Archived snapshot · June 2026
You are viewing a historical capture, not the live monitor. Competitive Landscape — §180 / Legacy Nutrient Deduction market June 2026 · Competitive monitoring brief · SEO layer from SEMrush (US, Jun 2026)
What matters this month Advanced Agrilytics is the one to watch. It has the widest reach by far, just teased an AI agronomy platform launching this fall, and its Residual Fertility Valuation program goes straight at our core work by competing on how defensible the numbers are rather than on price. It buys almost no ads, so its pull is organic and event-driven. BirdDog is the most aggressive advertiser, but the channels tell different stories. Its Google ads sell land leasing and hunting, while its Facebook ads sell the soil deduction at $750 to $2,000 an acre. The tax pitch is one wedge inside a broader landowner platform, and the no-fee hunting marketplace is the recurring-revenue engine. The clearest head-to-head tax players are The Agronomic Consulting Group, which spends on blunt Section 180 write-off Google ads, and EarthOptics, which keeps its ads off the tax angle and leads with a free soil-risk report. EarthOptics is the awkward one: we partner with them and they sell the deduction directly, and since their sampling is in-house, the partner named in their ads is neither us nor BirdDog. Two calls worth making. Soil Tax Guys publishes a public log of every deal it closes, which builds a kind of trust we do not match, so it is worth deciding whether to publish a redacted version of our own. And AcreBack is a referral marketplace rather than a rival, so it may be a channel to partner with instead of fight. Two new names to verify, SoilTaxPro and Accelerate AgriTax, both selling the deduction directly. The trademark term only shows up in places that credit us, so nothing to act on there yet. Activity rankingranked by activity # Competitor Activity Δ Positioning Flags 1 BirdDog — Landowner platform; Section 180 plus a hunting marketplace 34 Google + 18 Meta ads, the heaviest paid presence 2 Advanced Agrilytics — Precision-ag platform; Section 180 up to $2,000/ac 10K LinkedIn, biggest reach; new AI platform coming 3 EarthOptics — Sensor-first soil data; Section 180 done in-house partner and competitor 4 The Agronomic Consulting Group — Section 180 only; owns section180.ag 17 Google ads, hard tax pitch 5 ServiTech — Heritage agronomy with a Section 180 line 3.5K LinkedIn, actively posting 6 CropQuest — Excess Soil Fertility Study since 2020 9 Google ads; runs its own Section 180 event 7 Soil Tax Guys / ASM Labs — Section 180 boutique; publishes its deal log transparency play 8 AcreBack — Referral marketplace, free to landowners could be a channel, not just a rival 9 Heartland Soil Services — Kansas sampler, reaches owners via Facebook — 10 E4 Crop Intelligence — Section 180 next to carbon; software pivot — 11 Crop Tech Solutions — Promotes Section 180 mainly on Facebook low signal 12 Agrigrowth Consulting — Section 180 explainer videos only verify
Activity reflects active Google & Meta ads, social posting, and event presence — not spend. Neither platform publishes spend for commercial advertisers, so there is no spend column.
