In a recent article, Search Engine Journal discussed how competitor analysis can lead to strategic keyword development to enhance SEO. We’ll highlight some of the article’s key points like defining competition and provide our own takeaway.
Here is an excerpt from the article:
7 Ways to Identify Your Competitors for Better SEO Keyword Research
By Amy Lyons, published by Search Engine Journal May 17, 2021
“Taking a strategic and critical lens to identifying your competitors can help you discover unique, valuable keywords for SEO.
Generating a keyword portfolio is so much more than knowing your brand and products.
It means putting in the work to better understand your digital ecosystem — what space you fill, who else is in that space, and who is above and below you in the SERPs.
You also need to consider both competitor and semantic searcher intent, and what you can do to attract qualified searchers as well as those with a general interest in your niche.
This article offers seven essential strategic thinking tips for identifying your competitors for better keyword research…
Researching your competition is an essential aspect of managing your online presence, but it isn’t a cut-and-dry operation.
If you are only looking at a top result or direct competitor, you could be missing out on other highly valuable opportunities.
Just like many other aspects of SEO, the nuance is in the details. Competition for space and visibility takes a comprehensive approach. As in the natural world, if you want to survive in the digital ecosystem, you’ve got to strategically adapt to thrive.”
Identify Your Competitors to Improve Keyword Research
Blue’s take on the article:
The author of this piece makes some great points. One of these key points relates to how businesses should define their competitors. Too often, companies take a limited view on who their competitors actually are. The author describes how digital competition is actually quite diverse just like in the natural world. For instance, many different types of creatures vie for the same food source. While we may focus on our direct competitors, there may be many still that we’re ignoring–and probably shouldn’t, as we tackle SEO.
The article describes other types of competitors like indirect competitors and semantic competitors. By examining them, we can more fully tap into the keyword opportunities that are likely to exist outside of the narrow focus that occurs when we only examine our direct competition.
Identify Your Competitors
So, do you know how to identify your indirect competitors and semantic competitors? Let’s say that you sell software. Your direct competitors are stores that also sell software. Your indirect competitors may be app developers or platforms that feature online digital tools. Your semantic competitors are publications that discuss software. By opening up your keyword research to all of these entities, you can enhance your SEO.
The article provides readers with various tips for identifying their competitors such as paying special attention to local competitors and using social media to track other competitors. In fact, simply following your competitors’ links can open up a wide range of competitors your business may never even have considered, at least in terms of keyword research.
Improve SEO and Keywords
SEO is important for generating organic website traffic. By strategically analyzing your competitors through the lens of SEO core tenets like keyword analysis, you can refine your own strategies for improving your SEO to, ideally, outperform your competition.
Contact Blue Interactive Agency to learn more about our SEO solutions. We feature a team of SEO specialists who use these and other strategies to perform extensive keyword research in order to help our clients achieve their digital marketing goals. Visit us to learn more.
