How to Learn from Your Health Tech Competitor’s Blog Content Strategy

A competitor can also be a friend even if they don’t know it. Thanks to the internet, you can find out any and everything about the competition’s victories and missteps. Use it to your advantage. More and more medical technology companies are using content to generate leads. Keep these pointers in mind when analyzing your rival’s blog content strategy.

What Are They Posting?

Seeing what resonates with your market and what doesn’t is a crucial component of your content strategy< Are your rivals hitting the right notes? Here’s how you’ll know:

• Which posts are the most popular? What are they about? Pay close attention to any patterns.
• Why are some articles unsuccessful? Are they relevant? If there are questions that have gone unanswered, try to provide solutions to these queries on your own blog< This way, you can turn your competitor’s weakness into one of your strengths.

Are Their Readers Active?

You need a lot of web traffic, but reader engagement is just as important. Without it, your visitors will be just that: visitors. Engaged readers are far more likely to become qualified leads, so it’s in your best interest to cultivate active reader participation. How is that blog down the road fairing in this category?

• Are there comments? What inspired them? Comments are a direct link into the minds of consumers. They should never be ignored.
• “Likes” indicate that an article is popular, but popularity can be fleeting. “Shares” demonstrate that you have turned a reader into an ally, and you can never have enough people on your side. Are the competition’s followers sharing content, or are they just giving a passing thumbs up? Which posts are more shareable than the others?

What’s the Key to Their Keywords?

SEO can be more than a little perplexing. Getting a handle of the fundamentals of keywords isn’t so bad though. Thankfully, there’s an abundance of applications like Hubspot’s Keyword Tool that can help you get started. Save yourself some aggravation and avoid going after the hottest keywords, especially if your competitor has already achieved a high rank by using them. Use the keywords on other blogs to formulate your own combination of powerful, search-engine friendly phrases that can sidestep much of the fierce competition.

Which Sites Are They Linking To?

Whether it’s a verbal referral or a written letter of recommendation, we all need someone to vouch for us. Links are the internet’s version of a co-sign: They represent your competence and credibility. The search engines will also reward you for directing your users to other useful sources. Where are the other HealthTechs referring their readers? Why are these external links appealing to your market? While you’re at it, take a look at the links of the recommended sources. There might be some hidden gems just waiting to be discovered.

Does Their Site Perform Well?

Non-mobile-friendly, sluggish sites completely wreck the user experience. Don’t cause your visitors any unnecessary pain. You’re in the business of relieving pain, afterall. As you review the other health technology blogs, you’ll find designs that are stellar and others that are headache inducing. If you need some extra assistance in judging how well a website performs, Hubspot’s Website Grader can lend you a hand. Still, you’ll have to take that information and apply it to building a highly optimized blog of your own. An application can never iron out all of the kinks. Trust your eyes and instincts. If something looks off-putting or feels clunky, then it probably is.

The Bottom Line

Now that you’ve learned the strengths and weaknesses of your competitor’s blog content strategy, it’s time to hit the ground running. With a clear idea of how to produce great content, you’ll transform your site into a lead magnet. To learn about what’s needed to develop an effective Content and Inbound Strategy, grab our free eBook here! If you have any questions about how to get started with an Inbound Strategy for your company, don’t be shy, reserve a time to speak with us here. We’re happy to help!