Understanding your Competition

Martin Weinberg

Director of Marketing, US

SEMrush

@martinweinberg

@MartinWeinberg

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Typical Computing

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Typical Competitive Research

Competitor

Non-Competitor

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@MartinWeinberg

Qubit

Quantum Computing

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@MartinWeinberg

Quantum Competitive Research

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@MartinWeinberg

Various Factors

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• Focus

• Budget

• Timeframe

• Geography

• Other ???

@MartinWeinberg

It only becomes real when it’s measured

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Competitor!

@MartinWeinberg

Local, store-by-store…

@MartinWeinberg

…versus National

@MartinWeinberg

Who competes for what types of consumers?

• Loyal shoppers

• One-time large purchases

• Bargain hunters

• Millennials

• Comparison shoppers

• …and more

@MartinWeinberg

Campaign timing throughout the year

@MartinWeinberg

Foot traffic versus online?

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Paid vs. Organic vs. PLA

@MartinWeinberg

Local Pack, rich snippets and more

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Brand Mentions

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Snapshot Analysis

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Digital marketers follow a stream of data

@MartinWeinberg

Marketing “Stack”

• PPC

• SEO

• PLA

• Social Media

@MartinWeinberg

Immediate Consumer Insights

• CPC

• CPA

• KPIs

• ROI

• Rankings

• Traffic

• Etc.

@MartinWeinberg

Quantum Competitive Research

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@MartinWeinberg

AdWords Guru

How are your competitors advertising?

• Keywords targeted

• Budget trends

• Activity trends

• Campaign flight dates

• Targeted products

• Targeted segments

• Geographic targeting

• Position changes

• Ad history

• Ad copy

@MartinWeinberg

SEO Expert

How are your competitors doing with search?

• Search visibility

• Changes in position rank

• Geographic impact on rank

• Appearance in local packs

• Appearance in rich snippets

• Content marketing strategies

• Landing page changes

@MartinWeinberg

PLA Ninja

Are competitors using Product Listing Ads?

• What products are they featuring?

• What is their pricing strategy?

• How much are they spending on PLAs?

• When do their products appear?

@MartinWeinberg

Social Media Master

How active is your competition on social?

• What topics are getting the

most engagement?

• What content was most likely to

be shared?

• What other websites are talking

about your competitors?

@MartinWeinberg

How does all this change over time?

@MartinWeinberg

Marketing “Stack”

• PPC

• SEO

• PLA

• Social Media

@MartinWeinberg

It’s not always binary

Competitor

Non-Competitor

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@MartinWeinberg

Consider the range of possibilities

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@MartinWeinberg

Leverage PPC, SEO and social media

research tools for deeper insights

Understanding your Competition

Martin Weinberg

Director of Marketing, US

SEMrush

@martinweinberg