Competitor Analysis for Accountants: Outranking Other CPA Firms

In the competitive landscape of professional services marketing, understanding your competitors is essential for developing an effective SEO strategy. Competitor analysis reveals opportunities to outrank other CPA firms, identify content gaps, and discover the exact tactics successful firms use to dominate search results[1].

This guide provides a systematic approach to analyzing competitor accounting firms, from identifying who you're competing against to implementing strategies that help you capture their market share. Whether you're competing in a local market or trying to establish national authority, these competitive intelligence techniques will give you the insights needed to develop a winning strategy.

Identifying Your True Competitors

Before analyzing competitors, you need to identify who they actually are. Your business competitors and your SEO competitors aren't always the same firms. An SEO competitor is any website ranking for keywords you want to target, regardless of whether they compete for the same clients offline.

Finding SEO Competitors

Start by searching for your target keywords in Google. The firms appearing in the top 10 results are your primary SEO competitors. Pay particular attention to:

• Local Pack Results: The three businesses appearing in Google's map results for local searches like "CPA near me" or "accountant in [city]."
• Organic Results: Firms ranking in positions 1-10 for your priority keywords.
• Knowledge Panel Firms: Businesses appearing in Google's knowledge graph for branded searches.
• Featured Snippets: Sites capturing position zero with direct answers to common questions.

Using Competitive Research Tools

Professional SEO tools provide sophisticated competitor discovery features. SEMrush's Organic Research tool allows you to enter your domain and automatically identifies your top organic competitors based on keyword overlap[1]. Similarly, Ahrefs' Competing Domains report shows websites ranking for the same keywords as your site[2].

To use these tools effectively:

1. Enter your website domain into the competitive analysis tool
2. Review the list of competing domains based on keyword overlap
3. Filter competitors by location if you're targeting local markets
4. Note the top 5-10 competitors for detailed analysis
5. Create a spreadsheet to track competitor metrics over time

Categorizing Your Competition

Not all competitors deserve equal attention. Categorize them into tiers:

• Direct Local Competitors: CPA firms in your geographic area offering similar services to similar client segments.
• Industry Authority Sites: National publications, industry associations, and educational resources ranking for informational keywords.
• Adjacent Service Providers: Financial advisors, bookkeepers, or business consultants competing for related searches.
• Directory and Platform Sites: Listing sites like Yelp, CPA Directory, or accounting software review sites.

Focus most of your competitive analysis on direct local competitors, as these firms represent the most realistic benchmarks and the greatest opportunity for market share capture.

Analyzing Competitor Keywords

Keyword analysis reveals what terms competitors rank for, which ones drive their traffic, and where gaps exist that you can exploit. This intelligence forms the foundation of your content and optimization strategy.

Identifying Competitor Keywords

SpyFu specializes in competitor keyword research, showing every keyword a domain has ranked for in organic search over the past 15+ years[4]. This historical data reveals seasonal patterns, lost rankings, and emerging focus areas.

When analyzing competitor keywords, look for:

• High-Value Service Keywords: Terms with clear commercial intent that competitors rank in the top 3 for.
• Quick Win Opportunities: Keywords where competitors rank in positions 4-10, indicating achievable targets.
• Long-Tail Variations: Specific phrases with lower competition that competitors may be neglecting.
• Question-Based Keywords: How, what, when, and why queries that generate featured snippets.

Performing Keyword Gap Analysis

A keyword gap analysis identifies keywords your competitors rank for that you don't. This reveals content and optimization opportunities with proven search demand[9].

Using SEMrush's Keyword Gap tool:

1. Enter your domain and up to four competitor domains
2. Filter results to show keywords competitors rank for that you don't ("Missing" keywords)
3. Sort by search volume and keyword difficulty to identify priority targets
4. Look for patterns in keyword themes (e.g., specific services, locations, or client types)
5. Export high-priority keywords for your content calendar

Ahrefs offers a similar Content Gap tool that reveals keywords that multiple competitors rank for but you don't[10]. Keywords that 2-3 competitors rank for represent validated opportunities with established search demand.

Analyzing Keyword Difficulty and Opportunity

Not all keywords your competitors rank for are worth targeting. Evaluate each opportunity based on:

• Keyword Difficulty Score: Metrics from SEMrush, Ahrefs, or Moz indicating how hard it is to rank (target keywords with difficulty scores below your domain's authority level).
• Search Intent Alignment: Whether the keyword matches services you actually offer and want to be known for.
• Traffic Potential: Estimated monthly search volume and likely click-through rate.
• Commercial Value: How likely searchers are to become paying clients (prioritize high-intent keywords).
• Current Ranking Gap: How far behind you are (easier to improve from position 15 to 10 than from nowhere to top 3).

