A Guide to Improving Your SEO Rankings

The combination of Google’s latest updates, rising competition, and the surge of zero-click searches are reshaping visibility and the SEO industry.

But where some players lose ground, others have a chance to climb. Gaps in the SERPs (search engine results pages) are opening up every single day, and savvy marketers who know how to spot weak spots in SERPs —outdated content, thin answers, low-quality results—can step in and take over.

In this guide, we’ll break down how to do SERP analysis to find weak spots with data-driven insights and real-world examples. Let’s dive in.

What’s a “Weak Spot” on a Google SERP?

In the context of SEO, a “weak spot” on a Google SERP refers to any issue in the content or technical setup of web pages that rank well but don’t fully meet user needs or follow SEO best practices.

This means that not all top-ranking pages deserve their spot on Google. Many rank due to legacy authority, weak competition, or outdated content—leaving gaps that savvy marketers can exploit. These weak spots in the SERPs present opportunities to outperform existing content and claim valuable rankings.

Examples of Weak Spots

Let’s go over some real-world examples:

1. Outdated Content

Older articles that haven’t been updated may still rank high but lack current information. For instance, if you Google “best content marketing trends,” you may expect to find information relevant to 2025. However, you see this article ranking in the top three spots on Google with a last updated date of January 30, 2024:

This is a major weak spot; most people searching for this term will likely not click the URL because the content is outdated. 

2. Low Authority Pages

Websites with low Domain Authority (DA) or Page Authority (PA) can still rank well for certain keywords due to low competition. For example, if you Google “ruby on rails tutorial,” you’ll see that Learn Enough To Be Dangerous Blog ranks in the top three. 

Interestingly, this page has an Authority Score of 0! Despite this, it ranks well for this highly competitive search term, according to the SERP analysis feature in Semrush Keyword Overview. 

This situation shows that the page, even with a low Authority Score, manages to attract significant traffic and achieve high rankings.

This means you can outrank it! By creating high-quality content with internal links and authoritative backlinks, you can build a better Authority Score and outperform these lower-authority pages.

3. Poorly Optimized Metadata – Title tag or Meta description 

Some top-ranking pages lack optimized title tags and meta descriptions, which can lead to lower click-through rates. 

For example, if you Google “ruby on rails mistakes,” this page ranks sixth despite the title not containing any words from the search query.

This oversight could lead less people to click on it, especially since the meta description also lacks the search term.

By crafting compelling and keyword-rich metadata, you can increase your chances of higher rankings and better user engagement.

4. Slow Loading Speeds and Poor User Experience (UX)

Pages that load slowly or aren’t mobile-friendly can frustrate users, leading to higher bounce rates. For example, a website that takes several seconds to load on a mobile device may deter users from continuing their search. 

By optimizing your site’s performance and ensuring a responsive design, you can improve your rankings over such competitors.

You can use Google Page Speed Insights to check how your content is loading and see how it scores:

5. Lack of Structured Data

Your competitors who don’t use schema markup are missing out on the benefits of rich snippets in search results. For instance, a recipe blog without structured data will not display cooking times or ratings in the SERPs, making it less appealing to users. Implementing structured data can enhance your search visibility and increase click-through rates. 

By identifying these weak spots, you can develop a targeted SEO strategy to improve your site’s rankings and visibility.

How to Find SERP Weak Spots Manually

The simplest way to find ranking opportunities is through careful analysis of current search results. Let’s walk through this process using “best coffee machines” as our example. 

When you look at the search results for this term, check out the date it was published. Notice how many top-ranking pages don’t have the most current information about the best coffee machine products available in 2025.

This is a weak spot! Searchers will want the most up-to-date product recommendations rather than outdated content.

By researching the current market for coffee machines and providing a better, more current listicle of products, you can improve your ranking positions for this particular SERP. 

At the same time, you can provide higher-quality information to potential customers searching for these products.

Next, look closely at the title tags of ranking pages. In our example, only one page in the top 10 results actually includes the exact phrase “best coffee machines” in its title. 

This reveals another weakness in the current results. Searchers explicitly asking for the best coffee machines are seeing results with mismatched titles, likely reducing click-through rates.

You can take advantage of this by optimizing your title tag for the given keyword, thereby providing a more relevant title that users might find more appealing (and be more likely to click on).

Tip: There is a free tool called Mangools SERP Simulator you can use to craft perfect title tags and meta descriptions, allowing you to see exactly how your organic snippets will look before deploying them on your live website. 

Beyond titles and dates, you can examine the content depth and technical components of ranking pages. 

For example, if you create a review web page for a coffee machine and want to rank for the keywords “smeg espresso machine review”, you can implement review schema markup along with anchor links leading to the most important parts of the content on the page. This can significantly improve the visibility of the organic snippet.

Finding weak spots manually can be a useful approach, but if you want to achieve quicker results and streamline the process, using a tool is the way to go. 

Let’s take a look at how you can leverage SERP Gap Analyzer to find weak spots and improve your SEO strategy more efficiently.

Streamlined SERP Analysis with SERP Gap Analyzer

SERP Gap Analyzer automates the process of finding weak ranking opportunities. Instead of manual analysis, the tool identifies SERPs with poor-quality content in the top 10 positions.

SERP Gap Analyzer has two main functions: optimizing existing content and finding new content opportunities.

Optimizing Existing Content

One of the most beneficial things you can do with SERP Gap Analyzer is to review your existing content and identify those that could rank higher with targeted improvements. 

Here’s how you can do it: 

1. Start by clicking Optimize Existing Content in the top navigation.

2. Select your Google Search Console property.

3. Open up your report showing you pages that are losing rankings on Google and the weak spots you need to fix. Then, select the page to view what you need to change.

Creating New Content

Now let’s find some brand new keywords to target with new content on our website.

1. Click “Create New Content” and enter your website URL along with a seed topic.

2. Click “Find Keywords” to explore recommended opportunities and why each might be easier to rank for.

The keywords the app suggests typically share at least three weak spots in their SERPs. For example:

• The sites ranking in the top 10 have lower authority and fewer backlinks compared to. your site
• The title tag does not match the search query in the top 10 results
• The content in top 10 results is outdated
• The content is thin content (less than 800 words) 
• The content has poor Google Page Speed Insights score
• Poor readability detected in top 10 results
• High spam score domains ranking in the top 10 results
• Outdated Reddit, LinkedIn, Instagram, X posts ranking in top 10

These opportunities are your low-hanging fruit: popular keywords with significant flaws in the current top results, making them ripe for targeting.

Take the Next Step

Finding weak spots in Google’s search results will help you create content that can rank higher. While you can find these opportunities manually by analyzing outdated content, poor titles, and technical issues, the SERP Gap Analyzer makes this process quicker and more efficient.