Competitive Keyword Research

What is Competitive Keyword Research?

Competitive Keyword Research is the process of systematically analyzing competitors' keyword strategies to identify new keyword opportunities and optimize your own SEO strategy. This method enables you to recognize gaps in your own keyword portfolio and learn from competitors' successes.

Aspect

Own Keyword Research

Competitive Research

Focus

Own brand and products

Competitor analysis and market overview

Data Source

Internal analyses and tools

Competitor websites and tools

Goal

Optimize existing keywords

Find new keyword opportunities

Time Investment

Low to medium

Medium to high

ROI

Directly measurable

Long-term measurable

Why is Competitive Keyword Research Important?

1. Keyword Gap Identification

Analyzing competitors helps identify important keywords that are missing from your own strategy. These gaps can represent significant traffic potential.

2. Deepen Market Understanding

By examining competitors' keyword strategies, you gain better understanding of:

Market trends and developments
Target audience search intentions
User content needs
Seasonal fluctuations

3. Optimize Content Strategy

Competitive Research reveals which content types and formats are successful with competitors and where your own content can be improved.

Methods of Competitive Keyword Research

1. Direct Competitor Analysis

Step 1: Identify Competitors

Identify main competitors in SERPs
Analyze market leaders and niche players
Distinguish between direct and indirect competitors

Step 2: Extract Keyword Portfolio

Collect competitors' top keywords
Evaluate search volume and difficulty
Form keyword categories and clusters

2. SERP-based Analysis

Analyze Featured Snippets

Which competitors dominate Featured Snippets?
Which content formats are preferred?
Which keywords generate the most snippets?

Investigate People Also Ask (PAA)

Frequently asked questions from competitors
Content ideas for FAQ sections
Long-tail keyword opportunities

3. Content Gap Analysis

Identify Top-Performing Content

Most linked content from competitors
Analyze social media successes
Evaluate content formats and topics

Tools for Competitive Keyword Research

1. Specialized SEO Tools

Ahrefs Site Explorer

Comprehensive keyword database
Competitor keyword export
Keyword difficulty scores
Top keywords per domain

SEMrush Keyword Gap Tool

Direct keyword comparisons
Keyword overlap analysis
Unique keywords per competitor
Search volume comparisons

Moz Keyword Explorer

Keyword suggestions
SERP features tracking
Keyword difficulty metrics
Click-through rate estimates

2. Free Tools and Methods

Google Keyword Planner

Search volume estimates
Generate keyword ideas
Evaluate competition level
Analyze seasonal trends

Google Search Console (for own domain)

Identify own top keywords
Analyze click-through rates
Track impression trends
Monitor ranking positions

Tool

Cost

Keyword Database

Competitor Analysis

Special Features

Ahrefs

High

Very large

Excellent

Backlink analysis, Content gap

SEMrush

High

Large

Very good

Keyword gap tool, Position tracking

Ubersuggest

Medium

Good

Keyword ideas, Content ideas

Google Keyword Planner

Free

Limited

Restricted

Search volume, Trends

Practical Implementation: Step-by-Step Guide

Phase 1: Identify Competitors

1.1 Define Main Competitors

List top 5-10 direct competitors
Evaluate market shares and reach
Consider different market segments

1.2 Include Indirect Competitors

Companies with similar target audiences
Content marketing competitors
Niche players with high relevance

Phase 2: Keyword Extraction

2.1 Collect Top Keywords

Extract 100-500 top keywords per competitor
Consider different keyword categories
Document search volume and difficulty

2.2 Keyword Clustering

Group similar keywords
Identify main and secondary keywords
Categorize keyword intent

Phase 3: Conduct Gap Analysis

3.1 Calculate Keyword Overlap

Identify shared keywords
Unique keywords per competitor
Analyze keyword distribution

3.2 Opportunity Scoring

Evaluate search volume vs. difficulty
Consider commercial intent
Include seasonal factors

3.3 Identify Content Gaps

Topics that competitors cover
Compare content formats and depth
Analyze update frequencies

Phase 4: Develop Strategy

4.1 Keyword Prioritization

Identify quick wins
Define long-term goals
Plan resource allocation

4.2 Derive Content Strategy

Content ideas from keyword gaps
Optimize content formats
Create publication plan

Metrics and KPIs for Competitive Research

1. Keyword Metrics

Keyword Coverage Rate

Percentage of competitor keywords that you use
Goal: Achieve 60-80% coverage rate

Unique Keyword Rate

Percentage of keywords only your brand uses
Goal: 20-30% unique keywords

Keyword Difficulty Score

Average difficulty of used keywords
Goal: Balance between volume and feasibility

2. Content Metrics

Content Gap Score

Number of topics competitors cover
Goal: Cover 80% of important topics

Content Freshness Score

Up-to-dateness compared to competitors
Goal: Regular updates and fresh content

Content Depth Score

Depth and quality of content
Goal: Deeper content than competitors

Common Mistakes in Competitive Research

1. Wrong Competitor Selection

Only analyzing direct competitors
Ignoring niche players
Confusing international vs. local competitors

2. Superficial Analysis

Only considering top keywords
Ignoring long-tail keywords
Not considering seasonal factors

3. Static View

One-time analysis without updates
Ignoring market developments
Not including new competitors

Best Practices for Competitive Keyword Research

1. Regular Updates

Monthly keyword monitoring
Quarterly in-depth analyses
Annual strategy review

2. Multi-Tool Approach

Combine different tools
Validate data sources
Leverage tool-specific strengths

3. Qualitative Assessment

Don't rely only on metrics
Check relevance for your target audience
Consider commercial intent

4. Documentation and Tracking

Document all analyses
Measure progress
Track ROI of measures