Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for your website

129

Search Results Competition

The left brain and right brain have different ideas about monitoring who is taking those coveted

top spots in the search results.

The Right Brain says,

“This is one of those SEO tasks that you can let flow over you. Search for

your target keywords, browse the results and you are likely to see some patterns emerging. Maybe

there is a certain site that never shows at number one but has lots of results on the second and

third pages of the search results. Maybe another site is consistently in the top five for several of

your top terms.You would be right to include these among your Big Five search competition.”

The Left Brain says,

“When I used to grade papers in graduate school, I sometimes noticed my

standards getting stricter and stricter as the hours passed. Pity those kids with tests at the bottom

of the pile! The same thing can happen when you use a ‘hunch’ approach to choosing your compe-

tition: After an hour of reviewing search results, your opinions are likely to creep.That’s why I think

you should choose a simple numerical evaluation method:Your potential competitor gets a point

for every time their site shows up in the top 30 for your keywords—and five points for every time

in the top 10.Check your searches, add up the points,and there you have it:your search competi-

tion rises to the top.”

As you’re going through your search and PPC competition, be on the lookout

for “left field” competition. These are listings that are displayed for the same keywords

that you’re targeting but have no connection to your organization’s focus. For example,

the directors of the Green Acres Day Camp in Toronto are going head-to-head with

trivia sites about the old

Green Acres

TV show. Whether you choose to review one of

these sites is up to you. But if you’re finding a lot more “left field” competitors than

you expect, you may need to rethink your keyword choices.

Tuesday: Snooping Tools and Techniques

Poking and peeking into other people’s business is part of Web culture and one of the

more entertaining aspects of an SEO campaign. When you open up a browser and look

Now:

Use your own knowledge and your team’s help to define your Big Five competitors. Add their names

and home page URLs to the Competition Worksheet.

c06. 8:07 129