Backlink Gap Analysis

Backlinks remain one of Google's top ranking factors. Analyzing competitor backlink profiles reveals link-building opportunities and helps you understand why certain firms rank above you[6].

Understanding Competitor Link Profiles

Start by examining the overall link profile metrics of top-ranking competitors:

• Total Referring Domains: The number of unique websites linking to the competitor.
• Domain Rating/Authority: Ahrefs' Domain Rating or Moz's Domain Authority scores indicating overall link strength.
• Total Backlinks: The cumulative number of links (less important than referring domains).
• Link Velocity: How quickly they're acquiring new links over time.

These metrics establish benchmarks for your own link-building goals. If top-ranking competitors have 200+ referring domains, you'll likely need similar numbers to compete effectively.

Finding Link Building Opportunities

The most valuable competitive backlink analysis identifies specific sites linking to competitors that could also link to you. Ahrefs' Link Intersect tool shows domains linking to multiple competitors but not to your site[2]—these represent your highest-probability link prospects.

Common link opportunities for accounting firms include:

• Professional Association Directories: State CPA societies, AICPA, chamber of commerce listings.
• Local Business Resources: City guides, "best of" lists, local news sites.
• Industry Publications: Accounting Today, Journal of Accountancy, industry blogs accepting contributions.
• Educational Institutions: Alma maters, colleges with CPA program resource pages.
• Client and Partner Sites: Businesses you serve that could link to you as their accounting firm.
• Resource Pages: "Resources for small businesses," financial planning guides, tax information compilations.

Evaluating Link Quality

Not all backlinks are created equal. When analyzing competitor links, assess quality based on:

• Relevance: Links from finance, business, and professional services sites carry more weight than unrelated industries.
• Authority: High Domain Rating/Authority links pass more ranking power.
• Link Placement: Editorial links within content outperform footer or sidebar links.
• Anchor Text: Natural, varied anchor text is healthier than exact-match optimization.
• Follow vs. Nofollow: While followed links carry more SEO value, quality nofollow links still drive referral traffic.

Moz's Link Explorer provides detailed metrics for evaluating individual backlinks, including spam score and link influence[11]. Focus your efforts on replicating high-quality links rather than chasing quantity.

Content Gap Analysis

Content gap analysis identifies topics and pages that competitors have created that you haven't. This reveals what Google considers important for ranking in your industry and helps prioritize your content creation efforts.

Identifying Missing Content

Manually review competitor websites to catalog their content assets:

• Service Pages: Note every service they dedicate a page to, including niche offerings you might be overlooking.
• Resource Centers: Guides, calculators, checklists, and downloadable assets.
• Blog Content: Topics, frequency, and content formats (how-to guides, news analysis, etc.).
• Industry-Specific Pages: Content targeting particular business types or professions.
• Location Pages: Geographic service area coverage.

Analyzing Content Quality and Depth

Beyond identifying what content exists, evaluate how thoroughly competitors cover each topic. Google rewards comprehensive, authoritative content that fully addresses user intent[5].

For competitor content pieces ranking well, analyze:

• Word Count: Content length often correlates with rankings (use tools to analyze average word count for top results).
• Content Structure: How they organize information with headings, sections, and visual elements.
• Multimedia: Use of images, videos, infographics, and interactive elements.
• Comprehensiveness: Breadth of subtopics covered within the main topic.
• Freshness: Publication and update dates (recently updated content often ranks better).

Creating Superior Content

Identifying gaps is only valuable if you create better content to fill them. Apply the "10x content" principle—your content should be 10 times better than what currently ranks:

• More Comprehensive: Cover more aspects of the topic than competitors.
• More Current: Include the latest tax laws, regulations, and best practices.
• More Useful: Provide actionable advice, specific examples, and practical frameworks.
• Better Formatted: Use superior design, more effective visuals, and improved readability.
• More Credible: Include data, research, citations, and demonstrate expertise.

SEMrush's SEO Content Template tool analyzes the top 10 results for any keyword and provides recommendations for word count, readability, related keywords to include, and potential backlink sources[9].

Technical SEO Comparison

Technical SEO factors significantly impact rankings. Comparing your technical implementation against competitors reveals areas where you may be at a disadvantage or where you can gain an edge.

Site Speed and Performance

Page speed is a confirmed ranking factor, particularly for mobile searches. Google's PageSpeed Insights allows you to analyze any competitor's Core Web Vitals scores[12].

