How your competitor is outranking you for keywords can be one or multiple factors. But if you are not using SEO to optimize your website, then that could be a big hint right there.
Look at it this way. If the internet is a puzzle, then search engines have all the pieces. SEO is the blueprint that gives you the big picture. Your competitor might have a big start and already placed some of the pieces on the board. But it does not mean you cannot keep pace.
The first step is to know which ones are your real competitors. Using a tool like SEO competitor analysis will provide you with actionable insight.
Why Your Competitor is Outranking You
Google goes through a checklist to determine if the website ticks all the boxes. This checklist changes regularly, which keeps SEO specialists on their edge.
Just to give you an idea, the search engine reportedly modifies its algorithm at least 500-600 times a year.
But if you seem to trail your competitor website always, it could be because:
- The content and keywords are more relevant to the user intent
- The loading speed is faster compared to your website
- The competitor had better social signals
- Their website features more quality backlinks
- They have a better customer experience
- Their website is more secure
- Their website is SEO-ready
- Their domain is older than yours
Also, your competitor is outranking you simply because they invested more heavily in SEO. For example, organic leads are always better for a sustained SEO strategy. But you cannot just discount PPC. Just to illustrate, about 1 in 3 people click on the ads since it cuts their search time.
Besides, people who click on ads are twice more likely to buy compared to organic traffic.
How to Keep Up?
First, you need to know your position compared to your competition. SEO competitor analysis will help provide you with an amazing insight into the steps they took to sit on top of the totem pole.
Through reverse engineering, you can come up with a strategy to challenge their position.
Here are some proven ways to outrank your competition:
- Research your keywords then optimize them. Keywords are the bridge between the user and the business. Google’s algorithms will funnel the user to the websites that provide the most relevant results to their search. You can use tools like LSIGraph to research your keywords then hire an SEO agency to optimize your keywords.
- Focus on producing quality content. When you generate content, keep your user intent in mind. Are you answering their burning questions? Are you providing them with the information they need? Are you doing it in an easily understandable manner?
- Make your website more SEO-friendly. Fortunately, you do not have to reinvent the wheel since Google has already announced the elements it is looking for in a website. Among these are the URL structure, navigation, meta description, H1 tags, page speed, etc. If you are using a free builder to create your website, maybe it is time to hire a web designer/developer if you are serious about outranking your competition.
You need to run an exhausting SEO competitor analysis to see which websites are stealing your potential customers. The tool will take away your blinders since your competitors out there may not necessarily be your greatest rivals online.
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