Yext Competitors Analysis

As the world transitions to a digital-first economy, Yext (NYSE: YEXT) is at the forefront of helping businesses manage their digital presence. Today, more than ever, it is critical for businesses to be visible and accessible where consumers are searching. Yext’s mission is to give companies control over their brand experiences across the digital universe of maps, apps, search engines, and social networks.

Brian Distelburger, Howard Lerman, and Brent Metz founded Yext in 2006. The company has its headquarters in New York City, with Michael Walrath serving as CEO. Initially, Yext focused on providing businesses with a way to manage their citations, or listings, across the internet. However, over time the company expanded its offering to include reviews, analytics, knowledge graph, and pages (SEO landing pages).

Yext filed for an IPO in 2017 and raised $115.5 million on its debut. The company now trades publicly on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with a market cap of $524.603 million as of October 12, 2022. Before going public, the company had raised $117.8 million in funding from 12 investors after eight rounds.

Yext is a leader in the digital presence management space. This market is relatively new, with no significant data to indicate its future size. However, with the growing importance of a digital presence for businesses, it is reasonable to expect that the market will continue to grow in the future. 

This Yext competitors’ analysis will explore the competitive landscape in the digital presence management space. We’ll analyze the financials, funding, products, and go-to-market strategies of Yext’s key competitors.

Bottom Line Up Front

Yext’s competitors are a mix of marketing technology providers and traditional agencies. These companies offer solutions for managing digital presence, with variations in functionality and focus. Yext’s competitive advantage lies in its product suite, which is comprehensive and easy to use. I found Moz the strongest competitor, followed by BrightLocal and Birdeye.

List of Yext Competitors

  1. Moz
  2. BrightLocal
  3. Birdeye
  4. SOCi
  5. Semrush

Yext Business Strategy and Revenue Model

Yext website

Yext found a niche in the digital marketing industry and quickly established itself as a leader in the space. However, several other companies offer similar services as part of a suite of marketing products or as a standalone product. Part of Yext’s success is attributable to its effective go-to-market strategy. 

For example, Yext has a direct sales force that targets large enterprise customers. The company also has a reseller program for agencies and technology partners. In addition, Yext has a self-service platform that allows small businesses to sign up and manage their listings themselves. As a result of these go-to-market strategies, Yext has a diversified customer base that includes some of the world’s largest brands.

Yext’s growth strategy is to continue expanding its platform with new capabilities and products that meet the evolving needs of businesses. The company also focuses on growing its customer base by winning new logos and expanding existing relationships. While it hasn’t made any acquisitions since going public in 2017, it has several strategic partnerships that help it expand its reach and capabilities. 

Yext uses a recurring revenue business model. Its customers pay an annual subscription fee for access to the Yext platform. The company also offers several ancillary services, such as professional services, that customers can purchase on an as-needed basis. 

The company’s revenues have remained steady since its NYSE debut. However, the company hasn’t made a profit yet. In FY 2022, Yext’s revenues reached $390.6 million, up from $354.7 million in 2021. The company is still investing heavily in growth and has yet to achieve profitability. If Yext can continue to grow its top line while controlling costs, it should eventually become profitable.

Yext Competitors Analysis

Yext competes in a highly diversified industry. It operates in marketing software, online advertising, and local search markets. While its competitors vary in size, focus, and product offering, they all provide solutions that help businesses reach and engage consumers.

1. Moz

Moz website

Moz is one of Yext’s closest competitors. The company offers a suite of tools for managing a digital presence, including SEO, social media, content marketing, and web analytics. Moz also provides software that helps businesses track their rankings and progress over time.

Rand Fishkin and Gillian Muessig founded Moz in 2004 to help businesses improve their search engine rankings. The company started as an SEO consulting firm but soon transitioned to software development. In 2007 Moz raised its first round of funding, a $1.1 million Series A. The company later raised $18 million in Series B (2012) and another $10 million in Series C funding (2016).

In 2013 Moz launched Moz Analytics, a web-based platform that provides users with detailed insights into their website traffic. The platform included tools for site social media, link building, brand management, and rankings. However, in 2016 Moz shifted its strategy to focus more on search because that’s where the company saw the greatest opportunity for growth. 

Today Moz offers two main products: Moz Pro and Moz Local. It’s through these products that Moz competes with Yext the most. Moz Pro is an all-in-one platform that helps businesses improve their SEO. The platform includes tools for keyword research, rank tracking, site audits, and more. Moz Local helps businesses manage online listings on directories and local search platforms. 