SEO & keyword landscapeSEMrush · US · Jun 2026 # Competitor Domain Organic traffic Total visits Authority Top organic keyword Geography 1 EarthOptics earthoptics.com 1.4K/mo 3,256 28 earthoptics (#1) National — ~45 states 2 ServiTech servitech.com 1.3K/mo 1,121 24 servitech (#1) Regional — ~8 Great Plains/Corn Belt states 3 BirdDog birddogit.com 1.2K/mo 10,004 25 birddogit (#1) National — ~29 states (TX-skewed) 4 Boa Safra Ag (us) boasafraag.com 899/mo 3,586 25 boa safra ag (#1) — 5 CropQuest cropquest.com 589/mo 5,100 25 crop quest (#1) Regional — 7 High Plains states 6 Advanced Agrilytics advancedagrilytics.com 339/mo 324 22 advanced agrilytics (#1) Regional — Midwest/Corn Belt, ~11 states 7 Heartland Soil Services heartlandsoilservices.com 191/mo — 17 heartland soil services (#1) Regional — KS/CO/WY/MT (~260k sq mi) 8 E4 Crop Intelligence e4cropintelligence.com 90/mo 186 17 e4 crop intelligence (#1) Regional — western Iowa / Corn Belt 9 Soil Tax Guys / ASM Labs soiltaxguys.com 7/mo — 12 section 180 deduction calculator (#1) National-leaning; IL-based, multi-state reach unconfirmed 10 The Agronomic Consulting Group section180.ag 0/mo 0 2 section 180 tax deduction (#9) National — continental US (no published state list) 11 AcreBack acreback.com — — 0 — National referral marketplace — 40+ states 12 SoilTaxPro soiltaxpro.com no SEMrush profile 0 — PLR 9211007 (#5) Unknown HQ; claims nationwide (Corn Belt/Plains) 13 Accelerate AgriTax accelerate-tbs.com no SEMrush profile 0 — none in organic top 10 Central Texas (Waco area); markets nationally 14 Crop Tech Solutions — no website — — n/a Regional — Sioux Falls, SD; ~7-state Plains 15 Agrigrowth Consulting — no website — — n/a Regional — Sioux Falls, SD; ~7-state Plains
Monthly traffic is a 30-day average. Organic traffic = SEMrush US organic estimate (monthly); total visits = SEMrush Traffic Analytics (May 2026); domain authority = SEMrush Authority Score (0–100).
section 180 deduction E4 (#6) Highest-volume core §180 term (390/mo) and our best position — we rank #3. E4 is the only competitor near it (#6). Push to #1; this is the one to own. legacy nutrient deductions Our brand term — we rank #1 (260/mo). Defend via the trademark watch; no rival ranks for it. boa safra ag / boa safra Brand navigational queries we own (#1). Protect against competitor conquesting. section 180 tax deduction E4 #5, ACG #9 140/mo, and the field is weak — top rankers have <0.01% traffic and low authority. A strong money page can take it. irs section 180 E4 #6 320/mo, only E4 ranks (and weakly). High-volume, wide open. section 180 ACG #14, Soil Tax Guys #60 Biggest head term (320/mo) but nobody owns it organically — positions are scattered in the teens-to-60s. Long-term authority play. section 180 deduction calculator Soil Tax Guys #1 Tool-intent term Soil Tax Guys grabbed with a thin site — a real calculator on our domain would outrank it. inherited / newly purchased farmland deduction open High-intent long-tail nobody ranks for — dedicated pages map to the exact buyer moment. The headline: the entire §180 organic field is weak. The exact-match section180.ag has Authority Score 2 and ~0 organic traffic; BirdDog, EarthOptics, Advanced Agrilytics and ServiTech rank only for their own brand names. Boa Safra already has the strongest §180 organic position (top Authority Score at 25, the largest backlink base at 84.9K, #3 for 'section 180 deduction', and #1 for 'legacy nutrient deductions') and shows up as a top organic competitor on nearly every rival's report. Modest investment in dedicated §180 money/intent pages could let us own the category in search — no competitor is seriously contesting it organically. Branded terms (Advanced Agrilytics' 'residual fertility valuation', competitors' company names) aren't worth chasing.
Per-competitor detail12 tracked A landowner intelligence platform that helps owners make and save money in one place. Section 180 is the way in, sitting alongside hunting and farm leases, financing, insurance, and conservation programs.
Section 180 / residual fertility tax work Hunting and farm lease marketplace (zero commission) Financing and insurance Conservation programs AI land insights
Google BirdDog Adventures Inc · 34 ads
“ Lease your land with confidence — BirdDog makes renting farmland simple and fair, earn steady revenue “ Texas private-land hunting: book dove, deer, and upland hunts fast, no red tape “ Sitelinks: Landowner Platform and Optimize Landowner Taxes Meta 18 active · 11 creatives
“ Own farmland, ranchland, or timberland you purchased in the last 10 years? “ Your soil may have significant deduction value sitting in it right now. “ $750 to $2,000 per acre in potential tax deductions, with an IRS-ready report straight to your CPA. “ List with no fees and manage all your bookings in one place. “ The hunting marketplace built for you. Social
Facebook : Posts cast BirdDog as a one-stop land intelligence platform tying together hunt booking, Section 180, leasing, farming, and finance, in a confident, playful #birddogit voice. Instagram : Same one-stop-platform pitch as Facebook, aimed at landowners across leasing, hunting, and the tax angle. LinkedIn : 2,250 followers. Recent posts cover hosted hunting and fishing trips, the CEO's podcast, and a Ted Nugent partnership. YouTube : Small channel, around 195 subscribers, with a landowner-platform overview. Events Runs its own invite-style BirdDog Shootout dove hunt in Texas and partners on hunting and fishing outings rather than ag trade shows.
