Keep Your Enemies Close: How to Conduct SEO Competitor Analysis

What Is SEO Competitor Analysis?

SEO competitor analysis is the process of analysing the links, keywords, content, and scope of your competitors in order to integrate their best practices into your SEO strategy. It enables you to look at what is working for other businesses in your industry and build upon this for your own success, helping you uncover ranking opportunities you may have previously overlooked.

Offline, you might employ competitor analysis to visit other stores or restaurants that you are in direct competition with, learning about their products and services. SEO competitor analysis is not a one-off task — it is an ongoing strategy that should inform your keyword targeting, link building, and content planning at every stage.

Why Is SEO Competitor Analysis Important?

SEO competitor analysis is important because it gives you actionable intelligence about the businesses competing for the same search rankings. Competitor analysis is a proven method for discovering SEO opportunities that you would not find by auditing your own site alone.

According to Semrush, competitor analysis provides you with important information about other companies operating in the same industry or niche, allowing you to reflect on their SEO tactics and consider whether they will work for your business.

Effective SEO competitor analysis is not about copying your competitors — it is about understanding the landscape so you can outperform it. You will also likely discover a range of SEO-related issues within your niche that you did not previously know about, from keyword gaps to underutilised link sources.

How to Conduct SEO Competitor Analysis: Five Steps

SEO competitor analysis follows a structured process that moves from identifying who you are competing with through to executing a content plan. Follow these five steps to build a repeatable competitor research workflow.

1. Identify your competitors. Begin by making a comprehensive list of the businesses in your industry or niche that you are competing against. Use Google to search for keywords, products, or services relative to your offer — the results will show you the companies you are up against in organic search.
2. Conduct competitor keyword analysis. Competitive keyword research helps you understand the difficulty of competing against others when trying to rank for certain keywords or phrases. Identify keywords that you and your competitors may have overlooked, and pinpoint high-quality pages targeting those terms.
3. Implement page analysis (keyword gap analysis). Review the top pages on your competitors’ sites and analyse how keywords and phrases interact with one another. This process — often called Keyword Gap Analysis — surfaces keywords that your competitors do not fully maximise, giving you a targeted list of ranking opportunities.
4. Assess their backlink profiles. According to Backlinko, Google continues to prioritise backlinks when ranking a website. Analyse the backlinks your competitors currently hold, assess whether those sources can add value to your site, and model your link-building strategy accordingly.
5. Execute your content plan. Once you have gathered the relevant intelligence, create and maintain a list of internal ideas and keywords, and implement a content plan that links out to authoritative external sites. Continue generating detailed SEO competitor reports and sustain ongoing keyword research to stay ahead.

Key Features of a Strong SEO Competitor Analysis

A thorough SEO competitor analysis covers more than just keywords. The most effective approaches include:

• A comprehensive competitor list covering both direct and indirect search rivals
• Keyword gap analysis to find terms competitors rank for that you do not
• Backlink profile assessment to inform link acquisition priorities
• Page-level content analysis of top-ranking competitor pages
• Regular reporting cycles to track shifts in the competitive landscape

Next Steps After SEO Competitor Analysis

SEO competitor analysis produces its best results when the insights are acted on quickly. Once your research is complete, use the findings to prioritise the areas of your site that need the most attention and to direct your content creation efforts towards gaps your competitors have left open.

At Terrier, we can help you with competitor analysis and a whole spectrum of other SEO-related tasks. Contact us today to learn about how we can help your brand.

Frequently Asked Questions About SEO Competitor Analysis

What is SEO competitor analysis?

SEO competitor analysis is the process of reviewing a competitor’s keywords, backlinks, content, and site structure to identify tactics that can improve your own search rankings. It is a core component of any SEO strategy.

How often should you perform SEO competitor analysis?

SEO competitor analysis should be performed regularly — typically quarterly at a minimum — because the competitive landscape changes as rivals publish new content, earn new backlinks, and adjust their keyword targeting.

What tools are used for SEO competitor analysis?

Common tools include Semrush, Ahrefs, and Google Search itself. These platforms allow you to analyse competitor keywords, backlink profiles, and top-performing pages in one place.

What is keyword gap analysis in the context of competitor research?

Keyword gap analysis is a step within SEO competitor analysis where you compare your keyword rankings against those of competitors to find terms they rank for that you do not, revealing untapped ranking opportunities.

Why do backlinks matter in SEO competitor analysis?

Backlinks remain a primary Google ranking factor. Analysing competitor backlink profiles shows you which authoritative sites are linking to rivals, giving you a roadmap for your own link-building outreach.