Your competitor has 300 backlinks, you only have 12. How to catch up in 60 days?
You just launched, DR 8. Your competitor has been at it for 3 years, DR 35, 300+ backlinks. It seems impossible to catch up? Actually it’s not as hard as you think.
📅 September 26, 2026 · ⏱️ Approx. 7‑minute read · 📂 SEO · Competitive Analysis · Catch‑up Strategy
First, a fact that might make you uncomfortable: In SEO, the first‑mover advantage is real.
Your competitor launched 3 years before you. They have 300 backlinks, DR 35, and 50 articles indexed by Google. You just launched, DR 8, 3 backlinks, 4 articles.
From pure data, the gap looks massive.
But I’ll tell you another fact: DR growth is exponential, not linear.
From DR 0 to DR 10 may take 3 months. From DR 10 to DR 20 may take only 2 months. From DR 20 to DR 30 may take just 1‑2 months.
The early stage is hardest; later it accelerates. Higher DR → easier to earn new backlinks → DR rises faster. It’s a positive loop.
The question is how to start that positive loop.
Step 1: Figure out where the competitor’s backlinks come from (1 day)
The first step isn’t “hard work”; it’s “enemy intel”.
Procedure:
- Open Ahrefs Free (Webmaster Tools) or SEMrush Free
- Enter the competitor’s domain
- View the Backlinks report
- Export all backlink sources to a spreadsheet
What to focus on:
| Dimension | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Source site DR | Determine which backlinks are most valuable |
| Link type | dofollow or nofollow |
| Link placement | In‑content vs sidebar vs comment section |
| Anchor text | Keywords the competitor used as anchor text |
| Acquisition method | Directory submission? Guest post? Natural citation? |
A real example:
I helped a friend analyze his competitor. The competitor had DR 35, 280 backlinks. The analysis showed:
- 45 from directory submissions (16%)
- 35 from guest posts (12%)
- 28 from industry resource pages (10%)
- 15 from news/media citations (5%)
- 157 from natural citations on various small sites (56%)
Key finding: Among the competitor’s 80 high‑quality backlinks (directories + guest posts + resource pages + media), at least 50 are replicable because those directories still exist, those blogs still accept guest posts, and those resource pages are still being updated.
Step 2: Replicate the competitor’s “replicable backlinks” (1‑2 weeks)
Competitor backlinks fall into two categories:
Replicable:
- Directory submission → you also submit
- Guest post → you also submit
- Industry resource page → you also request inclusion
- Review platform → you also create a listing
Non‑replicable:
- Natural citations (others mention the competitor) → you can’t control
- Competitor’s exclusive partnerships → you can’t replicate
- Historical PR coverage → gone after time passes
Your goal is to copy all the competitor’s “replicable backlinks”.
Using my friend’s example:
Replicable backlinks:
- 45 directory submissions → my friend also submits these 45 directories
- 35 guest posts → my friend finds the same 35 blogs and pitches
- 28 industry resource pages → my friend contacts the admins and requests inclusion
- 15 review platforms → my friend also creates listings
Total: 123 replicable backlinks.
Assuming a 70 % acceptance rate → he can gain about 86 new backlinks.
These 86 backlinks + his own content work + other strategies → reaching DR 20+ in 60 days is totally feasible.
Step 3: Do what the competitor hasn’t done (ongoing)
Just copying the competitor isn’t enough. You also need to do what the competitor hasn’t done.
Because if you only copy the competitor, you’ll never get ahead of them. To surpass them, you need backlinks they don’t have.
Things competitors usually haven’t done:
1. Emerging directories
The competitor’s backlinks were accumulated over the past 3 years. New directories and platforms appear each year. Those new platforms may not have been submitted by the competitor yet—by submitting first, you gain a first‑mover advantage.
2. New content formats
* Industry data reports? (naturally attract backlinks)
* Interactive tools / calculators? (widely cited)
* Video content? (YouTube is a separate backlink source)
* Podcast appearances? (Podcast show notes usually contain backlinks)
3. Competitor’s competitors
You analyzed one competitor. Have you analyzed the competitor’s competitors? Their backlink sources may be completely different from yours. Finding those differences is your opportunity.
4. Community participation
Be actively involved in communities like Reddit, Hacker News, Indie Hackers. Not advertising, but genuinely answering questions and sharing experience. Over time, your brand will be recognized and people will naturally cite you.
60‑Day Catch‑up Plan
Combine the three steps into an executable plan:
Week 1: Recon
| Day | Task | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1‑2 | Analyze backlink sources of 3 competitors | List of 300+ backlink sources |
| Day 3 | Filter “replicable” backlinks | 100‑150 replicable list |
| Day 4‑5 | Categorize by type (directory/guest/resource/review) | Categorized list |
| Day 6‑7 | Check each source’s DR and activity | Final filtered list (50‑80 items) |
Weeks 2‑3: Execute directory submissions
| Day | Task | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Day 8‑12 | Submit directories where competitor is indexed (8‑10 per day) | 30‑40 directory submissions |
| Day 13‑14 | Add newly discovered high‑quality directories | 10‑15 extra submissions |
Weeks 4‑5: Guest posts + resource pages
| Day | Task | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Day 15‑19 | Send pitch emails to blogs where competitor posted | 15‑20 pitches |
| Day 20‑22 | Contact admins of industry resource pages | 10‑15 inclusion requests |
| Day 23‑28 | Write guest articles (accepted) | 2‑3 guest articles |
Weeks 6‑8: Content creation + surpass
| Day | Task | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Day 29‑35 | Publish 2‑3 in‑depth articles | Content assets |
| Day 36‑42 | Active community participation | Brand exposure |
| Day 43‑49 | Track inclusion status of all submissions | Inclusion data |
| Day 50‑60 | Optimize unaccepted submissions, add new opportunities | Ongoing optimization |
Expected Results
Conservative estimate (after 60 days):
| Metric | Starting point | After 60 days | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR | 8 | 18‑22 | +10‑14 |
| Backlink count | 12 | 60‑80 | +48‑68 |
| Google indexed pages | 4 | 20‑30 | +16‑26 |
| Organic daily traffic | ~5 | ~30‑50 | +500‑900 % |
| Ranking keywords | 8 | 40‑60 | +400‑650 % |
You won’t completely catch up to the competitor in 60 days. But you’ll go from “out of reach” to “on the same level”.
The gap between DR 20 and the competitor’s DR 35 is no longer “impossible to bridge”. Give yourself another 6 months of consistent content creation and backlink accumulation, and catching up—or even surpassing—is entirely possible.
The most important point
Catching up to a competitor is not a one‑off sprint; it’s a continuous output.
The 60‑day plan helps you close the gap quickly. Real surpassing comes from: publishing great content every week, acquiring new backlinks every week, and being discovered by more people each week.
The competitor’s advantage is they started 3 years earlier. Your advantage is you can see the path they’ve taken and choose a better one.
Copy first, then surpass.
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