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I would focus more on each individual site's Page and Domain Authority. Take a look at their backlink profile as well to make sure its not a link farm or spammy.

If each site looks legitimate, I would submit blogs to the other sites.

I have used the wordpress multisite for several domains. Each domain is managed under one wordpress install but each of the sites have unique content.

All of the domains are indexed as separate and rank well for their search terms. You shouldn't have a problem with google omitting your domains if you provide unique content on each site.

Some of the exact-match domains that we own have been devalued by google. However, there are a few that have increased in ranking for exact match keyword searches (much less competitive keywords). There still is hope!

I would include the keywords in the h1 and content. Also, create a blog on the site that includes the keyword you are trying to rank for. The power of an exact-match domain alone won't make your site rank well. Include some good content on the site with the keywords included.

I agree with Brent. You should provide your boss with a basic explanation of SEO theory and how search engines crawl your site, so your boss has a better idea of what is going on behind the scenes.

I think they may be much more calm if they knew the amount of work needed to be done to have a new site ranking well. Without knowing how search engines work, your boss may believe that its just about getting a couple of links here and there and your #1 for competitive keywords.

Show the links of your competition, so your boss can have a reference point of where you currently stand against your competitors. Also, show him the quality link you obtain as you get them to show the up-to-date progress you are making to get the site ranking well.

I would also try a "local" approach. Use your corporate headquarters as a google place listing. And try to rank for less competitive cities like "moving boxes itasca" or other "low hanging fruit" areas.

my URL is ________________________

Competitor site is __________________

I thought there might be a way to block some link explorer bots but wasn't sure. Thank you for verifying that.

I was able to find a few more links on Bing's Link Explorer but still no substantial links.

I didn't think on-page optimization would put you above a site with decent on-page optimization and a better link profile - but maybe it does.

They don't have any social profiles so social signals can't be a contributor to their high ranking.

I tried some other site explorers. There were a couple links that were shown on Majestic but not on OSE. None of the linkbacks seemed to be of any quality.

I dedicate one of my browsers for checking rankings and I never sign in, so it should be a pretty accurate SERP.

The content has remained the same since I have been tracking them. The only difference with their content and other competing sites is they have the exact-match keyword listed multiple times throughout the site. However, it looks and reads very unnatural.

I have been following a competitor's link profile on OSE for over 8 months. Their linkbacks have remained the same (3 follow, 9 nofollow links), all from low-quality directory sites. However, my competitor continues to improve in rankings  and is now #1 for competitive keyword searches.

How is this possible? Is there a way to hide your link profile or links from OSE?

Any tips are appreciated - Thanks!