SEO AS 25 · 1.2K/mo (-19%) organic · 10,004 visits · 1.3K keywords
birddogit #1 · vol 110 when does hunting season end #4 · vol 1.3K birddog hunting #1 · vol 90 bird dog #13 · vol 40.5K bird dog #16 · vol 40.5K Organic traffic is hunting/brand-driven ("birddogit", "when does hunting season end"); its §180 push is a paid play, not organic SEO.
Title 'BirdDog | Land Intelligence Platform'; meta leads with 'Section 180 tax deductions, land leasing, conservation…'. §180 is one wedge in a broad land-intelligence pitch.
The most aggressive advertiser in the field, and the only one running clearly different pitches by channel. On Google it sells land leasing and hunting; on Facebook it sells the soil deduction at $750 to $2,000 an acre with a report sent to the buyer's CPA. Selling direct to landowners through a free account, and wrapping the deduction inside a wider platform, is what sets it apart from a straight tax service.
Precision agronomy sold as data, software, and services. Its Residual Fertility Valuation program documents Section 180 deductions of up to $2,000 an acre and pitches them as defensible rather than generic.
Residual Fertility Valuation (Section 180) TerraSIGNAL decision support TerraEDGE and TerraSYNC spatial data TerraFUND sustainability programs
Google Advanced Agrilytics, LLC · 3 ads
“ Predictable profitability: want predictable farm profitability? “ Transform your acres: optimize every acre, every input “ Sitelinks include a 180 Tax Discussion and the Science Behind 180 Meta No active Meta ads right now. They are dark on paid Facebook and Instagram, which stands out against the others.
Social
Facebook : The feed is built around launching TerraSIGNAL, an AI-native agronomy platform on sub-acre data due this fall, with a polished, enterprise tone that pointedly contrasts itself with generic AI on public datasets. Instagram : Describes a team of agronomists and scientists helping aggressive growers read their field data; expertise-forward and grower-focused. LinkedIn : 10,111 followers, the widest reach in this set. Posts cover in-season soil-variability observations, a TopSoil Summit sponsorship, and the Section 180 report angle. X / Twitter : @agrilytics is active with a new agronomy hire, a program-results video, and Summit promotion, though engagement is low. YouTube : Active channel with a TerraSIGNAL launch, winter agronomy, and grower case studies. Events Exhibits at the 2026 Commodity Classic in San Antonio and runs its own Innovation Summits and Section 180 webinars.
SEO AS 22 · 339/mo (-7.6%) organic · 324 visits · 245 keywords
advanced agrilytics #1 · vol 390 rick reigner #2 · vol 40 mutiny crop performance #6 · vol 260 advanced agriculture #6 · vol 110 Only ~339 organic visits/mo, almost all brand terms — its reach is LinkedIn + events, not search. Does not rank on §180 organically.
RFV page H1 'Residual Fertility Valuation'; tightly optimized for residual fertility / RFV / §180 tax terms.
The incumbent by reach, with five times BirdDog's LinkedIn following and a steady content stream, yet it buys almost no ads. Its go-to-market runs on organic reach, events, and a precision-ag platform, with Section 180 added as one more reason to buy. The Residual Fertility Valuation program is the sharpest direct threat to our core work, since it competes on how well the numbers hold up rather than on price.
A soil-data company built on its own sensors and lab, selling fewer, cheaper, more accurate samples than grid testing. Section 180 fertility deductions sit alongside agronomy and carbon planning.
360 PRO total farm program (around $4 an acre) TruNutrient soil analysis Carbon and agronomic planning Section 180 fertility deduction sampling and reporting
Google No verified Google advertiser found. They do not appear to run Google Search ads.
