Competitor Analysis: How To Be A Fly On The Wall

In the world of digital marketing, one thing you are forced to accept is that you will be able to get very little data on your competitors. So when it comes to beating them out for the top spots, you are really on a solo journey. To be a fly on the wall for competitors’ digital marketing would be invaluable, and probably save us a lot of time, but unfortunately, this is not possible.

So while we’re not here to tell you we’ve found a way to turn you into a fly, we do have some tips & tricks to do the next best thing.

1. Sign up

Firstly, sign up to email newsletters, updates and invite lists of your competitors. Take note of how they talk about themselves and the content they include in their publications.

Any news from competitors will give you a good insight into their angle and unique selling proposition, therefore giving insight into how they convince customers they are the better choice. 

2. Social Media

Follow your direct and indirect competitors on social media, take note of their tone and how much their followers are engaging with them on their pages. If they aren’t on certain social networks - consider why that might be. 

What kind of branding are they pushing on social networks? Do employees get involved? What kind of brand persona have they created through their communications and does it work?

Doing some low-level cyber stalking ensures you know what your competitors are doing and where. You'll then be able to steal some tried and tested ideas, seeing opportunities that have been left wide open and allowing you to slide into the prime position.

3. SEMRush

SEMRush is the kind of tool marketers and online publications dream of. It's simple, effective and gives you a thorough overview of not just your competitors but your website as well.

Enter the domain you want details on and SEMRush will tell you which keywords that website is ranking for. If they do paid search, it’ll tell you the keywords associated and the cost of that traffic. Not only do you get an idea of the kinds of things customers are looking for when they come to your site, but you’ll be able to see the difference between yourself and your competitors (including a very rough estimate of the kind of marketing budget they have available).

SEMRush also has the ability to help with SEO by running reports that will tell you if you have issues so you can fix them. An example of this is the Site Audit tool which will tell you about errors and issues on your website, such as not having ALT tags on images or reporting the number of broken links.

4. Perch - Local Business Reconnaissance

Perch is an app for bricks and mortar businesses to keep an eye on what is happening around them. This is particularly helpful if there are businesses with similar offerings in their area.

You can search a specific URL or just browse businesses close to you and the app will show you posts on social media, reviews and show photos posted by them and customers. One of the most valuable sources of information is the promotions tab, which will tell you if competitors have promotions running and what they are, giving you the opportunity to create a better offering.

It’s real time, easy to use and incredibly valuable tool for local businesses - and best of all it’s free!

5. WhatRunsWhere

If you're considering where to invest your ad spend for this year and want to know what your competitors are doing or what is happening in the industry? WhatRunsWhere can help you out.

This tool tells you where your competitors are advertising, who they're advertising through, and what is working. You have access to the most up to date data as well as data from the past 5 years, helping you make informed decisions about your own ad spend. This is definitely the kind of tool that could come in handy when pitching ad spend to upper levels, and also to keep a finger on your industry's pulse.

Great content is one thing in digital marketing, but having competitive content is a whole other battle. Great content can still find itself in bad positions or not showing at all, competitive content is how you maintain your prime placements. So take your pick from out helpful programs and handy tricks, and ensure you're putting in the work to be number one.

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