Given Moz’s late start in the product category, Yext has a sizeable lead over Moz. However, Moz has grown quickly by leveraging its strong SEO brand. The company also benefits from having a freemium product (Moz Pro) that allows businesses to try the platform before they buy it. As per Crunchbase, Moz has over 20,000 customers and a community of more than 300,000 Moz enthusiasts. It leverages this community to drive word-of-mouth marketing and product adoption. 

In 2021, iContact Marketing Corp acquired Moz for an undisclosed sum. Before, Moz didn’t have the same exposure to financial resources, but this acquisition will no doubt help Moz to close the gap with Yext. Moz doesn’t disclose its financials, but in 2021, it reported a revenue of $61 million when Yext had $354.7 million.

2. BrightLocal

BrightLocal website

BrightLocal is another top Yext competitor. The company provides software that helps businesses manage their online presence, including local SEO, listings management, citations, review monitoring, and social media. Founded in 2006, the company has its headquarters in Brighton, England, with a support team in Houston and Riverside, California. 

BrightLocal competes with Yext in three main ways. First, both companies offer local SEO software that helps businesses track their rankings and progress over time. Second, both companies offer listing management solutions that help businesses manage their online listings on directories and review sites. Finally, both companies offer citation-building services to help businesses improve their search visibility. 

Given the company’s focus on local SEO, it’s not surprising that BrightLocal has built up a strong base of local marketers and small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). However, the company also works with some large enterprise clients, including IKEA, Valvoline, and Home Depot. BrightLocal has over 20,000 customers in more than eight countries. 

In terms of financials, BrightLocal doesn’t disclose its revenue publicly, but estimates have it at about $9 million. While speaking to Starter Story, the CEO, and co-founder, Myles Anderson, reported that the company has been profitable since 2012 and has maintained a 20% growth rate year-over-year.

Unlike, Yext, BrightLocal relied on funding from the two founders instead of taking on venture capitalists. The company hasn’t raised any external funding and is debt-free. But for the company to effectively compete with Yext, it will need to make key investments, such as increasing its marketing spend and expanding its sales team. 

3. Birdeye

Birdeye website

Birdeye is a customer experience software company that helps businesses manage their online reputation, local SEO, listings management, social media, and reviews. Founded in 2012, the company has its headquarters in Palo Alto, California, with offices in Austin, Texas; Ahmedabad, India; and London, England. 

Birdeye competes with Yext in several ways. Both companies offer local SEO software that helps businesses track their rankings and progress over time. Both companies offer listings management solutions to help businesses manage their information on directories and review sites. In addition, both companies offer review monitoring and management solutions. 

Birdeye differentiates itself from Yext with its focus on customer experience. The company’s software helps businesses track all customer interactions in one place, including phone calls, emails, chats, and social media mentions. This data is then used to generate customer insights that businesses can use to improve the customer experience. 

According to Crunchbase, Birdeye has raised $93 million in funding from nine investors. The company’s latest funding round was a $60 million Series C in March 2022 led by ACCEL-KKR. This funding isn’t close to Yext’s17.8 million, but it shows investors are willing to back Birdeye as it looks to take on Yext and other players in the industry.

Birdeye is a private company meaning it doesn’t disclose its financials publicly. However, the company enjoys the backing of Salesforce founder Marc Benioff and Jerry Yang of Yahoo. The company’s focus on customer experience also helped it land big-name customers like Nissan, Hilton, and Subway. 

4. SOCi

SOCi website

SOCi is a marketing company for multi-location businesses focusing on reputation management, local SEO, and social media marketing. Founded in 2012, the company is headquartered in San Diego, California. SOCi provides tools that help businesses with multiple locations manage their social media, listings, and reviews from one central platform. 

SOCi and Yext compete for a share of the local SEO market. Both companies offer listings management solutions to help businesses manage their information on directories and review sites. In addition, both companies offer review monitoring and management solutions. As the need for local SEO solutions continue to grow, both companies are well-positioned to take advantage of this trend. 

One area where SOCi differentiates itself from Yext is its focus on social media marketing. The platform helps businesses manage their social media accounts, including publishing posts and monitoring comments and messages. This strategy appears to work as SOCi has landed some big-name customers, such as Ace Hardware, Dunkin’ Donuts, and Sherwin-Williams. 