Meta 9 active · 12 creatives
“ Know what to expect before the season starts. “ You know your fields. But do you know what's costing you? “ What's really impacting your yield in 2026? “ This free report breaks down fertility gaps, pathogen risks, and yield trends across the Midwest, backed by real field data. “ Know your field risks in 2026. Download the Ag Report. Social
Facebook : Tightly focused on soil, positioning the company as turning soil data into clear, actionable insight by pairing sensing technology with lab testing for fertility, biology, and compaction. Instagram : Leans on a See Soil Differently line and a mission of building a global soil cloud for more sustainable farming, a vision-and-sustainability tone. LinkedIn : 8,009 followers. Posts cover soybean-cyst and biology testing, the 2026 Predictive Ag Report, and a pitch that stacks fertility tax credits with carbon and regenerative revenue. X / Twitter : @EarthOptics is verified and active, and was the sole soil-analysis provider for the 2025 FIRST Trials. YouTube : Mostly dealer and podcast coverage rather than their own channel. Events Exhibits at the 2026 Commodity Classic and presented at the 2026 EarthX Conference in Dallas.
SEO AS 28 · 1.4K/mo (-10%) organic · 3,256 visits · 189 keywords
earthoptics #1 · vol 590 earth optics #1 · vol 480 earthoptics company #1 · vol 170 pattern ag #1 · vol 140 earthoptics news #1 · vol 70 Highest Authority Score in the set (28) on a big backlink base, but organic traffic is brand-name driven — not ranking on §180 terms.
§180 page title 'Partnering With You for IRS Section 180', H1 'Fertility Tax Deduction'. Site-wide meta is generic soil-data boilerplate (not page-specific).
They sit on both sides of the table. We work with them on soil data, they supply BirdDog, and they sell Section 180 directly. Their ads stay off the tax angle and lead instead with a free yield-risk report as a lead magnet. One thing worth stating plainly: their Section 180 sampling and lab work is done in-house, and only the tax filing goes to an outside affiliate, so the third-party sampling partner named in their marketing is neither us nor BirdDog.
A Section 180 brand on the exact-match section180.ag domain, positioned as the Midwest's preferred provider, with more than $250 million in deductions claimed and a century of collective consulting experience.
Section 180 residual fertility reporting Nationwide soil sampling Reports for the landowner and their CPA Farm planning
Google The Agronomic Consulting Group · 17 ads
“ Farm write-off for taxes: IRS Section 180 and farm deduction, you may qualify for significant savings “ Qualify for a farm tax exemption, now is the time “ Sitelinks: Farm Tax Write-Off for Land and Tax Deductions for Farms Meta Meta ads not reviewed this period.
Social
LinkedIn : No company page found. X / Twitter : @TheACG_Ag. One Section 180 post drew the strongest single-post engagement seen from any competitor. YouTube : Founder interviews and an RFD-TV appearance. SEO AS 2 · 0/mo (+100%) organic · 0 visits · 16 keywords
section 180 tax deduction #9 · vol 140 section 180 #14 · vol 320 tax code 180 #25 · vol 30 section 180 #38 · vol 320 Authority Score 2 and ~0 organic traffic despite owning the exact-match domain — its reach is bought (Google Ads), not earned in search.
Title 'Home - The ACG Section 180'; meta touts 'Helped Landowners Unlock Over $250 Million'; H1 'Navigating the IRS Section 180…'. Branded §180 intent.
The most direct tax-first rival on Google, running blunt Section 180 write-off ads that lean on a large proof point and Midwest credibility. It owns the obvious domain but does little on social, so its reach rides on search and referrals rather than a content engine.
A heritage agronomy firm marking more than fifty years of soil and crop consulting, offering Section 180 reporting inside a full agronomy service line.
Agronomy and soil testing Section 180 reporting
Google No verified Google advertiser found.
Meta No advertiser Page reviewed this period; a Section 180 video runs on their Facebook.
Social
LinkedIn : 3,477 followers and actively managed, with weekly territory crop updates and spring scouting notes. Events Exhibits at CattleCon 2026 in Nashville and works the cattle-feeder show circuit.
