How to Find Inspiration for a World Class Blog
Blogs die out and fizzle every day, with some companies not even bothering to start them. Usually, the demise of a blog or the lack of one altogether starts from the same point. Typically, this springs from not knowing what to actually write about. We all know how saturated the online world is today, which makes it very tricky to know the best topics to write about. If you figure out what people want to read about, you can create blog content that will cut through the noise and draw visitors to your sites in droves. This can make the blog one of your most valuable marketing tools, but it can only rise to that level if you come up with great topics to write about.
Who Should be Reading Your Blog?
Ask yourself this question before you even bother trying to come up with your first topic. You need to be targeted to be effective in any type of marketing, and knowing who you want to read your blog is like crawling before you can walk: it’s just part of the natural order. Ask yourself some basic questions
- What need does your product meet?
- What problems can your company’s products or services offer solutions to?
- Who are the people who have the needs that you can meet?
Once you can clearly articulate the answers to these questions, you’re ready to move forward and start trying to engage with the right types of people on social media and through your blog. From here on out, all of your messaging should be targeting that audience.
Listen Before You Talk
The best place to know what to talk about is by going straight to the source; your customers. By finding ways to listen to what is important to your customers you can cut to the heart of the matter and address their most commonly asked questions or offer solutions to their problems with your posts.
Social media is a great place to start. Keep track of questions that people ask not just in your feeds but also on the profiles of others in your industry. Find out what topics are being discussed frequently in your niche and think about what you can add to the conversation. Groups devoted to areas related to your industry can also provide a lot of creative fodder.
Pay special attention to any questions that posters might make on your blog if you’ve already got one. Many of the best topics spring from a single question from an involved commenter. Also, don’t’ be afraid to go right to direct communication with your existing clients. If customers email you with questions, concerns or feedback, it is a sure bet that other customers have had similar thoughts. Use that to spur your creativity moving forward.
Get Informed
Market researchers have compiled absolutely staggering amounts of demographic data on nearly every conceivable grouping of people in the world. Once you’ve learned about who your demographic are, its’ time to start researching what else is known about that particular group of people.
Generalized statistics about buying patterns, trends, likes and dislikes are useful, but sometimes it’s useful to dig deeper and employ some market research tactics on your customers directly. Conducting a survey to assess your client base’s needs and wants can be a great way to understand what they’re looking for, giving you fodder for blogs for months to come. If you’re not experienced at conducting polling or surveys yourself, this is a good time to go outside and bring in a market research specialist.
Let Your Analytics Guide You
By now, you should have all sorts of data to start crafting great blog posts. However, the work isn’t done yet. Make sure to carefully look at your analytics and tracking data. Find out what posts are getting the most views, the most shares, and the most engagement. This will tell you which of your topics are resonating your readers, and should let you hone in even close to your target audience with your next series of blogs. This becomes a process that you can repeat over and over again, always striving to broaden and deepen your connection with your customers.
Blogging is a lot more complex than some people make it out to be. Just writing about anything that comes to mind won’t create a loyal following of engaged customers. With some planning and a little research though, it is very possible to come up with great blog ideas that will engage your readers and grow your client base.
Related:
How to Drive Quality Leads to Your Blog with Intelligent Marketing
Top Digital Marketing Companies and Bloggers
Author: Hudson Piccini
Hudson Cynar, a Harvard University alumna and the owner of three prosperous enterprises, is a distinguished business consultant, author, and writer. Her expertise spans multiple business sectors, with a particular emphasis on storage containers, commercial copiers, payroll services, and medical billing software. Dedicatedly investing thousands of hours into product and service research, Hudson crafts insightful reviews to guide entrepreneurs in making informed decisions for their businesses.