Discover how to analyze competitor keywords to supercharge your website’s rankings. This guide covers tools and strategies to dominate search results! #SEO #keywordresearch #competitoranalysis n#digitalmarketing #contentmarketing
How to Find and Use Competitor Keywords: A Comprehensive Guide
Competitor keywords are the phrases and terms that your rivals rank for in Google search results. These keywords may help them rank organically or appear in paid Google Ads results.
Understanding your competitors’ keywords is one of the simplest forms of keyword research. If a keyword brings your competitors success, it might be worth targeting those keywords on your own site as well.
How to Find Your Competitors’ Organic Keywords
The most accurate way to uncover your competitors’ keywords is with a tool like Ahrefs. These tools maintain a vast database of keywords and the websites that rank for them. Ahrefs is known for having the most extensive database.
How to Find All the Keywords Your Competitor Ranks For
- Open Ahrefs’ Site Explorer
- Enter your competitor’s domain name
- Navigate to the “Organic Keywords” report
This report displays keywords that drive the most traffic to your competitor’s website. For instance, “mailchimp” is the top keyword for Mailchimp.
If you don’t want to compete for branded terms, add a “Keyword > Doesn’t Contain” filter to the report. This will eliminate terms like “mailchimp” or misspellings.
New brands competing against established ones might focus on popular keywords with lower difficulty scores. Apply a minimum volume filter of 500 and a maximum KD (Keyword Difficulty) filter of 10 to find these gems.
How to Find Keywords Your Competitor Ranks For, But You Don’t
- Navigate to Ahrefs’ Competitive Analysis tool
- Put your website’s domain in the “This target doesn’t rank for” field
- Put your competitor’s domain in the “But these competitors do” field
Hit “Show Keyword Opportunities.” You’ll now see the keywords where your competitor ranks, and you don’t.
How to Find Keywords Multiple Competitors Rank For, But You Don’t
- Go to Ahrefs’ Competitive Analysis tool
- Put your domain in the “This target doesn’t rank for” field
- Put multiple competitors’ domains in the “But these competitors do” field
You’ll see keywords shared by at least one competitor, and refine it by selecting “All 3 competitors” under Competitors’ Positions.
Choosing the Right Keywords
Once you’ve identified some potentially valuable competitor keywords, it’s not about grabbing them all. Here’s how to pick the best ones for your site:
- Relevance: Are the keywords directly related to your products, services, or content? Don’t chase terms that won’t attract the right kind of audience.
- Search Volume: Check if there’s enough search volume around a keyword to justify targeting it. Tools like Ahrefs provide this data.
- Difficulty: Assess how difficult it will be to rank for a particular keyword A keyword difficulty (KD) score helps with this assessment.
- Intent: Consider the searcher’s intent behind a keyword. Are they looking to buy, learn, or compare products? Align your content with their intent.
How to Use Competitor Keywords
Now that you have a targeted selection of competitor keywords, here’s how to effectively put them to work:
- On-page SEO: Naturally weave keywords into your website’s:
- Titles and meta descriptions
- Headings (H1, H2, etc.)
- Body content
- Image alt-text
- Content Creation: Develop new blog posts, articles, or videos centered on keywords where you want to improve rankings.
- PPC Campaigns: Consider bidding on your competitors’ keywords in Google Ads or other paid platforms to gain visibility. Be careful not to bid on their brand names directly.
Additional Tips:
- Track Your Progress: Monitor your rankings for the chosen keywords over time. Tools like Ahrefs can help with this.
- Stay Updated: Regularly review your competitors’ keyword strategy to uncover new opportunities and adapt yours accordingly.
- Ethical Considerations: Analyze competitor keywords for inspiration, but avoid directly copying their content or targeting their branded keywords in a way that could be misleading.
Conclusion
Understanding and utilizing your competitors’ keywords empowers you to make smarter SEO decisions. It’s a winning strategy to boost your online presence and snatch traffic from your rivals.
