{"id":143333,"date":"2021-05-24T15:22:09","date_gmt":"2021-05-24T15:22:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.searchenginewatch.com\/?p=143333"},"modified":"2021-05-28T09:45:09","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T09:45:09","slug":"using-seo-data-analytics-to-identify-business-gaps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/05\/24\/using-seo-data-analytics-to-identify-business-gaps\/","title":{"rendered":"Using SEO data analytics to identify business gaps"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"well\">\n<h3>30-second summary:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Are your leads slipping through the cracks in these business gaps?<\/li>\n<li>SEOs have a great vantage point in the form of data that actively helps identify business opportunities and gaps<\/li>\n<li>SEO pioneer, serial entrepreneur, and best selling author, Kris Jones identifies three critical aspects that can be fixed to create the foundation of a successful SEO strategy in 2021<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of the strangest things to try to explain to someone who isn\u2019t so familiar with digital marketing is how business owners can start targeting business opportunities that aren\u2019t currently on their radars. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After all&#8211;if we consider the problem semi-philosophically&#8211;how can we know what we don\u2019t know? <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Relying on human logic alone would make that task quite difficult. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thankfully, as SEOs, we have plenty of tools available that can help us identify business opportunities and gaps. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That means keywords we aren\u2019t targeting, audiences we aren\u2019t going after, backlinks we aren\u2019t getting, and content topics we aren\u2019t covering on our websites. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In other words, these are the foundations of a successful SEO strategy in 2021, and you could be missing out on leveraging them for yourself. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are three pointers for using SEO analytics to identify your business gaps, in the area of keywords, content, and backlinks.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Find your keyword gaps<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Digital marketers know the fluctuation in the importance of keywords since the late 1990s. But no matter how much that has changed, you still need to be ranking for the right keywords, or else you won\u2019t be showing up for anything.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But have you ever done a few searches for keywords you want to rank for and not even been able to find your website in the SERPs? Doesn\u2019t it frustrate you to see your competitors on page one?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can be as good as they are. The way to do it is to run a keyword gap analysis in a tool such as Semrush or <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/01\/20\/how-to-perform-seo-a-b-testing-in-google-search-console\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Search Console<\/a> (GSC).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Semrush is better and more user-friendly for this, but if you don\u2019t have access to that, let me cover GSC first.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You first have to link your Google Analytics and GSC together. After that, go to Analytics and navigate to Acquisition&gt;Search Console&gt;Queries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-143334\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-missed-keyword-targeting-opportunities.png\" alt=\"SEO data analytics and identifying missed keyword targeting opportunities\" width=\"298\" height=\"387\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-missed-keyword-targeting-opportunities.png 298w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-missed-keyword-targeting-opportunities-231x300.png 231w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 298px) 100vw, 298px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You\u2019ll see the search terms people have used to get to you, as well as those queries\u2019 clicks, impressions, and click-through rates (CTRs).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Export that data into an Excel or Google Sheets spreadsheet, and then compare the number of actual site visits that those keywords got you to the number of impressions you got for those keywords. The percentage of difference between them will give you a measurable idea of where you need to improve.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, I prefer Semrush\u2019s Keyword Gap tool for this. You simply input your URL and those of a few competitors, and it compares your keyword numbers against your competitors. The tool shows you a keyword overlap diagram as well as your top opportunities for getting new rankings.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Find your content gaps<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You likely know that no serious SEO today writes content for keywords alone. <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/04\/06\/going-beyond-keywords-how-conversational-insights-take-the-guesswork-out-of-marketing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Keywords<\/a> have their place as subject identifiers for Google, but we need to focus content around actual topics. We need our content to address <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/10\/14\/people-also-ask-paa-feature-uncovering-googles-hidden-gem\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">questions people are asking<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And maybe your top competitors are doing that much better than you are.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a result, they rank well for this or that query, and you don\u2019t. So, how do we use SEO data to find content gaps?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Well, we are going to build on the previous point and use our competitors\u2019 keywords to find this out. I mentioned earlier that we write content for topics over keywords, but keywords are still how the public finds your content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Semrush or your spreadsheet from before, you can filter your keyword gap analysis to show the keywords you\u2019re ranking for in positions 11 through 100 or any number you like. If your competitors are doing well for this or that term, while you are languishing in position 18 or 22, then it\u2019s time to take a look at the content you\u2019ve built around those terms.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What\u2019s wrong with it from <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/04\/12\/ux-an-important-seo-ranking-factor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">user experience and SEO<\/a> perspectives? Is the information outdated? Is the content thin? Does it not address a certain issue within the buyer\u2019s journey?