I like to do content material analysis — what’s extra satisfying than falling down just a few Google rabbit holes? (Do not reply that.)
After all, nice advertising and marketing content material is constructed on extra than simply Google search outcomes. I’ve put collectively a six-step information to how I do my very own content material analysis for HubSpot weblog posts utilizing a real-life instance.
Desk of Contents
What’s content material analysis?
Content material analysis is the systematic technique of gathering data to create helpful content material that meets your readers’ wants, furthers your corporation targets, and ranks in search outcomes.
On the one hand, content material analysis is strictly what it appears like — researching content material. However it’s a deceptively easy time period for a course of that’s much more complicated than just a few Google searches.
Put into advertising and marketing phrases, content material analysis is the systematic technique of gathering data to create helpful content material that meets your readers’ wants, furthers your corporation targets, and ranks in search outcomes.
Why is content material analysis vital?
Considerate and thorough analysis will reward you with compelling, participating, and genuinely useful content material. You’re most likely already doing key phrase analysis (if not, be taught the fundamentals!), and also you most likely already know subject-matter consultants in your organization or community. Content material analysis will join all these factors collectively.
And “genuinely useful” can’t be understated. In case you perceive search intent and may reply your customers’ questions, you’re establishing your model as an authority, setting your self up for return guests, and exhibiting Google that you already know your stuff.
Having a structured analysis plan will assist with different elements of your content material workflow, like a advertising and marketing calendar or editorial calendar, content material intelligence, and every other instruments you and your group use to take care of a well-oiled advertising and marketing machine.
Parts of Content material Analysis
Though the sub-steps of content material advertising and marketing analysis might look slightly totally different relying in your challenge and discipline — we’ll get into that within the subsequent part — there are just a few fundamentals which might be foundational to nice content material.
Key phrase Analysis
Start at the start, as they are saying. Key phrase analysis is the gateway to analyzing search intent that solutions not simply your customers’ preliminary questions, but additionally their follow-up questions (and perhaps even questions they didn’t know they’d).
You possibly can take a look at our newbie’s information to key phrase analysis, however listed below are the principle parts to bear in mind:
Relevance: Your content material will solely rank for a key phrase if it meets the searchers’ wants.
Authority: Google offers extra weight to sources it deems authoritative.
Quantity: Quantity is measured by MSV (month-to-month search quantity), which suggests the variety of occasions the key phrase is searched per thirty days throughout all audiences.
Viewers Analysis
You most likely already know who your target market is, and you might even have buyer or purchaser personas. Additionally take into account search intent and follow-up questions.
If I’m writing advertising and marketing content material about bedding, let’s say, there’ll be a considerable distinction within the viewers for price range bedding versus luxurious bedding. For the previous, I is likely to be on the lookout for subject-matter consultants on totally different sorts of supplies, together with cheaper choices. If I’m advertising and marketing luxurious bedding, I’d search for consultants on the highest-quality supplies and development strategies.
Whoever your viewers is, hold these personas in entrance of you as you conduct the remainder of your analysis so that you don’t end up down the improper rabbit gap.
For a deeper dive into market analysis, together with a how-to information, take a look at our market analysis information and templates.
Competitor Analysis
You’ll seemingly flip up some opponents as you do your key phrase analysis. I just like the Ahrefs software that compares two websites so you possibly can see what one has that the opposite doesn’t — this may be tremendous helpful when you’re evaluating a top-ranking competitor with one which ranks a bit decrease. What units the primary other than the remainder?
Persevering with with luxurious bedding, right here’s what Ahrefs’ key phrase explorer appears to be like like:
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I need to see what the top-ranked consequence has that the Tenth consequence doesn’t. Within the Aggressive Evaluation tab, I can enter each of these URLs, like so:
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Once I hit “Present key phrase alternatives,” I can see what the top-ranked hyperlink has that the Tenth-ranked hyperlink doesn’t:
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I confess I don’t know precisely what “coastal bedding” is, however the top-ranked hyperlink has numerous it. Realizing the place my opponents are killing it would assist me take into consideration the search intent of my target market.
Begin eager about what you carry to the desk by way of your individual expertise, data, and community. What holes in search intent may you be capable to fill?
Topical Analysis
Whether or not you begin on Google or an AI-powered search engine, just be sure you’re cautious about your sources. Are they web sites or publications that you already know and belief? What information can you discover concerning the writer of their bio or on LinkedIn?
