Content is at the forefront of digital marketing and the old adage that ‘content is king’ is arguably truer than ever. That said, it can be tricky to create a strategy that not only depicts your brand in the right light, but also covers everything your audience wants, and more importantly, needs.
For that reason, it’s not uncommon for a brand to be missing important pieces of content that could be used to help boost their organic presence in the search results, and this is where a content gap analysis is useful.
So, what exactly is a content gap analysis and how can you conduct one for your website? Let’s take a look.
A content gap is pretty much exactly what it sounds like - it’s a gap in the content on your website. Essentially it means your target audience is searching for a piece of content that you’re not providing.
Content is not only used to help you meet the demands of your customers, but also position you as an authority in your niche. If you’re missing information on a certain topic, you may be seen as less knowledgeable and authoritative than a competitor.
Different topics cause users to search using different keywords. So, the more topics you cover, the more keywords you can target. This means that the chances of ranking well and attracting new visitors improves as you diversify your content offering and fill gaps.
However, it’s important not to get carried away. Content gaps are about adding content that is relevant to your business and industry, and actually adds value to your target audience. Targeting irrelevant keywords just because they have a higher search volume isn’t likely to get you anywhere.
Content gaps mean your audience is missing something from you and, because of that, you could be missing out on potential customers.
For example, you and your competitor both sell cycling gear. Your competitor has an article on how to use a bike pump, but you don’t. A user that’s looking for more information about bike pumps before purchasing comes across your competitor's article and winds up converting with them rather than you.
By filling the gaps in your content, you can fulfil the needs of your target audience and increase your chances of attracting and converting customers.
The primary goal of a content gap analysis is to work out what topics your target audience is searching for that you’re not covering. So, here’s the best way to do that:
Make a list of all your main organic competitors. This is anyone who targets the same keywords or audience as you, or sells the same product/service.
You can do this by using a marketing tool such as Semrush, which will give you a comprehensive list of your main organic competitors based on keywords you have in common.
If a competitor is outranking you, it’s a good idea to find out why. What are they doing that’s working and engaging potential customers?
Take a look at their top performing pages and pick out any patterns you spot such as content type, length, format, topics, or keywords. If you find that your competitor is seeing success when using videos or something more interactive, it might signal that this type of content is what your target audience prefers.
Once you have a good idea of what is performing well for your competitors, you need to examine your own content and pinpoint any major differences.
These are just a few examples of things you can look out for when evaluating your own content.
Once you have identified the gaps in your content, it’s time to fill them. The way you do this will vary from site to site depending on your findings. You may just need to update or reformat old content or you might need to create new content or supplement it with more interactive content such as videos.
If you need expert help identifying content gaps or creating a content plan, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the experts.
