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From local-seo-audit
Comprehensive competitor analysis for local SEO audits. Activates when analyzing competitors, comparing businesses, doing competitive research, or assessing competitive landscape. Covers all 9 dimensions of competitor profiling with AI visibility, entity analysis, and SERP feature ownership. Phase 1. Output: {AUDIT_DIR}/competitor-profiles.md
npx claudepluginhub mshahiddigital/local-seo-auditHow this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/local-seo-audit:competitor-analysisThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Competitor analysis is the intelligence layer that makes every subsequent phase actionable. Without knowing what the top-ranking competitors do, every recommendation is directionally blind. This phase profiles 3–5 competitors across 9 dimensions in enough depth that all subsequent phases can benchmark findings against real competitor data. Time investment: 45–90 minutes produces data that infor...
Analyzes competitor SEO and GEO strategies to reveal market gaps, keyword opportunities, and backlink weaknesses. Useful for benchmarking and competitive intelligence.
Analyzes local search competitors in map pack and organic results, benchmarking GBP signals, reviews, citations, website factors, and links to identify ranking gaps and opportunities.
Analyzes competitors' websites across content, tech stack, backlinks, social, and brand metrics with 0-100 scores, gap comparisons, and prioritized ROI-focused strategies to surpass them.
Share bugs, ideas, or general feedback.
Competitor analysis is the intelligence layer that makes every subsequent phase actionable. Without knowing what the top-ranking competitors do, every recommendation is directionally blind. This phase profiles 3–5 competitors across 9 dimensions in enough depth that all subsequent phases can benchmark findings against real competitor data. Time investment: 45–90 minutes produces data that informs 20+ recommendations across the audit.
2025 competitive landscape shift: AI Overviews appear for 20–35% of local service queries — competitors who are cited by AIO have invisible traffic advantages that traditional ranking data doesn't show. This phase must audit AI visibility, not just organic rankings.
| Tool | Purpose | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs | Organic keywords, DR, referring domains, traffic estimate, top pages | Paid |
| SEMrush | Keyword gap, backlink audit, traffic analytics, page-level keywords | Paid |
| Moz | Domain Authority, spam score, top pages | Free/Paid |
| Google PageSpeed Insights | CWV: mobile score, LCP, INP, CLS per competitor | Free |
| Google Rich Results Test | Schema types implemented by competitor | Free |
| Google Search | Local pack positions, SERP features owned, featured snippets | Free |
| Google Maps / GBP | Review count, rating, GBP completeness, category | Free |
| ChatGPT / Perplexity / Gemini | AI visibility test — are competitors cited? | Free |
| BuiltWith | CMS, hosting, technology stack per competitor | Free |
| Majestic | Trust Flow / Citation Flow ratio, link profile quality | Paid |
Read {AUDIT_DIR}/intake-data.md — business name, URL, services, location, competitor list.
If competitors not provided in intake, use this 3-search identification protocol:
[primary service] [city] → note top 3 local pack + top 3 non-directory organicbest [service] [city] → cross-reference, add new names[service] [city] reviews → identify any additional local leadersConfirm each competitor:
Present findings: "I've identified these top competitors: [list]. Please confirm or swap any."
For 3–5 competitors, systematically research each dimension. Do NOT guess — verify with web search, page fetch, and public data tools.
| Data Point | How to Find | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business type (independent/chain/franchise) | Website + Google Maps | |||
| Domain age | Whois / BuiltWith | |||
| Years in business | About page / GBP | |||
Indexed pages (site:[domain]) | Google search | |||
| Tech stack (CMS) | BuiltWith | |||
| Service areas (same/broader/narrower) | Website + GBP | |||
| # of locations | Google Maps search | |||
| Estimated team size | LinkedIn Company page |
CWV benchmarks (2025 — INP replaced FID March 2024):
| Metric | Good | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 | Client |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile PSI Score | > 70 | ||||
| LCP (mobile) | < 2.5s | ||||
| INP (mobile) | < 200ms | ||||
| CLS (mobile) | < 0.1 | ||||
| TTFB | < 800ms |
Additional technical checks per competitor:
For each competitor (Ahrefs → Site Explorer → Organic Pages → sort by traffic):
| Data Point | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
Total pages estimated (site: count) | |||
| Service pages count | |||
| Location pages count | |||
| Blog posts count | |||
| Publishing frequency (last 10 posts dates) | |||
| Word count on top service page | |||
| Word count on blog posts | |||
| Unique content assets (tools, guides, calculators) | |||
| Local content (city guides, neighborhood pages) | |||
| FAQPage schema present on service pages | |||
| Content freshness (last updated on key pages) |
Content depth benchmark (2025 HCS standards):
From Ahrefs/SEMrush → Site Explorer → Organic Keywords:
| Data Point | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estimated monthly organic traffic | |||
| Total organic keywords ranking | |||
| Top 5 keywords by traffic | |||
| "Near me" keyword rankings | |||
| Featured snippet ownership (count) | |||
| PAA (People Also Ask) presence | |||
| Question-format content for AIO | |||
| Long-tail service + location coverage |
| Metric | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 | Client | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domain Rating (DR) — Ahrefs | |||||
| Domain Authority (DA) — Moz | |||||
| Trust Flow (TF) — Majestic | |||||
| Citation Flow (CF) — Majestic | |||||
| TF:CF ratio (target ≥ 0.5) | |||||
| Referring domains count | |||||
| % from niche-relevant sites | |||||
| Top 3 link sources | |||||
| Citation directory depth |
Link building pattern analysis:
| Data Point | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 | Client |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GBP star rating | ||||
| GBP review count | ||||
| Review velocity (estimated/month) | ||||
| Local pack position (primary keyword) | ||||
| GBP categories (primary + secondary) | ||||
| GBP photos count | ||||
| GBP posts active? | ||||
| Q&A section populated? | ||||
| Services listed in GBP? | ||||
| NAP consistency (spot-check 3 directories) |
GBP completeness benchmarks:
Test for each competitor across all AI platforms:
AI visibility test protocol:
Queries to test:
1. "Best [service] in [city]" (Google AIO + ChatGPT + Perplexity)
2. "[Competitor name] [city] — what are their services?" (Gemini + Perplexity)
3. "Who should I call for [problem] in [city]?" (ChatGPT + Google AIO)
| Platform | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 | Client |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google AIO (main service query) | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not |
| ChatGPT (conversational) | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not |
| Perplexity (local service) | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not | Cited/Not |
| Knowledge Panel (branded) | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| FAQPage schema (AIO trigger) | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| Platform | Comp 1 Followers | Comp 2 Followers | Comp 3 Followers | Client Followers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | ||||
| TikTok |
Qualitative assessment per competitor:
For top 10 shared target keywords:
| SERP Feature | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 | Client |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local Pack — keywords owned | [X/10] | [X/10] | [X/10] | [X/10] |
| Featured Snippets — keywords owned | [X] | [X] | [X] | [X] |
| PAA boxes — questions answered | [X] | [X] | [X] | [X] |
| Video Carousel | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| Image Pack | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| FAQ Rich Results | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| Knowledge Panel | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
| Sitelinks (branded) | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No | Yes/No |
Rate each competitor 1–10 per dimension. Use as benchmark throughout audit:
| Dimension | Client | Comp 1 | Comp 2 | Comp 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Business Profile (maturity, size) | ||||
| 2. Technical SEO + CWV | ||||
| 3. Content Strategy + Depth | ||||
| 4. Keyword Strategy | ||||
| 5. Backlink Authority | ||||
| 6. Local SEO / GBP | ||||
| 7. AI Visibility (AIO, ChatGPT) | ||||
| 8. Social Media Presence | ||||
| 9. SERP Feature Ownership | ||||
| TOTAL | /90 | /90 | /90 | /90 |
| Gap | Competitor Advantage | Client Weakness | Difficulty | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [gap 1] | [how top comp does it] | [what client lacks] | Easy/Med/Hard | H/M/L |
Areas where client has competitive advantage — amplify these:
Areas where ALL competitors are weak — first-mover advantage available:
What competitor advantages pose the biggest ranking risk?
| Threat | Competitor | Risk Level | Defensive Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| [threat] | [comp name] | Critical/High/Med | [action] |
Items that can be replicated from top competitors in < 30 days:
| Win | Competitor Source | Action Required | Effort | Expected Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [win 1] | [comp] | [specific action] | [time] | [result] |
| [win 2] | [comp] | [specific action] | [time] | [result] |
| [win 3] | [comp] | [specific action] | [time] | [result] |
| Action | Impact (1–5) | Feasibility (1–5) | Priority | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Identify 3+ competitors with specific URLs | 5 | 5 | 25 | 15 min |
| Record GBP data (stars, reviews, categories) | 5 | 5 | 25 | 20 min |
| Run CWV comparison (PageSpeed Insights ×4) | 5 | 5 | 25 | 20 min |
| Test AI visibility (ChatGPT + Perplexity) | 5 | 5 | 25 | 15 min |
| Ahrefs DR + traffic comparison | 4 | 4 | 16 | 15 min |
| SERP feature ownership audit | 4 | 4 | 16 | 20 min |
| Schema types audit (Rich Results Test) | 4 | 5 | 20 | 15 min |
| Social media follower comparison | 3 | 5 | 15 | 10 min |
Write complete profiles to {AUDIT_DIR}/competitor-profiles.md with YAML frontmatter:
---
skill: research/competitor-analysis
phase: 1
date: [YYYY-MM-DD]
business: [Business Name]
url: [URL]
score: N/A
competitors_analyzed: [X]
top_competitor: [name]
top_competitor_url: [url]
client_score: [X/90]
top_competitor_score: [X/90]
score_gap: [X]
---
Include:
This file is read by ALL 21 subsequent phases — every finding benchmarks against this data. Quality here multiplies throughout the entire audit.
Key consumers:
research/content-gaps — competitor content strategy informs gap analysisresearch/keyword-gaps — competitor organic keywords drive gap analysiscross-cutting/serp-trust-auditor — SERP feature ownership comparisoncross-cutting/local-impact-auditor — GBP + local SEO competitor comparison