How to Come Up With Blog Ideas
How to come up with blog ideas is a pressing question.
As a journalist since 2010, I’ve pitched countless ideas to my editors.
As a content marketing writer and strategist, my clients often leave the ideas up to me.
Here are some tips to get you started
Brainstorm it Out
Take out a piece of paper and a pen. It’s old school, I know, but very effective.
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Write down your ideas and space them well apart. You are going to need space to place each topic in a cloud. Now, within each cloud, write down ideas inspired by a topic.
For example, if you own a jewellery store, you may have cloud topics such as rings, earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. Under necklaces, some of the subtopics could include pearl necklaces, gold necklaces, silver necklaces, or y-necklaces.
Expanding further under pearl necklaces, you could write blog posts such as:
How To Care for Your Pearl Necklace
5 Styles of Pearl Necklaces
How Pearls Are Graded
What Colours Do Pearls Come In?
Pearl Necklace Styles Through the Decades
Top Questions from Customers
What are the top questions from your customers? You know, the ones they ask you about most frequently. Make a growing list of customers’ questions and write blog posts about each.
For me, some of the top questions include:
Why should I create a blog for my business?
Why do I need an email marketing list?
Which fonts should I use for email marketing campaigns?
How long does a blog post take to write?
Look at Your Competitors
Do your top business competitors have a blog on their website? If so, what are they writing about?
Don’t just skim the headlines. Read each post all the way through. You’ll learn a lot.
Are there particular posts that stand out? Take notes.
Read Consumer and Trade Magazines
Magazines always follow the latest trends. Editors and journalists are endlessly curious and always searching for topics.
Pick a magazine within your industry and read six months of back issues. Not only will this tell you about trends, but it may also spark a few new ideas.
What’s Trending On Social Media
Take the occasional scroll. Add some keywords and search. Uncover what is trending. What exactly are people talking about and interested in?
Although not technically a social media platform, Pinterest gives marketers significant insight. You’ll be able to discover trends in your country. For example, in February in Canada, trends included Valentine’s Day nails, date planning ideas, future wedding trends, and calming morning routines. These trends are broken down into weekly, monthly, and yearly percentage changes.
Listen to Various Podcasts
I love listening to podcasts. It gives my eyes a break. Maybe you are feeling the same way.
I listen to marketing, social media, and health and wellness podcasts. The wonderful thing about podcasts is that they give insider information within their field and interview guests who can do the same. The guests on podcasts are industry experts. Many have just published books. A podcast will give you the necessary highlights if you don’t enjoy reading.
In Conclusion
How to come up with blog ideas can be easy. Address customer questions through blog posts. Read magazines, search social media and listen to podcasts. Read blogs written by your competition.
Let your ideas flow. Brainstorm it out.
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