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For instance, are you writing blog posts about making an appointment with a doctor when you haven\u2019t even covered why you might need to see a doctor? Not everyone who\u2019s browsing a medical center\u2019s website is ready to take action.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Analyzing your content this way (as well as the content of your competitors, by mining the SERPs, for instance) tends to be more of a manual approach, but the keyword gap analysis you did should really come in handy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can also use what you\u2019ve learned from that data to generate new ideas for <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/07\/01\/how-to-build-your-brand-authority-through-content-marketing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">content marketing<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> if you need to. Tools such as BuzzSumo, Answer the Public, and Semrush\u2019s Topic Research tool aggregate user analytics to show you the currently trending topics around certain keywords.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Find your backlink gaps<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When we\u2019re discussing using SEO data to identify your business gaps, then the icing on the cake is a good, thorough backlink gap.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Where keywords get you found and content earns customer trust, backlinks flex your site\u2019s authority for Google. A backlink is a vote of confidence. It\u2019s the equivalent of someone standing up in a crowd and saying, \u201cYes, I believe in what you\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The way to a strong backlink profile is through your content marketing, reaching out to influencers to see if they would like to link to your useful and authoritative content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But then, your competitors are doing the same thing, and possibly to much greater effect.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here again, we can use SEO analytics to find where you\u2019re falling behind.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can certainly use everything already mentioned here to analyze your competitors\u2019 content, but in the end, you\u2019ll likely need a paid tool to perform a full-fledged backlink gap analysis.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can use Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz\u2019s Link Explorer, or something else. You can check out how each works with a free trial, but to stay on top of your backlink gaps, you would need a paid subscription.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From your research, input your site and a few of your competitors\u2019 sites. Whichever tool you use, you will need to view the total number of backlinks and referring domains.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, note that it is quite common to have more backlinks than domains. That just means that some domains are linking to you more than once. That doesn\u2019t sound so bad, but if you want a large and varied backlink profile, you will want to ramp up the number of domains that link to you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-143335\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-backlinking-opportunities.png\" alt=\"SEO data analytics and identifying backlinking opportunities\" width=\"590\" height=\"143\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-backlinking-opportunities.png 590w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/SEO-data-analytics-and-identifying-backlinking-opportunities-300x73.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At this point, though, it\u2019s all about sifting through the data to see where you\u2019re missing the mark. Check out your top competitors\u2019 backlinks. What kind of content gets the most links? Is it long-form blog posts? White papers? Or is it some other content format that&#8217;s winning those links?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Find out what your competitors are doing well, and then <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/12\/10\/six-strategies-guaranteed-to-help-you-build-more-backlinks-to-your-website\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">create better content<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">! If these domains linked to that type of content for someone else, they can certainly do it for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similarly, if you\u2019ve filtered to see your top pages for backlinks and notice you\u2019ve gotten a ton to a certain type of post, then make more of those in the future!<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>In conclusion<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the end, whether it\u2019s keywords, content, or backlinks, the best overall presentation wins in SEO. You have to be useful and authoritative to human users and Google.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As SEOs, we\u2019re used to sorting through data. The everyday business owner might not be, though. In that case, I hope readers have learned a lot from this about how analytics data is your friend when you\u2019re looking to identify gaps in your business\u2019s SEO strategies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you start to get this right, you\u2019re going to share in those wins, too.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Kris Jones is the founder and former CEO of digital marketing and affiliate network Pepperjam, which he sold to eBay Enterprises in 2009. Most recently Kris founded SEO services and software company <a href=\"https:\/\/lseo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"0\">LSEO.com<\/a> and has previously invested in numerous successful technology companies. Kris is an experienced public speaker and is the author of one of the best-selling SEO books of all time called, &#8216;Search-Engine Optimization &#8211; Your Visual Blueprint to Effective Internet Marketing&#8217;, which has sold nearly 100,000 copies.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SEO pioneer, serial entrepreneur, and best selling author, Kris Jones identifies three critical aspects that can be fixed to create the foundation of a successful SEO strategy in 2021<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1092,"featured_media":143337,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,5],"tags":[980,703,369,37,28065,22,28106,536],"content_type":[],"class_list":["post-143333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-analytics","category-seo","tag-data-analysis","tag-data-analytics","tag-evergreen-content","tag-google","tag-influencer-commentary","tag-seo","tag-seo-data","tag-seo-strategy"],"acf":{"tad_independentcommercial":false,"tad_content_format":false},"post_info":{"name":"idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com","title":"","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Using-SEO-data-analytics-to-identify-business-gaps.png","category":"Analytics","timeago":"5y"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1092"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143333"},{"taxonomy":"content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_type?post=143333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}