15 Ways to Source High-Impact Content Ideas from Your Competitors

Thankfully, your competitors’ content successes don’t have to remain a mystery.

With SEO competitor analysis, you can use their strategies as a source of inspiration.

Here are 15 ways to swipe their best ideas 👇

Step 1: Analyze Top-Performing Posts

Your competitors aren’t ranking high by accident. Their top pages are pulling in organic traffic because they’ve cracked a formula that works, and you’d be a fool not to take a leaf out of their book.

This step’s all about figuring out what’s already driving their clicks so you can swipe the blueprint and make it your own—better, faster, meaner.

How:

1. Fire up Ahrefs’ Site Explorer and plug in your target site’s domain (meaning your website or your client’s website).
2. Then, from the left-hand side navigation menu, under Organic search, hit the Organic competitors report. Under the graph, listed top to bottom by common keywords (keywords you both currently rank for), Ahrefs will list your top 20 competitors.
3. Next to the competitors you’d like to analyze, click the down arrow next to their name, and then click Top pages.
4. From the Top pages report. Scroll the list for pages that are targeting relevant keywords and note the topics that are cashing in. You can do this by clicking on the drop-down menu under the column Keywords. The window that drops down will show you all the keywords the page is currently ranking for.

Step 2: Review Content Types

Different content types like guides, listicles, or case studies scratch different itches. Guides teach, lists grab attention, and case studies prove things work or don’t work. Knowing what they lean on lets you piggyback on their success without the trial-and-error grind.

How:

1. Lean back into the Top pages report we just generated with Ahrefs. Click on the URLs of their top pages and note the formats that are performing the best. Is the page a listicle? A guide? Or perhaps a case study?
2. Then, tally what dominates their output; if it’s listicles 70% of the time, that’s their bread and butter, so mark it down. Also, click back on the dropdown menu under the Keywords column, and under the Intents column, note the search intent behind each keyword. It’ll help you when it comes time to creating content for the keywords you wish to target.

Step 3: Assess Visual Assets

Your competitors aren’t winning with just words. Their images, videos, and charts are sucking in visitors and keeping them hooked, and you’re missing out if you don’t match or exceed their efforts. You see, visuals are proven to crank up engagement, turn skimmers into stayers, and make your content stick in a way plain text never will.

How:

1. While you’re scrolling through your competitors’ top pages, note every visual they’re using: images, embedded videos, charts, whatever’s catching eyes.
2. Zero in on what’s hot, like a killer chart or a video with a thumbnail that screams “click me”. Note what’s working.
3. Take their idea and crank yours up—more insights, slicker design—then embed it into your content to outshine them.

Step 4: Examine Titles/Meta Descriptions

Your competitors aren’t topping the SERPs by luck. Their titles and meta descriptions are clickbait that actually works, and you’re leaving money on the table if you don’t figure out why.

How:

1. There are two methods you can use to quickly see a competitor’s page’s title and meta descriptions. The first is to use a Chrome extension. There are heaps to choose from. I use the Ahrefs extension. So, while you’re on the page scrolling through to determine why it’s finding success, simply click your extension and let it do the hard work.
2. The second method is to use a scraping tool like Screaming Frog. Plug the competitor’s domain into the tool and allow it to crawl the site. Once it’s done, search for the page’s URL, select it, and in the window below, find the title and meta description.

Step 5: Evaluate Content Structure

A tight setup with smart subheads, punchy bullet points, and a flow that doesn’t suck is what makes their good content scannable and rank-worthy. This step’s about dissecting what’s working so you can mimic the skeleton, tweak it to fit your preferences, and build content that outperforms the competitor on the SERPs.

How:

1. Once again, hit your competitors’ top pages, scroll through, and break down the bones: how many H2s, H3s, etc., where they drop bullet points, how the text flows from intro to end.
2. Your Chrome extension will likely come in use here again. If you’re using the Ahrefs extension like me, click Content from the left-hand side, and scroll down the window until you hit the headings. Use this to quickly note if their headings are tight or long and descriptive, and what alternative keywords they’re incorporating and where.

