competitor-analysis

name	competitor-analysis
description	Analyzes competitor SEO and GEO strategies including their ranking keywords, content approaches, backlink profiles, and AI citation patterns. Reveals opportunities to outperform competition.

Competitor Analysis

This skill provides comprehensive analysis of competitor SEO and GEO strategies, revealing what's working in your market and identifying opportunities to outperform the competition.

When to Use This Skill

• Entering a new market or niche
• Planning content strategy based on competitor success
• Understanding why competitors rank higher
• Finding backlink and partnership opportunities
• Identifying content gaps competitors are missing
• Analyzing competitor AI citation strategies
• Benchmarking your SEO performance

What This Skill Does

1. Keyword Analysis: Identifies keywords competitors rank for
2. Content Audit: Analyzes competitor content strategies and formats
3. Backlink Profiling: Reviews competitor link-building approaches
4. Technical Assessment: Evaluates competitor site health
5. GEO Analysis: Identifies how competitors appear in AI responses
6. Gap Identification: Finds opportunities competitors miss
7. Strategy Extraction: Reveals actionable insights from competitor success

How to Use

Basic Competitor Analysis

Analyze SEO strategy for [competitor URL]

Compare my site [URL] against [competitor 1], [competitor 2], [competitor 3]

Specific Analysis

What content is driving the most traffic for [competitor]?

Analyze why [competitor] ranks #1 for [keyword]

GEO-Focused Analysis

How is [competitor] getting cited in AI responses? What can I learn?

Data Sources

See CONNECTORS.md for tool category placeholders.

With ~~SEO tool + ~~analytics + ~~AI monitor connected: Automatically pull competitor keyword rankings, backlink profiles, top performing content, domain authority metrics from ~~SEO tool. Compare against your site's metrics from ~~analytics and ~~search console. Check AI citation patterns for both your site and competitors using ~~AI monitor.

With manual data only: Ask the user to provide:

1. Competitor URLs to analyze (2-5 recommended)
2. Your own site URL and current metrics (traffic, rankings if known)
3. Industry or niche context
4. Specific aspects to focus on (keywords, content, backlinks, etc.)
5. Any known competitor strengths or weaknesses

Proceed with the full analysis using provided data. Note in the output which metrics are from automated collection vs. user-provided data.

Instructions

When a user requests competitor analysis:

1. Identify Competitors

   If not specified, help identify competitors:

   ### Competitor Identification Framework
   
   **Direct Competitors** (same product/service)
   - Search "[your main keyword]" and note top 5 organic results
   - Check who's advertising for your keywords
   - Ask: Who do customers compare you to?
   
   **Indirect Competitors** (different solution, same problem)
   - Search problem-focused keywords
   - Look at alternative solutions
   
   **Content Competitors** (compete for same keywords)
   - May not sell same product
   - Rank for your target keywords
   - Include media sites, blogs, aggregators
   

2. Gather Competitor Data

   For each competitor, collect:

   ## Competitor Profile: [Name]
   
   **Basic Info**
   - URL: [website]
   - Domain Age: [years]
   - Estimated Traffic: [monthly visits]
   - Domain Authority/Rating: [score]
   
   **Business Model**
   - Type: [SaaS/E-commerce/Content/etc.]
   - Target Audience: [description]
   - Key Offerings: [products/services]
   

3. Analyze Keyword Rankings

   ### Keyword Analysis: [Competitor]
   
   **Total Keywords Ranking**: [X]
   **Keywords in Top 10**: [X]
   **Keywords in Top 3**: [X]
   
   #### Top Performing Keywords
   
   | Keyword | Position | Volume | Traffic Est. | Page |
   |---------|----------|--------|--------------|------|
   | [kw 1] | [pos] | [vol] | [traffic] | [url] |
   | [kw 2] | [pos] | [vol] | [traffic] | [url] |
   
