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Most of us think that doing a competitive analysis is a way to keep tabs on what the competition is doing. So, we look at the data to get a few clues, and then once we do, we walk away from it. However, we can take things a lot further than that. A competitive analysis can help us do a deep dive into a competitor’s content marketing, and this is information you can then use to help your own content marketing.<\/p>\n
How? Well, you can use it to help you identify any content gaps you might have. Here’s a look at how you can use a competitive analysis to serve this purpose.<\/p>\n
When analyzing the competition, you should look at data from multiple sides. Every piece of data that you find about your competition can serve a purpose that can be absorbed into your content marketing strategy. There are two main pieces of data to look at:<\/p>\n
Direct Insight Into Competitors’ Content Marketing<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n You want to start by looking at data that will give you direct insight into a competitor’s content marketing strategy. This includes information such as where they are posting content, how often they are posting, the type of content (video, images and infographics, articles, white papers, etc), and even social media posts. Your goal is to get a feel for what types of information they are delivering, how it aligns with their sales cycle, and how well the information is being perceived.<\/p>\n Discover Insights Based on Pure Data<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Another important angle to take when discover competitor information is to look beyond the content itself and into the data behind it. If you can find metrics such as, traffic patterns, backlinks, and engagement, then you can reveal which topics are actually gaining traction and where competitors are underperforming. This helps you identify areas of real demand that aren’t being served in your own content strategy. This data points to real information that can indicate real interest or need in your target market.<\/p>\n Before you get started analyzing the content marketing efforts of your competition, it is important to carefully define who you consider to be a competitor. You need to find direct competitors, or else your analysis won’t have as much bearing on your own business as would be helpful.<\/p>\n It’s also important to know that even if you are similar, with a similar customer base and similar products or services, you still might not want to consider this a one-for-one comparison. At the end of the day, your competition is different from you, and what works for your competition might not even work for you. However, what you can do, is use your analysis to inspire you, and only use the nuggets that you find if they make sense for your business.<\/p>\nBe Careful How You Define “Competitor”<\/h2>\n