Step 6: Identify Content Gaps

Finding content snipes untapped keywords or topics your competitors have missed or aren’t currently ranking for. This step’s your chance to turn their blind spots into your wins, boosting your rankings and stealing their thunder with content they wish they’d thought of first.

How:

1. Fire up Ahrefs’ Competitive Analysis tool and double-check that the tool is set to Keywords. Then, plug in your target site’s domain (meaning your website or your client’s website) and select your competitors (Ahrefs will suggest competitors based on the common keywords, keywords both sites currently rank for). Include as many competitors as you like. I’ve shot for five. Then, hit the big orange button, Show keyword opportunities.
2. Ahrefs will then generate a Content gap report based on the keywords the target site doesn’t currently rank for but the competitor sites do. Toggle the Main position only to on, if you’d like to filter out AI Overviews, sitelinks, image pages, X posts, etc.
3. I’d also suggest filtering out your competitors’ branded keywords (I doubt you’re going to want to rank for them). To do this, click + Add filter, and from the drop-down menus, select Keyword. Then, add a rule, selecting Doesn’t contain and Partial match. Then, enter each competitor’s names, adding a new rule for each one. Hit Apply and then Show results.
4. Next, filter out keywords that are too competitive or have low search volume by filtering to exclude terms that, say, have a keyword difficulty of more than 40 and a search volume of less than 250. Use your own discretion here. You’ll know best what your target site can and can’t rank for.
5. Once your list is generated, export it as a CSV and get strategizing.

Psst! We offer keyword gap analysis services.

Step 7: Monitor New Content

Your competitors aren’t sitting still. Their latest posts are a window into what they’re betting on next, and if you’re not watching, you’re letting them set the pace while you’re stuck chasing yesterday’s trends.

Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen.

How:

1. If the competitor has an email newsletter, they might just feature their most recently published content in it, which makes this task super easy for you. Just sit back, relax, and let them deliver their fresh content straight to your inbox.
2. Block 10 minutes, say, every Monday, hit their blog, and scroll through the latest posts. Eyeball what’s new and what’s getting traction. It’s a manual approach, sure, but it’s free and fast.
3. Plug your competitors into an RSS feed reader like Feedly, and get their updates in real-time without lifting a finger.
4. Stalk their X, LinkedIn, or other social posts. They’ll often blast new content there.

Step 8: Analyze Backlinks

Digging into your competitors’ backlinks shows you what’s hot, so you can swipe the concept and churn out content that doesn’t just match their game but blows it out of the water. This step’s about finding the gold in their link profile and using it to fuel your own content that’ll rank and rake in clicks.

How:

1. Head back to the Organic competitors report, once again, click the downward arrow on a competitor of your choice, and this time, click the Backlinks report. In this report, you’ll find every single backlink the competitor currently has pointing to them from referring domains (third-party websites).
2. To spot their most valuable links, the opportunities you’ll want to go after yourself, filter for high-DR (Domain Rating) sites by clicking on the DR column. You can also see the anchor text and the target page the referring domain linked to by looking at the Anchor and target URL column.
3. To see a list of the referring domains, head back to the Organic competitors report, click again on the downward arrow, and click Referring domains.

Step 9: Leverage Social Shares

Virality doesn’t happen by accident. When a competitor’s social content finds blows up, it’s a signal that points to topics that are hot right now, and you’d be a fool to let that wave crash without riding it.

This step’s about sniping their social wins to fuel your own content, jumping on what’s already working so you can crank out posts that grab attention and traffic while the iron’s still scorching.

How:

1. Plug their domain into BuzzSumo’s Content Analyzer, sort by total shares, and eyeball the posts racking up numbers.
2. Search socials for using the site’s brand name, filter for recent posts, and spot what’s getting reshared or liked to death.
3. Grab their viral hits, then drop your own post with a sharper edge to steal the spotlight.

