Content marketing professionals are obsessed with tools. Yes, count me in that demographic. If you need proof, just check the titles of the industry’s most-read blog posts. Most of the titles lead with a number and end with the word “tools:” Top 50…, Top 75…, Top 5…, and so on.
But I love these articles, and you should too if you create or manage content for your company’s digital marketing channels: websites, blogs, thought leader articles, and landing page campaigns. The tools shared in these blogposts will save you time, provide new ideas and improve your efficiency.
Two recent posts that examined top content marketing tools stood out for me because they both listed one of my favorite tools in the number one position on their respective lists. BuzzSumo.
The first article—25 Content Marketing Tools to Jumpstart Your Content Marketing Strategy—is an exhaustive list by thought leader Michael Brenner. His excellent list divides the “tool chest” into subsections, with BuzzSumo at the top of the Content Ideas section. Here’s how Michael describes BuzzSumo:
“BuzzSumo is a great, if not a must-have, tool for content marketers to identify what content and keywords are working well, which platforms and channels are driving social sharing and engagement, and who the key competitors and influencers are in your space. The results you get are also a great source of inspiration for content ideas.”
The second article—11 Tools to Help Launch Your First Content Marketing Campaign—was authored by influencer, Neil Patel. Here’s what Neil says about the BuzzSumo:
“There are content marketing tools, and then there are content marketing tools that generate serious results.
BuzzSumo fits into the second category. That’s why I put the tool at the very top of the list.
There are two things that this tool can do for you as a content marketer, as outlined on its homepage:
Analyze what content performs best for any topic or competitor. Find key influencers to promote your content.
Getting started is as simple as entering your keyword into the search box. For this example, I used the phrase “content marketing.” In addition to a list of top performing content, each piece is accompanied by the following data:
With this information, you can see what content performs best for your targeted keyword. From there, it’s time to ‘do it better.’ By taking this approach, you always have a clear idea of what you need to do, from a content creation perspective, to compete with the top players.
I am also a big fan of the backlinks tool, as this shows you which websites are linking to the top content for a given keyword. Once you create your post, you can then reach out to these websites, in hopes of receiving feedback and a link of your own.”
How BuzzSumo works for me
The software’s three primary functions are researching content, identifying influencers and monitoring how your company’s website and blog performs against a handful of competitors.
BuzzSumo works best in the Pro version ($99/month) because the user can see research results of more than 10 articles—the limit of the free variant. I create a lot of original content for B2B clients. Therefore, I love the tool’s ability to list hundreds of articles on any topic, many that Google never turns up. I mine this extensive list of items for both secondary research on a subject, but also for insight into new topics, as well as fresh angles on over reported issues.
I also like BuzzSumo’s ability to find influencers in any industry. For a client in the logistics industry, for instance, we were able to identify scores of potential influencers we could contact for guest blogging and information sharing opportunities. The BuzzSumo search engine finds influencers in the trade press, bloggers, academics, industry analysts and more.
Bottomline: BuzzSumo makes content marketing more fun, and more efficient.