Track key performance indicators (KPIs) for competitor content:

  • Organic Traffic: Use tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs to estimate organic traffic to specific pages.
  • Social Shares: Monitor the number of shares on social media platforms.
  • Backlinks: Analyze the number and quality of backlinks pointing to the content.
  • Engagement Metrics: Track comments, likes, and other engagement signals.
  • Conversion Rates: If possible, assess how well the content converts visitors into leads or customers.

Backlink Analysis

Identifying Backlink Sources

Use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Majestic to identify the websites linking to your competitors.

  • Ahrefs: Provides a comprehensive backlink index and various metrics.
  • SEMrush: Offers backlink analysis tools as part of its SEO suite.
  • Majestic: Specializes in backlink data and link intelligence.

Analyzing Backlink Quality

Domain Authority (DA)

Assess the DA of linking domains using Moz’s Link Explorer. Higher DA generally indicates higher quality.

Referring Domains

Identify the variety of referring domains. A diverse range of domains is typically better.

Link Type

Distinguish between different types of links (e.g., editorial, guest post, directory). Editorial links are most valuable.

Anchor Text

Analyze the anchor text used in backlinks. Relevant anchor text can improve keyword rankings.

Backlink Gap Analysis

Identify backlink opportunities by comparing your backlink profile to those of your competitors.

  • Find Missing Links: Identify websites that link to your competitors but not to you.
  • Prioritize High-Quality Links: Focus on acquiring links from authoritative and relevant websites.
  • Replicate Competitor Strategies: Analyze how your competitors earned their backlinks (e.g., guest posting, resource creation) and replicate successful strategies.

Technical SEO Analysis

Website Structure and Navigation

Analyze the website structure and navigation of your competitors to identify best practices.

  • URL Structure: Evaluate the clarity and SEO-friendliness of URLs.
  • Internal Linking: Assess the internal linking strategy and its impact on page rank distribution.
  • Site Architecture: Analyze the overall site architecture and its influence on user experience and crawlability.

Mobile Friendliness

Mobile-Friendly Test

Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to check if competitor websites are optimized for mobile devices.

Page Speed

Assess mobile page speed using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights. Faster loading times improve user experience and SEO.

Responsive Design

Ensure that competitor websites use responsive design to adapt to different screen sizes.

Page Speed and Performance

Evaluate the page speed and performance of competitor websites using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights and GTmetrix.

  • Page Load Time: Measure how quickly pages load on desktop and mobile devices.
  • Core Web Vitals: Analyze metrics like Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), First Input Delay (FID), and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS).
  • Optimization Techniques: Identify optimization techniques used by competitors, such as image compression, caching, and minification.
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