Step 10: Explore User Engagement

Your competitors’ readers aren’t shy. They’re spilling what clicks with them in comments and replies, and that’s a goldmine for content ideas you can swipe and run with.

How:

1. Hit their top posts, scroll the comment section, and jot down what readers are buzzing about. Granted, not all sites have an audience that engages in the comment section, but for some sites, their audience is highly engaged here.
2. Head back to socials, search their brand name again, filter for recent posts, and dig into what followers are saying.
3. Take a hot topic from the chatter, crank out a meaty post, and watch it pull traffic while they’re still figuring it out.

Step 11: Study Customer Feedback

Your competitors’ customers aren’t holding back. They’re airing their dirty laundry on review sites, and those gripes are a literal roadmap to content that’ll hit the mark for you. Every complaint about what’s broken, missing, or just plain sucks is a wide-open door for you to swoop in with solutions their past and present customers wish they’d gotten from them.

How:

1. Search their brand on review sites like Trustpilot or G2, scroll through the reviews, and zero in on the one- or two-star rants.
2. Grab a recurring pain point (say, “no ecommerce SEO help”), crank out a banger like “Ecomm SEO Made Dead Simple,” and watch it pull their crowd your way.

Step 12: Attend Industry Events

Industry events, whether live or virtual, are where your competitors and peers spill their genius ideas, content hacks, SEO tricks, whatever. You can use that noise to spot trends, weaknesses, or overhyped fluff to outmaneuver them with sharper content.

How:

1. Hit up the big-ticket events in your niche. Sign up for talks or grab recordings if you can’t go in person.
2. Take their boasts, crank out your own take on their idea, go deeper on the topic than they have, and drop it fast to swipe their thunder.

Step 13: Follow Thought Leaders

If they’re active in the public space, competitor thought leaders often hint about trends, strategies, or shiny new tactics they’re betting on, and that’s your shot to jump in and turn their chatter into your own killer posts.

How:

1. Stalk their CEO or strategist on socials, follow them, and turn on notifications so you don’t miss a single hot take they drop.
2. Scroll their feed and note ideas that they’re hyping or banking on as the next big trend.
3. Take their best takes, dig into them, and drop your own before they can cash in.

Step 14: Track Press Mentions

PR mentions mean your competitors have got something worth talking about, perhaps new tactics, big wins, or trendy topics, and that’s your cue to jump in and ride the wave with content that hits harder.

How:

1. Punch their brand into Google News, filter for the last month, and scroll for mentions. If a big publisher is bothering to write about their latest ideas, that’s your green light to pounce.
2. Plug their name into Google Alerts and let it flag every time they’re in the spotlight.
3. Spot a hot topic, crank out your own piece, and drop it fast to own the narrative.

Step 15: Analyze Paid Ads

Your competitors aren’t dumping cash into paid ads for s#*ts and giggles. These campaigns show exactly what they’re pushing hard, and that’s a cheat sheet for angles you can steal and spin into your own content gold.

How:

1. Plug their domain into Semrush’s Advertising Research tool and scope their live campaigns. If, let’s say, “white label link-building” ads are racking up impressions, that’s your signal to target that niche with content.
2. Grab a topic from their top-performing ads, crank out a post, and reclaim some of that SERP real estate.

Conclusion and Next Steps

You’ve just ripped through 15 solid ways to snipe high-impact content ideas from your competitors.

But let’s face it, if you’re slammed with clients or just don’t have the bandwidth to stalk every rival move, you don’t have to go it alone.

Loganix’s SEO services take this exact competitor-crushing approach, analyzing their strategies, finding the gaps, and building content that doesn’t just compete but dominates.

👉 Hit us up over on our SEO services page, and let’s get your site to the top of the SERPs where it belongs. 👈