Test competitor sites and your own for:

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Loading performance (should be under 2.5 seconds).
• First Input Delay (FID): Interactivity (should be under 100 milliseconds).
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Visual stability (should be under 0.1).
• Overall Page Speed Score: General performance benchmarks.

If competitors consistently score higher on performance metrics, this represents a technical disadvantage you must address before expecting to outrank them.

Mobile Optimization

Google uses mobile-first indexing, meaning it primarily uses the mobile version of websites for ranking. Test competitor sites on mobile devices to evaluate:

• Responsive Design: How well the site adapts to different screen sizes.
• Mobile Navigation: Ease of finding services and information on small screens.
• Touch Target Sizing: Whether buttons and links are easy to tap on mobile.
• Mobile Page Speed: Load times specifically on mobile connections.

Technical SEO Audit

Professional SEO tools provide technical audit features that can be used on competitor sites. While you can't see everything (like server configurations), you can evaluate[7]:

• Site Architecture: URL structure, internal linking patterns, and navigation hierarchy.
• Indexability: Presence and optimization of XML sitemaps, robots.txt configuration.
• Structured Data: Implementation of schema markup for local business, services, FAQs, etc.
• HTTPS Security: SSL certificate implementation and security headers.
• Canonical Tags: How they handle duplicate content issues.
• Meta Data: Title tag and meta description optimization patterns.

Local SEO Competitive Analysis

For accounting firms serving specific geographic areas, local SEO competitive analysis is particularly important. Local pack rankings (the map results) drive significant client acquisition for professional service firms[8].

Google Business Profile Optimization

Analyze competitor Google Business Profiles to understand why they rank in the local pack:

• Profile Completeness: What sections they've filled out (services, attributes, business description, hours, etc.).
• Review Count and Quality: Total number of reviews, average rating, review velocity, and response rate.
• Photo Count: Number and types of photos uploaded (exterior, interior, team, work samples).
• Google Posts: Frequency and quality of updates posted to their profile.
• Q&A Section: Whether they actively manage questions and answers.
• Category Selection: Primary and secondary business categories chosen.

Local Citation Analysis

Citations are mentions of your business name, address, and phone number on other websites. Consistent, quality citations help local rankings. BrightLocal's research shows citations remain a significant local ranking factor[8].

Tools like Moz Local or BrightLocal can analyze competitor citations to identify:

• Citation Sources: Which directories, associations, and local sites list competitors.
• Citation Consistency: How accurately their NAP information appears across sites.
• Industry-Specific Citations: Accounting and financial service directories they appear in.
• Local Citations: City-specific directories and local business listings.

Local Content Strategies

Examine how competitors incorporate local elements into their content:

• Location Pages: Dedicated pages for each city or neighborhood served.
• Local Blog Content: Articles addressing local tax issues, city-specific regulations, or local business topics.
• Community Involvement: Content about sponsorships, events, or local partnerships.
• Local Keywords: Integration of city names and neighborhood terms throughout content.

Tracking Competitor Rankings

Competitor tracking isn't a one-time activity. Continuous monitoring reveals when competitors make gains, what strategies they're implementing, and how the competitive landscape evolves over time.

Setting Up Rank Tracking

Professional rank tracking tools monitor both your rankings and competitor rankings for specified keywords. SEMrush's Position Tracking tool allows you to add competitors and compare ranking movements side-by-side[13].

Configure tracking for:

• Priority Keywords: Your top 20-50 target keywords that drive business value.
• Local vs. National Results: Track from specific locations if you serve local markets.
• Device Types: Separate mobile and desktop rankings if patterns differ.
• Top 3-5 Competitors: Direct competitors you most want to outrank.

Monitoring Competitor Changes

Beyond rankings, monitor competitor websites for strategic changes:

• New Content: When they publish new blog posts, guides, or service pages.
• Site Redesigns: Major changes to design, structure, or navigation.
• New Services: Expansion into new service offerings or markets.
• Backlink Acquisition: Major new links they've acquired.
• Traffic Changes: Significant increases or decreases in their estimated traffic.

Ahrefs' Rank Tracker includes competitor analysis features and alerts when competitors make significant ranking changes[14]. SpyFu provides historical ranking data showing how competitor positions have changed over months or years[15].

Creating Actionable Reports

Transform competitive data into action by creating regular reports that highlight:

• Ranking Movements: Keywords where you've gained or lost ground against competitors.
• Gap Opportunities: New keywords competitors are ranking for that you aren't.
• Content Gaps: New content competitors have published that's performing well.
• Link Opportunities: New backlinks competitors have acquired that you could pursue.
• Market Share Changes: Overall visibility trends showing who's winning in your market.