SEO AS 24 · 1.3K/mo (+12%) organic · 1,121 visits · 355 keywords
servitech #1 · vol 480 servi tech #1 · vol 390 servi tech jobs #1 · vol 320 servi tech laboratories #1 · vol 170 servitech laboratories #1 · vol 90 1.3K organic visits but entirely brand/jobs/lab terms; its §180 page does not rank organically.
§180 page H1 'Lower Your Tax Burden with the 180 Nutrient Tax Deduction' (~$1,500/ac). Site-wide title generic; meta empty.
Competes on tenure and agronomic depth rather than a tax-first pitch. Its LinkedIn is the third-largest here and genuinely active, so it keeps reaching growers steadily without paying for ads.
A Kansas agronomy firm running an Excess Soil Fertility Study line for Section 180 since 2020, with the work reportedly growing quickly.
Excess Soil Fertility Study (Section 180) Crop consulting Grid sampling
Google Crop Quest, Inc. · 9 ads
“ Local agronomists helping farmers make sound decisions all season long “ Use soil data to apply nutrients efficiently; see where to apply and where to save with grid sampling “ Document your soil value with accurate residual nutrient testing “ Know what's in your soil: accurate data, better decisions Meta Meta ads not reviewed this period.
Social
LinkedIn : An unmanaged, auto-created listing the company has not claimed, with no posts. Events Hosts its own Grower Focus 2026 day in Dodge City, Kansas, on legacy planning, land transitions, and Section 180.
SEO AS 25 · 589/mo (-21%) organic · 5,100 visits · 883 keywords
crop quest #1 · vol 140 water holding capacity #1 · vol 390 cotton farm #11 · vol 1.9K clay capacity to retain water #2 · vol 390 how to monitor crop health using satellites #7 · vol 1K Largest keyword set (883) but organic traffic is general agronomy content (water holding capacity, crop health), not §180.
Title 'Excess Soil Fertility Study - Crop Quest'; H1 'Excess Soil Fertility Study' + H2 'Unlock Tax Savings Through Section 180'.
A regional agronomy shop that has quietly built a Section 180 line over several years and now backs it with a modest paid-Google presence and its own grower event. Worth keeping in defensive ad targeting, since it had slipped past us before.
A Section 180 boutique for ag land buyers, run by a single credentialed agronomist, promising transparent math and CPA-ready reports.
Section 180 soil-nutrient deduction analysis Soil testing CPA-ready documentation
Google No verified Google advertiser found.
Social
LinkedIn : 9 followers and no posts. YouTube : A small channel with a short on getting a Section 180 deduction. Events Sponsors The Chicago Farmers at a platinum level and turns up on ag podcasts rather than trade-show booths.
SEO AS 12 · 7/mo (+31%) organic · 17 keywords
section 180 deduction calculator #1 · vol 50 section 180 deduction calculator #4 · vol 50 residual soil fertility deduction #37 · vol 70 section 180 #60 · vol 320 tax write offs for farmers #46 · vol 40 Tiny (7 organic visits/mo) but owns the tool-intent term 'section 180 deduction calculator' (#1) — a niche worth a calculator page of our own.
Title 'Soil Tax Guys' (no meta); H1 'IRS Section 180'; 'Backed by Science, built for CPAs'.
Tiny on reach but distinctive in approach. It publishes a public log of more than 150 closed deals with per-acre and total figures by county and crop, a transparency move we do not match, and anchors price low at about $40 an acre. One point to hold quietly: a former Boa Safra team member works here, so going head to head is relationship-sensitive.
A free-to-landowner marketplace that connects owners to soil-fertility deduction specialists, pitching $600 to $3,500 an acre and working alongside the owner's existing CPA.
Eligibility check Matching to a regional provider within a day Provider-run sampling, lab, and an audit-ready report Savings estimator
Google No verified Google advertiser found.
SEO AS 0 · no organic footprint organic · n/a keywords
No organic footprint at all (Authority Score 0, not in Google's top 100) — a pure referral / lead-gen play.
Title 'AcreBack | Turn Your Land Into Tax Savings'; meta '$600-$3,500 per acre… free assessment'. Targets farmland tax savings / §180/167/168/611.
