Staying competitive is crucial, no matter what your industry. 

In today’s digital marketplace, how do you effectively scope out the competition and discover how they’re using search optimization to increase traffic?

With a competitor keyword analysis, of course.

By using a specialized tool to view what words and phrases your closest competitors are using, you can capitalize on the same process and adjust your overall strategy to attract the same audience.

This can also be an excellent way to troubleshoot certain SEO issues and make it easier to identify new opportunities.

And, no… it isn’t spying if it is public information.

Let’s dive right into discussing the process and why you need competitive keyword analytics as part of your omnichannel marketing strategy.

What is Competitor Keyword Analysis?

Competitor keyword analysis is the process of discovering the keywords your competitors are ranking highly for, with the goal of using that information to create content that outranks them in search results.

The keywords selected must be relevant to your business and related to your current content production.

Usually, this type of analysis includes multiple data sets to offer insight into how well a specific website is ranking for certain topics.

Of course, some folks get caught up in the sheer volume of available data and end up wasting weeks on endless tinkering. It helps to start with a manageable list—maybe picking your top three rivals or, if you’re feeling bold, that wildcard competitor who always seems to come out of left field. Weirdly, it’s often those unexpected players who reveal gaps you never even saw coming and push you out of your comfort zone.

Sometimes you’ll end up down some strange rabbit holes, finding keywords that look ridiculous at first glance—until you realize they pull serious traffic. I’ve seen businesses skip out on “silly” queries, only to regret it when a competitor scoops them up and quietly dominates a whole corner of the market. Don’t be afraid to test ideas that don’t seem obvious; that unpredictability is baked into SEO, especially in 2025.

For example, there might be a section with a backlink profile that details all of the various websites linking to your competitor.

It can also include a list of keywords that they’re ranking for and you aren’t, social media shares, or whether the content they’re publishing actually meets user intent.

}}