(Random professional tip that hopefully you’ll by no means want, however: If one thing appears too good to be true, examine and ensure it’s not dated April 1. I do know multiple sensible author who’s fallen for a model’s April Fools’ joke.)
Just a few beginning factors I’ve relied on in my very own analysis:
Search LinkedIn on your key phrases. Oftentimes, I’ll discover consultants and thought leaders speaking about precisely what I’m writing about. Simply make certain that you cite and hyperlink to them when you use their writing as a supply.
Professional tip: Do your due diligence — learn the individual’s LinkedIn profile and ensure you can belief their experience.
Search Google Scholar. Despite the fact that the outcomes is likely to be too educational on your viewers, this has helped me find consultants and discover the latest analysis, particularly when AI is concerned.
Professional tip: Verify the publication date or prohibit your search to the final couple years, until you’re on the lookout for historic data. For research, ensure you perceive the pattern measurement and the geographical location — they is likely to be fairly totally different to your individual target market, so proceed with warning.
Put up by yourself LinkedIn. If in case you have a large following and/or a robust community in your trade, letting different content material managers know that you simply’re engaged on a chunk can floor some consultants you might already know. Your community may also have recommendations for different individuals or sources.
Use main sources. If in case you have a subscription to Statista or the same service, you possibly can often discover a treasure trove of research which might be straight related to your subject.
Professional tip: Don’t depend on different articles that cite research — I’ve discovered that these are sometimes previous research, even when the article has a current date.
Use social media. Even when you don’t have entry to social media listening instruments, you possibly can nonetheless dig into locations like Reddit, Quora, Substack, or area of interest on-line boards the place individuals in your trade collect and speak.
Use your co-workers. In case you don’t have already got a Slack or Groups channel the place your fellow entrepreneurs can bounce concepts off one another or ask questions, take into account this an indication to start out one. Your colleagues could also be consultants themselves, or they can join you with any person from their community.
Topic-matter Specialists
Not all the pieces you write requires a subject-matter knowledgeable, however getting an out of doors perspective on a subject may give you concepts and inventive inspiration, and knowledgeable quotes are good on your readers and good for search algorithms that prioritize private expertise.
Quotes and background data from the individuals within the trenches may even distinguish your ultimate product from AI-written content material. I wish to hold these informational interviews to only quarter-hour — it’s lengthy sufficient to get some stable background information and quotes, and quick sufficient that it’s straightforward for even busy individuals to say “sure” to.
Efficiency Evaluation
You’re not fairly performed once you hit “publish.” Take a while to overview your KPIs to see how the content material resonated together with your viewers, and whether or not there’s something it’s best to take into account enhancing now or revising sooner or later.
KPIs that you simply may embrace in your evaluation:
Engagement metrics like scroll depth, click-through charges, and bounce charges
Site visitors metrics like web page views, distinctive guests, and return guests
Conversion metrics like lead technology charges, product purchases, and electronic mail signups
If in case you have the sources to do a minimum of a lightweight month-to-month efficiency evaluation of all of your content material, patterns will emerge, and also you’ll be capable to additional refine search engine optimization, E-E-A-T, voice and tone, and different parts that make your content material distinct.
Tips on how to Do Content material Analysis
Let’s use a chunk I wrote just lately about B2B newsletters for example. It’s a subject I’ve expertise with, however I wouldn’t take into account myself an knowledgeable, per se.
Right here’s how I performed my content material analysis:
1. Analysis key phrases and viewers intent.
Because of our crack search engine optimization group, I do know that the first key phrase for this text is “B2B publication advertising and marketing,” so my first step is to make use of Ahrefs’ key phrase explorer:
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I can even slender my search by person intent by choosing the dropdown menu and ticking the “intent” field.
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Just a few issues I’m noticing in these outcomes: methods, examples, and finest practices. This provides me an thought of what customers are on the lookout for, and it’ll assist me construction my article to verify it delivers actual worth.
Folks Additionally Ask
On Google, I looked for “B2B publication advertising and marketing” and scrolled right down to the Folks Additionally Ask part.
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It’s extra of the identical — customers need an summary of what B2B publication advertising and marketing is and what finest practices are.
Ahrefs additionally has a helpful SERPs overview with the identical information:
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AI Search Engines
I personally don’t like to make use of AI for outlines or first drafts, however I do prefer it for content material analysis. I usually use Perplexity for analysis and Claude for evaluation; collectively they will help me determine a perspective I hadn’t thought-about or uncover extra sources.
