How to Do an SEO Competitive Analysis Example

Understanding your competitors is one of the fastest ways to improve your own search performance. When another website consistently outranks you, it holds valuable clues about what search engines and users prefer. Learning how to do an SEO competitive analysis, with a practical example, will help you uncover keyword opportunities, content gaps, link-building prospects, and technical improvements. This guide walks through the full process using a realistic scenario so you can apply it directly to your business.

How AAMAX.CO Uses Competitive Insights to Drive Growth

A competitive analysis is only valuable if it leads to action. AAMAX.CO is a full-service digital marketing company offering web development, digital marketing, and SEO services worldwide. Their team benchmarks clients against top competitors, identifies the most impactful gaps, and turns findings into prioritized roadmaps for content, technical fixes, and link acquisition. By grounding strategy in competitive data, they help businesses outperform rivals in the search results that matter most.

The Example Scenario

Imagine a mid-sized company that sells ergonomic office chairs online. Its website ranks on page two for many important keywords, while three competitors dominate the first page. The goal is to understand why these competitors perform better and build a plan to overtake them.

Step 1: Identify Your True SEO Competitors

Your business competitors are not always your search competitors. Search your primary keywords, such as "ergonomic office chair," "best chair for back pain," and "adjustable desk chair," and note which domains appear repeatedly. Use SEO tools to find sites with the highest keyword overlap. In our example, the analysis reveals two direct retailers and one review publication that ranks for many buying-guide queries.

Step 2: Compare Domain-Level Metrics

Create a comparison table with metrics such as estimated organic traffic, number of ranking keywords, referring domains, and domain authority scores. In our example:

• Competitor A has three times as many referring domains.
• Competitor B ranks for twice as many keywords thanks to a large blog.
• The review publication has strong authority and extensive comparison content.

This immediately suggests that link authority and content depth are key gaps.

Step 3: Perform a Keyword Gap Analysis

Use a keyword gap tool to find terms competitors rank for that your site does not. Filter by search volume, intent, and relevance. In the example, the chair company discovers missed opportunities such as "office chair for sciatica," "ergonomic chair setup guide," "mesh vs leather office chair," and "office chair for tall people." These represent both commercial and informational intent that could attract qualified buyers.

Step 4: Analyze Top-Ranking Content

Review competitor pages ranking for your priority keywords. Evaluate content length, structure, media, depth, freshness, and how well they satisfy search intent. In our example, Competitor B's buying guide includes comparison tables, expert quotes, sizing charts, and video demonstrations, while the chair company's category page contains only a short paragraph. The opportunity is clear: create richer guides and enhance category pages with helpful information.

Step 5: Examine Backlink Profiles

Analyze where competitors earn their links. Look for patterns such as industry publications, product reviews, health and wellness blogs, resource pages, and press coverage. In the example, Competitor A earned many links from workplace wellness articles and physical therapy resources. This insight suggests outreach opportunities to similar sites and ideas for linkable assets, such as an ergonomic workspace study.

Step 6: Benchmark Technical SEO

Compare page speed, Core Web Vitals, mobile usability, site architecture, structured data, and indexation. In our example, competitors use product schema with review ratings, which gives them rich results with star ratings. The chair company lacks this markup, which likely reduces click-through rates.

Step 7: Review SERP Features

Identify which competitors appear in featured snippets, People Also Ask boxes, image packs, video results, and AI overviews. In the example, the review publication captures several featured snippets through concise answers under question-based headings. Formatting content similarly could help the chair company earn these placements, and complementary GEO services can improve visibility in AI answers.

Step 8: Build an Action Plan

Turn insights into a prioritized plan based on impact and effort:

1. Add product schema and review markup to all product pages.
2. Expand category pages with buying guidance, FAQs, and comparison tables.
3. Create a content cluster targeting keyword gaps like chair types, health conditions, and body sizes.
4. Develop an original ergonomic research report to attract backlinks.
5. Conduct outreach to wellness blogs and workplace publications.
6. Improve page speed on mobile product pages.

Step 9: Monitor and Repeat

Competitive analysis is not a one-time task. Track rankings, traffic, and backlinks monthly, and repeat the full analysis quarterly. Competitors will adapt, new players will emerge, and search results will evolve. Sharing competitive findings with teams managing paid media and social ensures your entire digital marketing strategy benefits.

Final Thoughts

An SEO competitive analysis provides a clear roadmap for outranking rivals by revealing gaps in keywords, content, backlinks, technical performance, and SERP features. As the office chair example shows, even a few focused improvements can significantly close the gap. For deeper insights and expert execution, partner with a team that offers comprehensive SEO services built on competitive intelligence.