If you want to stay ahead of the competition, you need to know what they’re up to. Here are 5 competitor research tools that will help you stay ahead of the curve.” In business, it’s important to always be aware of what your competition is doing. This is especially true if you want to stay ahead of the competition. There are a number of ways to research your competition. Here are five competitor research tools that will help you stay ahead of the curve.
What is competitor research?
Competitor research is the process of gathering information about your competitors in order to better understand their strengths and weaknesses. This information can then be used to improve your own business strategies.
Why is competitor research important?
There are a number of reasons why competitor research is important:
- First, it allows you to stay up-to-date on the latest industry trends.
- Second, it gives you insights into what strategies are working well for your competitors and which ones are not.
- Third, it helps you to identify areas where you have a competitive advantage
- Finally, competitor research can help you to avoid making the same mistakes that your competitors have made in the past.
What are some common methods of competitor research?
Some common methods of competitor research include:
- Reviewing their website. There could be technical review to figure out technologies, SEO review to understand their keywords and niches, and design review to see how they are presenting themselves
- Checking their social media accounts. This will give you insights into their marketing strategies, the type of content they are sharing, and how engaged their audience is.
- Reading industry news articles. This will help you to stay up-to-date on the latest industry trends and competitive threats
- Analyzing their marketing materials. This will give you insights into their messaging and positioning.
- Talking to their customers. This is a great way to understand their customer experience and what they think of your competition.
You could spend a ton of your time on these bullets so it would be better for you to use some automation tools to automate the competitor research process.
The 5 Tools for competitor research
Google Alerts
Google Alerts is a free tool that allows you to track the latest news and information about your competitors. Simply enter the names of your competitors into the Google Alerts system, and you will receive email alerts whenever new information is published about them.
SEMrush
SEMrush is a paid tool that offers a comprehensive suite of competitive intelligence features. With SEMrush, you can track your competitor’s organic and paid search campaigns, see what keywords they are ranking for, and get insights into their backlink profile. You could get their traffic estimations, too. Or use their content marketing toolkit to make an audit. They also have a free version and a professional version that starts at $119
Feedly
Feedly is an RSS reader that allows you to keep track of the latest content from your competitor’s websites and blogs. Simply add your competitor’s website to your Feedly account, and you will be able to see all of their latest blog posts and articles in one place. Yes, you could do it with your hands but what if you have more than 10 competitors? This tool also has a free version.
Owletter
Sent emails from a website to their mailing list are automatically collected by Owletter. It then takes a photo, stores it, and analyzes it, alerting you to the email’s significance if it matters to you. You’ll never miss another email again, and you’ll have lots of information on your rivals’ email activities. The minimal plan costs $19 per month
BuiltWith
BuiltWith is a website profiler that provides you with insights into a website’s technology, usage of analytics systems, CMS, CDNs, and user behavior tracking systems. This information can be helpful in developing a competitive strategy against rival companies in part of technologies. Or you can just find useful plugins to use on your website too.
Conclusion
Competitor research is an important part of any business’s competitive intelligence strategy. By understanding your competition, you can make better decisions about how to position your own products and services. The five tools listed above are just a few of the many competitor research tools available. So choose any based on your needs.
Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash
