Competitor Average Position

What is the Competitor Average Position Tool?

The Competitor Average Position tool is a powerful feature that helps you understand how your website's search rankings compare to your competitors over time. This tool visualizes your position in search results against specific competitors, allowing you to identify opportunities for improvement and track your progress.

competitor average position

Why This Tool Is Valuable

Understanding how you rank compared to competitors gives you critical insights:

Identify performance gaps - See where competitors consistently outrank you
Track improvements - Monitor if your SEO efforts are closing the gap with competitors
Find opportunities - Discover specific keywords where small improvements could yield big results
Search engine comparison - See if your performance varies across different search engines
Content improvement guidance - Get AI-powered recommendations to improve your content

How to Access the Tool

Navigate to the "/competitors/" page
Scroll to the "Competitor Average Position" section

Reading the Chart

The Competitor Average Position Chart shows ranking data over time:

X-axis (horizontal): Shows dates over the selected time period
Y-axis (vertical): Shows average positions (lower numbers = better rankings)
Colored lines: Each line represents a different search engine
Data points: Each point on a line represents the average ranking position for that date

Remember that in search rankings, lower numbers are better. Position 1 is the top result on page 1, position 10 is the last result on page 1, and so on. The chart's y-axis is reversed to show better rankings (lower numbers) at the top.

Using the Filters

Customize your view with these filters:

1. Date Range

1 Day: Most recent day only
7 Days: Data from the past week
30 Days: Data from the past month (default)
90 Days: Data from the past three months

2. Search Group

All Search Groups: Data across all your keyword groups
[Specific Group Name]: Focus on a specific keyword group

3. Competitor Domain

All Competitors: View average data across all competitors
[Specific Domain]: Focus on a specific competitor

4. Keyword

All Keywords: Average position across all keywords
[Specific Keyword]: Focus on a single keyword

Getting AI-Powered Analysis

competitor average position analysis

One of the most powerful features of this tool is the AI Analysis, which gives you actionable insights based on your competitive data:

Apply your desired filters (date range, search group, competitor, keyword)
Click the "AI Analysis" button
Wait while the system analyzes your data and your competitor's data
Review the detailed insights and recommendations

Understanding the AI Analysis Report

The AI Analysis report provides comprehensive insights organized into several sections:

Key Insights

This section provides a high-level overview of:

Total keywords being compared
Date range of the analysis
Position ranges (best and worst rankings)
Search engine comparison showing your average position vs. competitor position on each search engine

Ranking Opportunities

For each identified opportunity, you'll see:

The specific keyword with potential for improvement
Current positions (yours and competitor's)
The position gap (how much better or worse your ranking is)
Priority level (High/Medium/Low)
Trend (whether your position is improving, stable, or declining)
Specific action recommendations

Content Analysis

For keywords where content has been analyzed, you'll see:

Your content strengths
Competitor content strengths
Missing elements (what your content lacks compared to competitors)
Specific, actionable recommendations

Keyword Insights

This section categorizes your keywords into:

Strongest Performing Keywords: Where you outrank competitors
Keywords Needing Attention: Where competitors outrank you
Volatile Rankings: Keywords with unstable rankings that need monitoring

How to Use This Information

For SEO Strategy

Identify Priority Keywords: Focus on "High Priority" opportunities first
Track Performance: Monitor your "Strongest Performing Keywords" to maintain your advantage
Fix Content Gaps: Use the content analysis to improve underperforming pages

For Content Creation

Update Existing Content: Add missing elements identified in the analysis
Restructure Content: Implement recommended structural changes
Create New Content: Develop targeted content for competitive keywords

For Reporting

Track Progress: Use the chart to demonstrate improvement over time
Benchmark Performance: Compare your average position to competitors
Prioritize Efforts: Focus resources on high-impact opportunities

Practical Example

Let's walk through a typical workflow:

Select Filters: Choose the past 30 days, your "Product Pages" search group, and a specific competitor
Review Chart: Notice that your average position is consistently higher (worse) than your competitor on Google
Run AI Analysis: Click the AI Analysis button
Review Opportunities: Find that "wireless headphones" is a high-priority keyword where you rank position 12 vs. your competitor's position 3
Check Content Analysis: See that your competitor's page has more comprehensive specifications, user reviews, and comparison tables
Take Action: Update your wireless headphones page to include these missing elements

Exporting Data

You can save your analysis for later reference:

After running an AI analysis, look for the export button (typically at the bottom of the report)
Click "Export to Word" to download the full analysis as a Word document
Use this document for team meetings, client reporting, or future reference

Common Questions

How often is ranking data updated?

Ranking data is typically updated daily, with the chart showing the most recent available data.

Why do I see different competitors when I change search groups?

Different search groups target different topics and keywords, which naturally attract different competitors. When you change search groups, the system shows competitors most relevant to those specific keywords.

What does "average position" actually mean?

Average position is the mathematical mean of your rankings across multiple keywords. For example, if you rank position 2 for one keyword and position 8 for another, your average position would be 5.

Can I compare more than one competitor at a time?

The chart shows one competitor at a time, but you can easily switch between competitors using the dropdown menu to compare different competitors.

What makes a keyword "high priority"?

The AI considers several factors:

The size of the ranking gap between you and the competitor
Search volume and commercial value of the keyword
Whether your content has clear opportunities for improvement
Ranking trends (especially if you're losing ground)

Why don't I see content analysis for all keywords?

Content analysis is typically performed for the most important keywords where you're underperforming. The system prioritizes keywords where content improvements would have the biggest impact.

Glossary of Terms

Average Position: The mean ranking position across multiple keywords
Position Gap: The numerical difference between your ranking and a competitor's ranking
Search Group: A collection of related keywords you're tracking
SERP: Search Engine Results Page - the page showing results for a specific search query
Volatile Rankings: Keywords whose positions change frequently over time
Content Gap: Important information present on a competitor's page but missing from yours

Conclusion

The Competitor Average Position tool gives you powerful insights into your competitive landscape and helps you identify specific opportunities for improvement. By regularly using this tool and implementing the AI-powered recommendations, you can strategically improve your content to outrank competitors and increase your search visibility.

Remember that SEO is a long-term strategy, and position improvements may take time to appear after implementing changes. Use this tool as part of your ongoing competitive analysis to track progress and continuously refine your approach.