Finding and Exploiting Competitive Opportunities

The ultimate goal of competitor analysis is identifying specific opportunities to gain competitive advantage. These opportunities fall into several categories.

Low-Hanging Fruit Keywords

These are keywords where:

• You currently rank in positions 4-15 (page one or early page two)
• Search volume and commercial value justify the effort
• Competitors ranking above you have similar or lower domain authority
• Your existing content just needs optimization rather than complete rewrites

These keywords represent your fastest path to ranking improvements. Small optimizations to existing pages can move you from position 8 to position 3, dramatically increasing traffic.

Undefended Opportunities

Sometimes competitive analysis reveals keywords or topics that no competitors are targeting effectively. These might include:

• Emerging Search Trends: New terms gaining search volume that competitors haven't noticed yet.
• Long-Tail Variations: Specific phrases with clear intent but low competition.
• Question Keywords: Specific questions people ask that aren't well-answered by current results.
• Niche Service Areas: Specialized accounting services few competitors emphasize.

Competitor Weaknesses

Look for areas where even top-ranking competitors have vulnerabilities:

• Outdated Content: Competitors with old content that hasn't been updated with current tax laws or regulations.
• Poor User Experience: Sites with slow load times, poor mobile experience, or confusing navigation.
• Thin Content: Shallow coverage of topics where you could create more comprehensive resources.
• Limited Local Presence: Weak Google Business Profiles or few local citations.
• No Content Marketing: Competitors relying solely on service pages without educational content.

Replicable Success Tactics

When you identify what's working for competitors, adapt these strategies for your own use:

• Successful Content Formats: If competitors' calculators, checklists, or guides perform well, create similar (but better) resources.
• Link Sources: Pursue backlinks from sites that have linked to multiple competitors.
• Keyword Targeting Patterns: If competitors successfully target industry-specific terms, develop your own industry specialization content.
• Local SEO Tactics: Implement strategies that help competitors dominate local results.

Developing Your Competitive Strategy

Armed with competitive intelligence, develop a strategic plan to outrank competitors systematically.

Prioritizing Actions

You can't pursue every opportunity simultaneously. Prioritize based on:

1. Business Impact: Opportunities most likely to generate revenue (high-intent keywords, local searches).
2. Achievability: Quick wins that build momentum versus long-term plays.
3. Resource Requirements: What you can realistically accomplish with available time and budget.
4. Competitive Advantage: Areas where you have natural strengths versus competitors.

Creating a 90-Day Action Plan

Break competitive strategies into quarterly plans:

Month 1: Foundation

• Optimize your Google Business Profile to match or exceed top competitors
• Build missing citations from directories where competitors appear
• Fix critical technical SEO issues identified in competitor comparisons
• Optimize your top 5 service pages with insights from competitor analysis

Month 2: Content Development

• Create 4-6 pieces of content targeting identified keyword gaps
• Update existing content to match or exceed competitor content depth
• Develop resource assets (guides, calculators) competitors lack
• Optimize internal linking to match successful competitor site structures

Month 3: Link Building and Promotion

• Pursue 10-15 high-quality backlinks from sources linking to competitors
• Promote new content through channels where competitors are active
• Monitor ranking changes and adjust strategies based on results
• Identify next quarter's priorities based on what's working

Ethical Considerations

Competitor analysis is about learning and improving, not copying or undermining. Maintain ethical standards by:

• Creating Original Content: Use competitor content as inspiration for topics, but write your own unique perspective.
• Honest Link Building: Earn links through value, not by imitating competitors' exact tactics or deception.
• Respecting Boundaries: Don't attempt to access competitors' private data or use unethical tactics.
• Following Professional Standards: Maintain AICPA ethics standards in all marketing activities.

The goal is to become a better resource for potential clients, not to simply game search algorithms. Google increasingly rewards genuinely helpful content and penalizes manipulative tactics[5].

Getting Started

Competitive analysis is an ongoing process, not a one-time project. Start with a comprehensive initial analysis, then establish monthly monitoring routines to stay informed about competitive movements.

The firms that consistently outrank competitors are those that systematically analyze the competitive landscape, identify specific opportunities, and execute strategic plans to exploit those opportunities. With the tools and frameworks outlined in this guide, you have everything needed to develop a data-driven competitive strategy.

Begin by identifying your top 5 SEO competitors, performing a keyword gap analysis, and identifying your 10 highest-priority opportunities. Focus your initial efforts on these quick wins while building toward longer-term competitive advantages. The accounting firms that dominate search results aren't necessarily the largest or oldest—they're the ones that consistently analyze, adapt, and execute better than their competition.