Tips on Performing a Basic Local Business Competitive Audit
In a perfect world, all businesses would be equally appealing to customers. In reality, there are competitors that will likely rank higher than your business in Google’s local pack. Knowing why a competitor is outranking your business could help you make some adjustments to online engagement efforts. Experts at a leading San Diego SEO provider share a few tips on performing a basic local business competitive audit.
Make a Comparison Chart
Create a comparison chart of your business and its competitors in the same area. Use local pack rankings as a guide since this is what searchers see when looking for local businesses on Google. Focus on the following basic details as you get started:
- NAP (business name, address, phone number)
- Google My Business landing page URL
- Local pack rank
- Organic rank
- Organic rank among business-owned sites
Identify Anything Out of the Ordinary
Dive a little further into your stats and look for anything out of the ordinary about your competitors. For instance, a business may have a second website for the same location that’s ranking organically, or a local competitor may be redirecting visitors from another site. This doesn’t mean you have to do the same thing, but it does show you where a competitor’s traffic is coming from.
Consider Google My Business (GMB) Listing Details
Take a closer look at your competitors’ GMB listing details to get a better idea of why they achieved their ranking. Pay attention to things like the number of reviews, the average review rating, how long it’s been since a review was added, and the age of their GMB listing. Also consider:
- Keywords used in a competitor’s GMB name
- If they have their business hours in their listing
- Whether or not photos are used with the listing
- Proximity to what Google considers the centroid (center of a particular industry hub within a city)
Assess Competitors’ Websites
Get stats about your competitor’s website. Details you’ll want to know for your audit include the age of the domain, the domain authority and the GMB domain authority, links to their domain, how well their website has been optimized for search engines, and if the NAP on their site matches what they use in their GMB listing. Also take a look at the following details about a competitor’s website:
- How mobile-friendly is it?
- What is the user experience like with things such as navigation, ability to find contact info, and the call to action?
- How would you describe the overall design of their website?
With the information you’ll get from your audit, make adjustments to your keywords and website content and design if necessary, identify things your competitors aren’t yet doing to attract the attention of local searchers, and take a cue from competitors who may be doing some things more effectively than you are. Finally, see who your competitors are within your preferred geographic area since it’s always possible for the local dynamics to change over time.
Competitive audit can be one of the most challenging aspects of SEO optimization. In San Diego and several other cities and countries, businesses rely on Saba SEO for all their online marketing needs. Whether you need a responsive web design or a content audit, we can help you boost your online rankings and increase conversions and click-through rates. To learn about our premier digital marketing services, talk to one of our experts at 858-951-1717 today.
