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Beyond SEO: A Guide to Modern Marketing Content Gap Analysis

For years, a content gap analysis has been primarily an SEO exercise focused on finding keywords your competitors rank for, but you don't. While valuable, this is only one piece of the puzzle.

A holistic content gap analysis identifies what's missing from your entire marketing strategy—including your emails, ads, and landing pages—when compared to your audience's needs, your competitors' strategies, and your own business goals. The objective is to find fresh ideas and topics that will help you acquire and convert more customers.

Sou might already know about "content gap analysis" in SEO. This is where you use tools to see which keywords your competitors rank for that you don't. Tools like Semrush or Ahrefs are great for this. This tells you, "Hey, your competitors are getting found for these keywords, but you're not," which is a clear gap to fill in your SEO strategy.

But tabout a much bigger idea of a content gap. It's about finding what's missing across your entire marketing strategy – not just keywords. This means looking at your emails, ads, landing pages, and promotional calendar, and comparing them to what your audience needs and what your competitors are doing. The goal is always the same: find new opportunities to get new clients.

Where to Look for Marketing Content Gaps

Opportunities are everywhere once you know where to look. Here are some key areas to analyze:

Promotional Calendar & Seasonal Themes

‍Are your competitors talking about "Spring Offers," Mother's Day, Ramadan, Diwali, or even broad seasonal themes like summer or winter? If they are, it's likely because their audience expects it, and if you're not, you're missing out. These are big opportunities to present your offers in different, relevant ways.

Hooks and Emotions

‍Many competitors use "fear of missing out" (FOMO) in their content, or play with curiosity or fun. If you see this working for them, and you're not trying it, that's a content gap you could fill.

Proposition Values & Audience Profiles

‍Imagine you sell an all-in-one supplement. Are your competitors creating content specifically for runners, women, or remote workers, or presenting their product as an "energy drink" or focusing on "taste"? Companies like AG1 (an all-in-one green powder) have only one product, but they address many different audiences and proposition values with different campaigns and landing pages. If you're overlooking a specific audience segment or a way to present your product that your competitors are using, you're missing a chance to connect with more people.

• Tone: Big companies often use several different tones in their marketing. Understanding these can help you vary your own approach to connect with different parts of your audience.

Applying the Analysis to Your Marketing Assets

Once you've identified these gaps, you can apply them to your specific marketing channels.

• For Your Ads:
  • Look at the different value propositions your competitors are testing. AG1 (Athletic Greens), for instance, sells one product but has ad campaigns that position it as an energy booster, a great-tasting drink, and a performance enhancer for athletes.
  • Analyze the hooks they use in the first few seconds of their videos. Are they using testimonials, social proof, or a surprising visual to grab attention?

So, look at your competitors' ads to see what proposition values they highlight for different audiences (e.g., a "gifting" angle for women even if your main product targets men). Also, pay attention to the hooks they use – testimonials, social proof, curiosity, or humor. For instance, a shampoo brand called Pros uses many different hooks in their ads for the same product, like "Your hair is now wavy, woo!" or "How to slay your wavy hair routine." If your competitors are using a specific hook or angle and you're not, it's an opportunity to create new content and see if it appeals to your audience.

• For Your Emails:
  • Categorize your competitors' emails. Are they primarily promotional, educational, or relational?
  • Look for patterns. Are they using urgency-driven offers or personalized content in a way that you're not? This can reveal gaps in your own email marketing strategy.

Again, check your competitors' email patterns. Are they sending educational content, urgency-driven offers, or highly personalized messages that you haven't tried? Seeing what they're doing can unlock many new ideas for your email strategy.

Automating Your Analysis for Better Insights

Manually tracking all your competitors across every channel every day is too much work and takes too much time and resources - it's nearly impossible. This is where Panoramata.co becomes invaluable.

You can:

• View Historical Data: Use a calendar view to see what promotions your competitors ran last year, allowing you to anticipate their moves this year.
• Search by Keyword: Want to see when competitors start talking about "summer" or "glow"? A simple search can reveal their content cadence.
• Get Automated Insights: A smart platform can automatically perform a content gap analysis for you, highlighting themes your competitors are using that you're not—such as "skin benefits" or "clinical study results."
• Create Custom Analyses: Ask specific questions, like "Analyze the main active ingredients my competitors are mentioning," to get tailored, actionable insights.

Here's what the platform can help you do:

• ‍Track Competitor Calendars: You can see what your competitors did last year at specific times (like April 2024), what product launches or promotions they highlighted, and anticipate what they might do in the next few weeks. For example, you can see exactly when a brand like Glossier or Anthropology starts talking about "summer."
• ‍Monitor Specific Keywords: You can search for any keyword (like "cold," "glow," or "dress") to see how much and when your competitors mention it. You can even set up notifications to track keywords over time.‍
• Automated Content Gap Analysis: The platform performs the content gap analysis for you every week. It will tell you what your competitors have been mentioning that you haven't. For instance, if a competitor like Ritual is highlighting "skin benefits" for their product and you're not, the platform will point that out as a gap.‍
• AI-Powered Insights: You can ask the platform specific questions, like "Analyze the main active ingredients my competitors are mentioning," and it will generate a weekly report for you.
• You can also see the actual emails, ads, and other marketing assets behind the platform's recommendations.

By moving beyond a narrow, keyword-focused view and embracing a holistic approach to content gap analysis, you can uncover a wealth of opportunities to create more resonant, effective, and profitable marketing campaigns.

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