Not a service provider but a referral layer. It is free to landowners, paid by a network of partner specialists, and routes owners to a regional provider within a day. It cites Sections 180, 167, 168, and 611 and positions against the owner's own accountant. Because it works as a channel rather than a rival, it may be worth a partnership conversation instead of a fight.
A Kansas soil-sampling firm offering Section 180 reports, active on Facebook with landowner explainer videos.
Soil sampling Section 180 reports
Google A domain search returned an unrelated advertiser, so treat any Google ad presence as unverified.
Meta Reaches new owners mainly through Facebook video rather than paid search.
Social
LinkedIn : An unmanaged, auto-created listing, not claimed by the company. SEO AS 17 · 191/mo (+28%) organic · 35 keywords
heartland soil services #1 · vol 170 soil sampling #7 · vol 1K soil testing for gardens #7 · vol 210 soil samples near me #5 · vol 170 soil sampling near me #4 · vol 40 Ranks for generic 'soil sampling' queries, not §180 — a soil-data site rather than a tax competitor.
Title 'Heartland Soil Services | soil sampling | Cunningham, KS'; meta on 'soil sampling, soil health, grid sampling'. Does NOT target §180 terms.
A smaller regional sampler whose reach comes mostly from Facebook video aimed at new landowners.
A long-running precision-ag firm with a 25-year soil dataset that now sells software and places Section 180 next to carbon credits.
E4 Vision software Soil and precision-ag services Section 180 alongside carbon
Google No verified Google advertiser found.
Meta Section 180 posts run on their Facebook rather than as paid ads.
Social
LinkedIn : 345 followers. Posts cover planter maintenance, field insights, and a Section 180 pitch for inherited or purchased ground. Events Lists no upcoming events; the only sponsorship found is a local Applefest car show in Iowa.
SEO AS 17 · 90/mo (+15%) organic · 186 visits · 139 keywords
e4 crop intelligence #1 · vol 40 soil properties of north eastern iowa #8 · vol 880 section 180 deduction #6 · vol 390 irs section 180 #6 · vol 320 section 180 tax deduction #5 · vol 140 Punches above its size on §180 organically — #5 'section 180 tax deduction', #6 'irs section 180' and 'section 180 deduction'. The one real organic §180 competitor despite tiny traffic.
Title '~Home - E4 Crop Intelligence'; H1 'Expertise for Your Field!'; a 'Section 180 Tax Strategy' article exists but §180 isn't the homepage focus. Appears in 'People also ask', not organic top 10.
Bundles the deduction into a broader software and agronomy story rather than leading with it, and its reach is modest.
A Nebraska outfit promoting a Section 180 service mainly through Facebook, with a thin website footprint.
Section 180 service, promoted on Facebook
Google No website domain on file, so no Google search was run.
Meta Active Section 180 promotion on Facebook.
Social
Facebook : Promotes a Section 180 service to local landowners. Low-signal and regional, surfaced only through Facebook. Worth watching, but not a real threat yet.
Surfaces only through YouTube explainer videos on Section 180, with no clear service site confirmed.
Section 180 explainer content
Google No website domain on file, so no Google search was run.
Meta No ad presence found.
Social
YouTube : Section 180 explainer videos. The weakest signal in the set, a content presence without a confirmed service. Worth a closer look before treating it as a competitor.
Appendix SoilTaxPro — A standalone Section 180 service with soil sampling, nutrient modeling, market-based valuation, a CPA-ready report, and a money-back guarantee, with Illinois and Iowa testimonials. Separate from Soil Tax Guys. Accelerate AgriTax — A residual-nutrient deduction service citing Sections 180, 167, 168, and 611, using forensic agronomy and a valuation tied to a private letter ruling, and claiming a clean audit record. @polsia (stealth signal) — A post describing an operating system built for a soil-fertility-valuation business. Possibly an early-stage startup; low confidence. madonia.com — Uses the Legacy Nutrient Deductions name, but links to us as the recommended provider, so this reads as friendly amplification rather than misuse. land.saundersrealestate.com — Uses the term on a page that is a podcast interview with one of our own executives. Friendly. Excluded (partners): Neal Kinsey / Kinsey Ag Services; Madonia, Peoples Company, LandExpo, DeLong, Saunders, Nationwide, and The Land Report all quote, link to, or sponsor us