When it comes to building a successful business, keeping tabs on your competition is crucial. Competitor analysis is the process of identifying and evaluating your business rivals to gain insights into their strategies, strengths, and weaknesses. By analysing your competition, you can make informed decisions about your business, identify growth opportunities, and stay ahead of market trends.
Conducting a competitor analysis online is especially essential in today’s digital age. With the rise of e-commerce and social media, most businesses have a significant online presence. Thus, it is vital to understand and analyse your competitors’ online strategies to stay competitive. Online competitor analysis helps you gain insights into your competitors’ websites, SEO, social media, and content marketing strategies, which can be used to inform your own digital marketing plan.
In the following sections, we will take a deep dive into how to conduct an online competitor analysis step by step and provide actionable tips to help you gain a competitive edge in your market.
Define Your Objectives
Before conducting an online competitor analysis, defining your objectives is essential. Having clear goals in mind will help you focus your research and guide your analysis. Here are some questions to consider when identifying your objectives:
- What do you hope to achieve with your competitor analysis?
- What specific information do you want to learn about your competitors?
- What are the areas where you want to improve or gain a competitive advantage?
- What are the potential threats or challenges you are facing, and how can a competitor analysis help you address them?
By answering these questions, you can determine the specific goals you want to achieve with your competitor analysis. For instance, you might want to:
- Identify gaps in your competitor’s product or service offerings that you can fill
- Discover untapped markets or customer segments that your competitors haven’t targeted
- Learn from your competitors’ successful marketing campaigns and adapt them to your own strategy
- Determine your competitors’ weaknesses and areas where you can outperform them
Once you have defined your objectives, you can focus your analysis on gathering the information that will help you achieve those goals. In the following sections, we will cover the key areas to focus on when conducting an online competitor analysis.
Identify Your Competitors
The first step in conducting an online competitor analysis is identifying your direct and indirect competitors. Direct competitors are businesses that offer similar products or services to yours, while indirect competitors are businesses that may not offer the same products or services but compete for the same customers. Here are some tips for identifying your competitors:
Conduct a Google search: Start by conducting a Google search using relevant keywords related to your business. Look for businesses that appear in the search results and identify those that offer similar products or services.
Check social media: Look for businesses in your industry on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Follow their profiles and monitor their activity to learn more about their marketing strategies.
Use industry directories: Many industries have online directories or databases that list businesses within the sector. Search for these directories and identify businesses that offer similar products or services to yours.
Check customer reviews: Look for businesses that have customer reviews online, such as on Google My Business or Yelp. Read the reviews and identify frequently mentioned businesses with high ratings.
Attend industry events: Attend industry events and conferences to meet other businesses in your sector. Take note of the businesses that attend and identify those that offer similar products or services to yours.
Once you have identified your competitors, make a list and categorise them as either direct or indirect.
Analyse Your Competitors' Website
One of the most critical aspects of conducting an online competitor analysis is to analyse your competitors’ website thoroughly. A website is the online face of a business, and it’s often the first place potential customers go to learn more about a company. Here are some steps to follow when analysing your competitors’ website:
Evaluate the design: Take note of the overall design of your competitors’ websites. Look at the colour scheme, font choices, and the use of images and videos. Consider how the design reflects the brand’s personality and whether it appeals to the target audience.
Review the content: Analyse the content of your competitors’ websites. Look at the messaging, tone of voice, and the type of content they offer, such as blog posts, videos, or infographics. Consider whether the content is engaging, informative, and relevant to their target audience.
Check the user experience: Evaluate the user experience of your competitors’ websites. Look at the ease of navigation, the speed of loading, and the responsiveness on different devices. Consider whether the website is user-friendly and accessible to all visitors.
Analyse the SEO: Evaluate your competitors’ website’s search engine optimisation (SEO) strategy. Look at the use of keywords, meta descriptions, and header tags. Consider how well their website ranks in search engine results pages (SERPs) and whether they use any paid search or display advertising.
Evaluate the calls to action: Analyse the calls to action (CTAs) on your competitors’ websites. Look at the type of CTA, the placement on the page, and the messaging. Consider the effectiveness of CTAs in driving conversions and whether they align with the overall marketing strategy.
