How do I do a competitor analysis for marketing?
Quick Answer
A marketing competitor analysis has four layers: (1) identify who you're actually competing with for attention (not just direct product competitors), (2) analyze their content strategy (what they publish, how often, what ranks), (3) map their keyword footprint (what they rank for that you don't), and (4) find gaps and opportunities (topics they've ignored or covered poorly). Update quarterly.
Identifying Your Real Competitors
Your content competitors aren't always your product competitors. Search 10 keywords your audience uses. Note which sites appear repeatedly in the top 5 results. These are your content competitors — the sites you need to outrank. You might find industry blogs, media sites, or companies in adjacent spaces that compete for the same organic traffic even though they don't compete for customers.
What to Analyze
For each competitor, document: (1) Publishing cadence — how often do they publish? (2) Content types — blog posts, guides, tools, videos? (3) Topic coverage — what subjects do they own? (4) Keyword rankings — what high-value keywords drive their traffic? (5) Backlink profile — where do they get authority from? (6) Content gaps — what topics have they missed or covered weakly? Use Ahrefs or Semrush for keyword and backlink data. Read their actual content for quality assessment.
“The most valuable finding in competitor analysis isn't what they do well — it's what they don't do at all. Their gaps are your fastest path to rankings.”
Turning Analysis Into Action
Prioritize opportunities by: (1) Keywords they rank for that you don't — create better content for these. (2) Topics they've covered shallowly — create comprehensive versions. (3) Content formats they haven't tried — free tools, templates, interactive content. (4) Audiences they've ignored — create dedicated landing pages. Add the highest-priority opportunities to your content queue and publish against them systematically.
FAQ
Questions? Answers.
Competitor blind spots, surfaced automatically.
Averi monitors your competitors' content and surfaces gaps, new publications, and counter-angles for your queue — every week.