Quick reference for the Firecrawl and DataForSEO MCP tools used in competitor profiling.
Quick reference for the Firecrawl and DataForSEO MCP tools used in competitor profiling.
Purpose: Discover all URLs on a competitor's site to identify key pages. When to use: First step for every competitor — before scraping individual pages. Key output: List of URLs with their page types/paths. Tip: Look for paths containing /pricing, /features, /about, /customers, /integrations, /blog, /changelog.
Purpose: Extract content from a single page as clean markdown. When to use: After mapping, scrape each key page individually. Key output: Page content in markdown format — headlines, body text, structured data. Tip: Scrape homepage first — it reveals positioning, audience, and social proof in one shot.
Purpose: Search the web for specific content about a competitor. When to use: Finding review pages, press coverage, or competitor mentions not on their own site. Example queries:
"[Competitor Name]" site:g2.com"[Competitor Name]" review"[Competitor Name]" funding OR raisedPurpose: Crawl multiple pages from a site in one operation. When to use: Deep profiles where you want to analyze many pages (e.g., all feature pages, all blog posts). More expensive — use selectively. Tip: Set page limits to avoid crawling entire sites. Target specific URL patterns.
Purpose: Extract structured data from a page using a schema. When to use: When you need specific data points in a consistent format (e.g., pricing tier details, feature lists). Tip: Define a clear schema for what you want extracted — more reliable than parsing raw markdown.
Purpose: Get domain authority, total backlinks, referring domains, spam score. Input: Target domain (e.g., competitor.com) Key metrics: domain_rank, total_backlinks, referring_domains, backlinks_spam_score
Purpose: List top referring domains — shows where their link equity comes from. Input: Target domain + limit Key metrics: Per-domain: rank, backlinks, domain name
Purpose: Organic search overview — traffic, keywords, traffic value. Input: Target domain Key metrics: organic_count (keywords), organic_traffic (estimated monthly), organic_cost (traffic value in $)
Purpose: What keywords a domain ranks for, with positions. Input: Target domain Key metrics: Per-keyword: keyword, position, search_volume, url (ranking page) Tip: Sort by traffic to find their highest-value keywords.
Purpose: Keywords relevant to a domain — broader than ranked keywords, includes opportunities. Input: Target domain Key metrics: keyword, search_volume, competition, cpc
Purpose: Find a domain's closest organic competitors by keyword overlap. Input: Target domain Key metrics: domain, avg_position, intersections (shared keywords), full_domain_rank Tip: May reveal competitors the user hasn't considered.
Purpose: Find keywords where two domains both rank — shows direct competition. Input: Two target domains Key metrics: keyword, position for each domain, search_volume Tip: Use this to compare the user's domain vs. each competitor.
Purpose: Find a domain's most important pages by organic traffic. Input: Target domain Key metrics: page, metrics (traffic, keywords per page) Tip: Reveals their content strategy — which pages drive the most value.
Purpose: Detect the technology stack a domain uses. Input: Target domain Key metrics: Technologies grouped by category (CMS, analytics, marketing, payments, etc.)
Purpose: List individual backlinks to a domain. Input: Target domain + limit Key metrics: url_from, url_to, anchor, domain_from_rank, is_new
Purpose: Compare domain ranks across multiple domains at once. Input: Array of target domains Key metrics: domain_rank per domain Tip: Use this for the summary comparison table.
1. firecrawl_map → get site URLs
2. In parallel:
a. firecrawl_scrape → homepage
b. firecrawl_scrape → pricing page
c. dataforseo_labs_google_domain_rank_overview → organic metrics
d. backlinks_summary → domain authority
3. Synthesize into abbreviated profile1. firecrawl_map → get site URLs
2. In parallel (batch 1 — scraping):
a. firecrawl_scrape → homepage
b. firecrawl_scrape → pricing page
c. firecrawl_scrape → features page(s)
d. firecrawl_scrape → about page
e. firecrawl_scrape → customers/case studies page
f. firecrawl_scrape → integrations page
3. In parallel (batch 2 — SEO data):
a. dataforseo_labs_google_domain_rank_overview
b. dataforseo_labs_google_ranked_keywords
c. backlinks_summary
d. backlinks_referring_domains
e. dataforseo_labs_google_relevant_pages
f. dataforseo_labs_google_competitors_domain
4. In parallel (batch 3 — optional extras):
a. domain_analytics_technologies_domain_technologies
b. firecrawl_search → G2/Capterra reviews
c. dataforseo_labs_google_domain_intersection (vs. user's domain)
5. Synthesize into full profile1. Map all competitor sites in parallel
2. Scrape all homepages in parallel, then pricing pages in parallel
3. Pull domain_rank_overview for all in parallel
4. Pull backlinks_bulk_ranks for all at once
5. Build profiles in sequence (synthesis requires focus)
6. Build summary comparison last| Issue | Action | |-------|--------| | Firecrawl scrape returns empty/blocked | Try with firecrawl_browser_create for JS-heavy sites | | Pricing page not found in map | Search for /pricing, /plans, /packages — some sites use different paths | | DataForSEO returns no data for domain | Domain may be too new or too small — note "insufficient data" in profile | | Rate limits hit | Space out requests; prioritize highest-value data first | | Review page scraping blocked | Use firecrawl_search to find cached or alternative review sources |