SOCi is a private company and doesn’t disclose its financials publicly. However, according to Crunchbase, the company has raised $117.8 million in funding from 18 investors. The company’s latest funding round was an $83 million Series D in January 2021. The funding will help the company compete with Yext and other players in the industry by acquiring new customers and expanding its product offerings.

SOCi’s competitive advantage over Yext is its focus on multi-location businesses and its robust social media marketing tools. However, Yext offers a more comprehensive set of local SEO tools. Moreover, Yext has the financial muscles of a publicly-traded company. As the competitive landscape in the local SEO industry continues to heat up, it remains to be seen if SOCi can keep up with Yext and other players. 

5. Semrush

semrush website

Semrush is an all-in-one marketing platform for businesses of all sizes. The company offers a complete set of SEO, PPC, and content marketing tools. The company started its operations in 2008 as a provider of SEO software and has since grown to become one of the most popular marketing platforms in the world. Semrush has its headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts, and has offices in the United Kingdom, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Russia.

Semrush and Yext compete for a share of the SEO software market. Semrush has a more comprehensive suite of SEO tools than Yext, making it a better choice for businesses that want an all-in-one solution for their SEO needs. However, Yext’s focus on local search makes it a better choice for businesses that want to optimize their local search listings.

Semrush raised its first-ever outside funding in 2018 when it secured $40 million as part of a financing round led by Greycroft and e.ventures. That’s the only money Semrush raised from venture capitalists. However, it filed for an IPO in 2021 and went public, raising $140 million. The company now trades on the NYSE with the ticker symbol “SEM.” As of OctoSemrush’s022, Semrush had a market capitalization of $1.626 billion.

Semrush’s revenue for FY2021 was $188 million, up 50% from FY2020. The company’s net loss for the same period was $3.3 million. Semrush is a recently listed company, and it’s yet to report a profit. Compared to Yext’s financials, Semrush is a much smaller company. However, it has a higher market capitalization and is growing faster.

Semrush’s main competitive advantage over Yext is its comprehensive suite of marketing tools. The company offers a complete set of SEO, PPC, and content marketing tools. In contrast, Yext focuses on local search and doesn’t offer as many features for businesses that want to do more than optimize their local listings. In the future, Semrush could pose a bigger threat to Yext if it continues to expand its product offerings and acquire new customers at a rapid pace. 

Yext SWOT Analysis

Below is a summarized SWOT analysis of Yext:

Strengths

  • Strong market position 
  • A comprehensive suite of local search tools 
  • Robust set of features 
  • An experienced management team 
  • Being a publicly traded company means it has access to more capital 
  • Strong growth prospects

Weaknesses

  • Overly reliant on Google for traffic 
  • Some features are still in development 
  • Limited international presence 
  • Yext isn’t profitable yet

Opportunities

  • Expansion into new markets 
  • Further integration with Google 
  • Development of new features and products 
  • Acquisition of complementary businesses 

Threats

  • Competition from well-financed rivals 
  • Changes in Google’s algorithms 
  • Economic recession 
  • Changes in consumer behavior

FAQs – Yext Competitors Analysis

Question: Is YEXT a marketing company?

Answer: Yext is a tech-powered marketing company that believes businesses should be able to manage their facts everywhere, just like they do their website. The company offers a suite of products that helps businesses control their brand across the internet — from search engines and social networks to review sites and directories — ensuring consistency, accuracy, and completeness.

Question: Who are Yext’s competitors?

Answer: Yext competes with several local search and marketing companies, including Moz, BrightLocal, Birdeye, and SOCi. While Yext is the only company that offers a complete platform for managing business listings and reviews across the internet, each of its competitors offers a piece of the puzzle.

Question: What are the benefits of YEXT?

Answer: The main benefits of using Yext are that it allows businesses to keep their information up-to-date across multiple directories. The company matches business listings to customer searches and provides tools for managing reviews and social media posts. Yext also offers a number of features that its competitors do not, such as the ability to scan business cards and track campaign results.

Bottom Line

From this Yext competitors’ analysis, we can demystify that the market is full of companies that offer services either as standalone or as part of a suite. While some companies focus on one particular area, such as reviews or SEO, Yext has built a platform that offers businesses a comprehensive solution for managing their local search listings and reputation.

Yext’s closest competitors are Moz and BrightLocal. Both companies offer tools for managing local search listings and reviews. However, Yext’s platform is more comprehensive and user-friendly. Other formidable competitors include Birdeye, SOCi, and Semrush. 

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