Google Suggest gives suggestions for search queries in real-time, based on what other users have searched for using the same keywords. It’s the function in Google that suggests ‘I want to break free’, ‘I want that dress’ and ‘I want that trend’ when you start a query with ‘I...
SearchMetrics is a great tool for optimising for search engines, and for finding the analytics data you need from your own and competing sites to get ahead. Aimed at the enterprise market, SearchMetrics even has it’s own Market Share Benchmarks and tracking capabilities, so you can set your campaign...
This is a social network website designed specifically for the business community. The site was created with the goal of helping registered users establish and document networks of people they know and trust professionally. A typical LinkedIn member profile emphasizes employment history, educational background, and relevant industry memberships. At...
Crunchbase is an online database/social network, mapping the tech ecosystem on the web. It links the companies, personnel, and VCs notable within the industry in a connected way, so you can find out about the people behind a particular venture, their past experience, and their associations with other companies....
Facebook needs very little introduction. As a tool for competitor analysis, it is great for giving you insights into how people engage and interact with the competition through social media. Additionally, it’s a great source of information about what different competitors are up to – for example, if there’s...
From HubSpot, the Website Grader is a smart tool that autogenerates a report for your online marketing efforts, factoring in a range of checklist criteria to compute a total score out of 100. The Website Grader can provide you with no end of ideas for improving your marketing and...
Who Is Hosting This is a free web-tool you can use to uncover who is hosting a particular domain, providing you with information on the webhost’s identity, nameservers, IP address and a range of other details. This is useful for finding out whether two websites are linked, or for...
Pinterest is clearly important for ecommerce, and it’s extensively used for driving traffic and social engagement. In terms of keeping tabs on competitors, you can access a range of data about the posts, pins and strategy of your competition. Their competitor benchmark tool makes it as straightforward as possible...
Bit.ly is the most widely-used URL shortener on the planet. For spying on the competition, it’s fantastic, with essentially open data for anyone to view. Bitly track stats for every link they generate, and you can access these stats by adding a + sign to the URL – bit.ly/xyz...
Similarly, the Facebook API allows you to draw analytics on Facebook pages you choose to track, so you can start to analyse the reach, likes, shares, comments and other metrics from Facebook pages. There’s no need to be the page admin – it is possible to start tracking and...