3 Steps to Beat Competition with Content Before They Beat You

Do you want to beat competition with content?

Even in this day of age, with Artificial Intelligence and automation tools, you can still beat your competition with a content management strategy.

And you can beat competition with content using just three simple steps. I’m going to tell you how to do it below and then explain each step further in their section below:

1. Analyze the content of your competition
2. Copy the content of your competition (stay with me!)
3. Fill in the gaps in your competition’s content

Number two is going to seem weird to a lot of non-marketing people. You might be reading this to help your non-marketing business grow. Trust me, number two is accurate, but it’s not what you think. Stay with me and keep reading.

Beat Competition with Content Step 1: Analyze Content

The first step to beat competition with content is to analyze your competition’s content thoroughly.

Go to their website with an analytical mindset.

Analyze each page. Analyze their blog and a few different recent articles. Analyze their newsletter actions and subscribe to them. Analyze the newsletter and welcome package after you subscribe. Analyze their social media profiles. Search for their content on Google (without using their name) and see if they show up on page one and in what position. Are they organic listings or paid listings?

Perform a SWOT analysis on each component you analyze (each page, blog, each blog post, newsletter, Facebook page, etc.) A SWOT analysis measures the STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, and THREATS of the component. Write down these results and save them for step three.

I told you to be thorough, and I meant it. The only way to beat competition with content is to understand their content strategy.

You either need to do it or pay someone to do it. I offer this service to select clients in case you’re interested in hiring me.

This step should take the longest. I would spend a week to a month analyzing your competition. Choose three to five of your main competitors and analyze everything about them. Build files of information and intelligence about them and their content strategies.

Beat Competition with Content Step 2: Copy Content

Next is the part where you beat competition with content by copying their content.

This is where I might lose some of you. If I lose anyone, it’s their loss unfortunately. You do have to do this step to compete these days.

I don’t want you to copy and paste your competition’s content on your website.

But I want you to offer the same content they offer in your own unique words. That’s what I mean by copying their content. That’s how you rank in search engines. That’s how you get the attention of potential customers and clients. They need to see that you’re just as good as those competing against you.

If you don’t offer what everyone else offers, they might look to those who consistently offer the same type of content as the others in the industry.

It’s good to be unique where it matters, but being unique isn’t always good, especially in the bloated, oversaturated markets and industries on today’s World Wide Web.

So you need to offer the same information as your competition. It needs to be in your own words. If you do this, you’re on the right path to beat competition with content creation, management, and marketing strategies adopted by what’s already working.

Beat Competition with Content Step 3: Fill in the Gaps

After you analyze and “copy” your competition’s content, it’s time to fill in the gaps.

Take what you’ve learned from the SWOT analysis and create additional content for existing and new opportunities.

The idea here is to fill in the gaps and spaces of what your competition doesn’t offer.

This is the unique side of how to beat competition with content. You offer the same content but with more than what other competitors are offering. You’re giving more value to your content by doing this.

And makes sure you revisit your competition from time to time because they will copy you in the future if you’re doing better than them.

So you’ll always need to stay ahead of the game to beat competition with content.

These three steps make it easy, but they require you to work. You have to analyze information. You have to duplicate information in your own words and voice. And finally, you have to add something unique to the information to make it more valuable than anything else being offered.

But if you’re serious about competing, you’ll do it.

And that finishes up the three steps to beat competition with content before they beat you. If you feel this article has taught you something, consider sharing it with someone who might find value. I’m looking to start a free newsletter to share extra tips and resources for content creation, social and digital marketing, and SEO resources. You can visit my homepage and subscribe at the top. I’d love to have you as a subscriber. P.s. You can cancel anytime!

About the Author

Shawn Gossman has created content, blogged, ran online communities, and shared a passion for digital marketing for over twenty years. Shawn believes the best way to help content creators, businesses, brands, and marketers is to give away more than you sell. The same advice is recommended for the readers who follow this blog. Shawn also offers various services for extra help in content creation and blogging.