Once I search Perplexity for “B2B publication advertising and marketing,” I can scroll right down to the Associated Questions part:
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No surprises right here — extra affirmation that customers are looking for an summary, finest practices, and examples.
2. Analysis the competitors.
I exploit each Ahrefs and Perplexity to determine opponents.
Perplexity synthesizes information from its prime sources, so I need to see what it’s recognized as a supply. I simply use a easy search time period for this somewhat than a fancy engineered immediate:
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This reveals me three sources; click on on the field that claims “Present all” to see all of the sources it’s pulling from.
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This reveals all of the sources and its hyperlinks, which provides me an thought of the competitors.
In Ahrefs, I can skim by way of the listing of the top-ranking articles that rank for a similar key phrase I’m concentrating on.
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One vital observe at this step: It may be very straightforward to inadvertently plagiarize from a competitor — perhaps a definition, the construction of the submit, or perhaps a flip of phrase. You’ll learn one thing, it will get caught in your head, and a day later, you write it down with out realizing it’s from one other supply.
My technique for avoiding that is to not spend a ton of time studying the competitors — I actually just do skim — however your mileage might range, so do no matter works for you.
3. Think about your individual expertise.
I took down some notes concerning the newsletters I’ve written for over the previous few years — questions I had, questions I didn’t know I had till I used to be knee-deep in an electronic mail publication platform, and classes realized.
As an example, at a earlier job with a really small group, I discovered myself head to head with among the extra technical elements of working a publication. I had no clue what “DKIM” or “DMARC” meant, and so far as I knew, “SPF” referred to sunscreen.
So after I began engaged on a special weblog submit about B2B newsletters for HubSpot, I knew I needed to incorporate one thing concerning the technical facet of newsletters with out going into an excessive amount of element.
I reached out to a HubSpotter on our MarTech group who was capable of give me some high-level recommendation on what entrepreneurs new to newsletters ought to take into account from a technical perspective.
That is only a fraction of the data I acquired from a 15-minute Zoom name:
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Typically you don’t know what you don’t know, and reaching into your individual expertise will help uncover questions your viewers can have as they dive additional into the subject at hand.
4. Analysis the subject and any tendencies.
If in case you have entry to a knowledge and analysis software like Statista, IBISWorld, or related, get within the behavior of working just a few searches. This didn’t turn into a significant supply for this specific subject, however I did discover some information on personalization, which was one of many subtopics I touched on within the weblog submit.
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I additionally searched Google Scholar for “electronic mail newsletters in advertising and marketing,” limiting outcomes to something from 2023 or later. I got here throughout a December 2023 paper entitled “Personalization (In)effectiveness in electronic mail advertising and marketing” from a journal referred to as Digital Enterprise.
This ended up being a background useful resource for me somewhat than one thing I quoted in my article, however for my part, it’s value taking a couple of minutes to examine scholarly journals — you by no means know once you’ll come throughout any person doing one thing model new within the discipline.
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5. Interview subject-matter consultants.
This step may be intimidating when you don’t know subject-matter consultants. Right here’s just a few of my methods I used to seek out individuals to speak to about B2B newsletters:
I began by asking the HubSpot #advertising and marketing Slack channel: What are your favourite electronic mail newsletters? Lia Haberman’s ICYMI and Alexis Grant’s They Obtained Acquired had been each talked about a number of occasions, in order that they went on my listing.
I searched LinkedIn for “B2B electronic mail advertising and marketing” and located different consultants and prime voices.
I went by way of my very own community and located that I knew just a few individuals on the technical facet. I requested them if they’d any recommendations and proposals.
I requested different publication writers at HubSpot if I might speak to them, and in the event that they knew anyone they might introduce me to.
6. Analyze the efficiency.
It’s good to examine the efficiency of your piece after a month, although I’ve additionally labored in locations the place we monitored every day efficiency — so let your trade and KPIs information you. In case you’re writing well timed (versus evergreen) content material, your pageviews will most likely peak throughout the first week and even sooner.
In case you use HubSpot CMS, clicking “view submit particulars” will allow you to monitor metrics like lead conversion charges, income attributed, and different metrics. HubSpot additionally reveals you the breakdown of site visitors sources, which will help you fine-tune your distribution sooner or later. (Google Analytics, a generally used software, has related metrics.)
Analysis With Confidence
There are lots of approaches to content material analysis, and never all the pieces I’ve outlined might apply to you. However it’s best to now have a stable basis for content material analysis, the numerous paths it might probably take, and how one can successfully and effectively begin researching nice content material.