Is there a more difficult and competitive industry on the internet to optimize for? I've optimized websites in a number of industries but have found the mortgage industry to be the most difficult one to get any traction with.

Whether you're a mortgage company or a mortgage broker the key is to go local.

The national search for generic terms like mortgage, mortgage company, etc. is controlled by major players like Countrywide. The key is to break it down to your region such as "mortgage company in Boston." However major cities like Boston, New York, LA, Seattle, all of Florida, Chicago are so oversaturated with mortgage websites that it's touch to break through here too. The second tier towns are much easier to get good SERP placement however the traffic is obviously much lighter - but targeted which is nice.