By evaluating these aspects of your competitors’ websites, you can gain valuable insights into their online strategies. Use these insights to inform your own website design, content, and SEO strategy.
Analyse Your Competitors' Social Media Presence
Social media is a crucial aspect of digital marketing, and it’s essential to analyse your competitors’ social media presence to gain insights into their marketing strategies. Here’s how to analyse your competitors’ social media presence:
Identify social media platforms: Determine which social media platforms your competitors are using, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or YouTube. Evaluate which platforms are most effective for engaging their target audience.
Analyse social media profiles: Evaluate your competitors’ social media profiles to identify how they represent their brand. Consider their profile picture, bio, and messaging. Evaluate how they use the different social media features like stories, reels, or live videos.
Check social media activity: Analyse your competitors’ social media activity by evaluating the frequency and type of content they post. Consider whether they use any paid social media advertising or influencer marketing.
Monitor social media engagement: Evaluate your competitors’ social media engagement by tracking their likes, comments, shares, and followers. Consider how their engagement rates compare to yours and whether they are using any tactics that could be adapted to your own social media strategy.
Analyse content performance: Analyse your competitors’ social media content performance by evaluating which types of posts perform best. Consider the use of images, videos, hashtags, or emojis. Use social media analytics tools to track your competitor’s content performance.
By analysing your competitors’ social media presence, you can gain valuable insights into their social media marketing strategies. Use this information to refine your own social media strategy and stay ahead of the competition.
Analyse Your Competitors' Content Marketing Strategies
Content marketing is a vital aspect of digital marketing, and analysing your competitors’ content marketing strategies can provide valuable insights into their target audience and messaging. Here’s how to analyse your competitors’ content marketing strategies:
Identify content types: Evaluate the types of content your competitors are producing, such as blog posts, videos, infographics, or podcasts. Consider which content types are most effective in engaging their target audience.
Evaluate content quality: Analyse the quality of your competitors’ content by evaluating their messaging, tone of voice, and storytelling. Consider how they use visuals, data, or personal experiences to make their content more compelling.
Evaluate content frequency: Analyse how frequently your competitors publish new content. Consider how often they are posting on their blog or social media channels. Evaluate whether they are publishing content on a regular schedule or if they are sporadic.
Analyse content engagement: Evaluate how engaged their audience is with their content. Consider the number of comments, shares, and likes their content receives. Evaluate how they are responding to comments and engaging with their audience.
Check content distribution: Analyse how your competitors are distributing their content. Consider which channels they use to distribute their content, such as email marketing, social media, or paid advertising.
By analysing your competitors’ content marketing strategies, you can identify which types of content and distribution channels are most effective in engaging their target audience. Use this information to refine your content marketing strategy and stay ahead of the competition.
Outpacing the Competition: Why You Need to Conduct an Online Competitor Analysis Today
Conducting an online competitor analysis is essential for any business looking to succeed in today’s digital landscape. By evaluating your competitors’ online strategies, you can gain valuable insights into their strengths, weaknesses, and marketing tactics. Here are the key takeaways and actionable steps for conducting an online competitor analysis:
Define your objectives: Identify the specific goals you want to achieve with your competitor analysis.
Identify your competitors: Determine who your direct and indirect competitors are using Google search, social media, industry directories, customer reviews, and industry events.
Analyse your competitors’ websites: Evaluate your competitors’ website design, content, user experience, SEO, and calls to action.
Analyse your competitors’ SEO: Conduct keyword research, analyse backlinks, evaluate website structure and metadata, and check website performance.
Analyse your competitors’ social media presence: Identify social media platforms, profiles and activity, monitor engagement, and analyse content performance.
Analyse your competitors’ content marketing strategies: Identify content types, and evaluate content quality, frequency, engagement, and distribution.
Remember, conducting an online competitor analysis is an ongoing process. As your competitors’ strategies evolve, so must your research. By following these steps and regularly evaluating your competitors, you can stay ahead of the competition and outpace them in the market.