   #### Keyword Distribution by Intent
   
   - Informational: [X]% ([keywords])
   - Commercial: [X]% ([keywords])  
    Transactional: [X]% ([keywords])
    Navigational: [X]% ([keywords])
   
   
   
   | Keyword | Their Position | Volume | Opportunity |
   |---------|----------------|--------|-------------|
   | [kw 1] | [pos] | [vol] | [analysis] |
   

Validation Checkpoints

Input Validation

• Competitor URLs verified as relevant to your niche
• Analysis scope defined (comprehensive or specific focus area)
• Your own site metrics available for comparison
• Minimum 2-3 competitors identified for meaningful patterns

Output Validation

• Every recommendation cites specific data points (not generic advice)
• Competitor strengths backed by measurable evidence (metrics, rankings)
• Opportunities based on identifiable gaps, not assumptions
• Action plan items are specific and actionable (not vague strategies)
• Source of each data point clearly stated (~~SEO tool data, ~~analytics data, ~~AI monitor data, user-provided, or estimated)

Example

User: "Analyze why HubSpot ranks so well for marketing-related keywords"

Output:

# Competitive Analysis: HubSpot

## SEO Strategy Overview

HubSpot dominates marketing keywords through a combination of:
1. **Massive content moat** - 10,000+ blog posts
2. **Free tools as linkbait** - Website grader, email signature generator
3. **Educational brand** - Academy, certifications, courses
4. **Topic cluster model** - Pioneered the pillar/cluster approach

## What Makes Them Successful

### Content Strategy

**Publishing Volume**: 50-100 posts/month
**Average Word Count**: 2,500+ words
**Content Types**:
- In-depth guides (35%)
- How-to tutorials (25%)
- Templates & examples (20%)
- Data/research (10%)
- Tools & calculators (10%)

**Top Performing Content Pattern**:
1. Ultimate guides on broad topics
2. Free templates with email gate
3. Statistics roundup posts
4. Definition posts ("What is [term]")

### GEO Success Factors

HubSpot appears in AI responses frequently because:

1. **Clear definitions** at the start of every post
   > "Inbound marketing is a business methodology that attracts customers by creating valuable content and experiences tailored to them."

2. **Quotable statistics**
   > "Companies that blog get 55% more website visitors"

3. **Comprehensive coverage** - AI trusts their authority

### Linkable Assets

| Asset | Backlinks | Why It Works |
|-------|-----------|--------------|
| Website Grader | 45,000+ | Free, instant value |
| Marketing Statistics | 12,000+ | Quotable reference |
| Blog Ideas Generator | 8,500+ | Solves real problem |

## Weaknesses to Exploit

1.  - Many posts 3+ years old
  - Lacks industry-specific depth
  - Underserves solopreneurs
  - Same formats for years



 Create more specific, niche content they can't cover
 Target long-tail keywords they ignore
 Build interactive tools in emerging areas
 Add original research they don't have
 Focus on GEO-optimized definitions in your niche

Advanced Analysis Types

Content Gap Analysis

Show me content [competitor] has that I don't, sorted by traffic potential

Link Intersection

Find sites linking to [competitor 1] AND [competitor 2] but not me

SERP Feature Analysis

What SERP features do competitors win? (Featured snippets, PAA, etc.)

Historical Tracking

How has [competitor]'s SEO strategy evolved over the past year?

Tips for Success

1. Analyze 3-5 competitors for comprehensive view
2. Include indirect competitors - they often have innovative approaches
3. Look beyond rankings - analyze content quality, user experience
4. Study their failures - avoid their mistakes
5. Monitor regularly - competitor strategies evolve
6. Focus on actionable insights - what can you actually implement?

Related Skills

• keyword-research - Research keywords competitors rank for
• content-gap-analysis - Find content opportunities
• backlink-analyzer - Deep-dive into backlinks
• serp-analysis - Understand search result composition
• memory-management - Store competitor data in project memory