Coming up with unique and exciting blog post topics is a challenge for many people. Even for professional content marketers, trying to figure out precisely what to write about often takes as much time as it does to write the blog post itself.
If you’re having trouble thinking up new topics, we want to share with you a few tips. After reading this article, you’ll have a better understanding of how you can quickly brainstorm ideas that will help set your company blog apart from your competitors.
Repurpose Your Content
Repurposing old content one of the quickest ways to get up and running. Look at older posts on your blog and see if there’s a way that you can update them to add value to the overall conversation. You could also take a previously written eBook or whitepaper and turn it into a blog post.
Even older social media posts can provide enough inspiration to kick off a flood of new content ideas. Try to find a unique angle that will complement the original content piece, and then link back to the source from your new blog post. This can help a new reader discover your social media profiles and other content marketing collateral, such as downloadable whitepapers and case studies.
Look to the Long Tail
Many content marketers start off with a good list of topics that are centered around the main keywords that they’re trying to get ranked for in the search results. After a while, the list becomes exhausted, and they wind up writing very similar content as previous blog posts.
A great way to come up with ideas that are not only unique but have a decent chance of ranking in the search results is to look at the analytics of your website. Drill down until you find keyword phrases that don’t drive a lot of traffic but are super-specific. For example, let’s say the company you work for manufactures widgets. The top three keywords that drive the most traffic to your site might look like this:
- Green widgets
- Blue widgets
- Red widgets
If you keep drilling down, you might find a few long-tail keywords—ones that are very specific in nature but don’t drive a lot of traffic:
- How to use a green widget to solve ___ problem
- Green widget alternatives
- Green widget vs. blue widget?
By writing blog posts that are centered around these long-tail website queries, you’re creating content that is very useful for your website visitors. The posts themselves also stand a good chance at ranking well in the organic search results and driving new conversions.
Browse Industry News Sites
Industry news websites can often provide a wealth of inspirational blog post topics that you haven’t already thought about. Comb the web for niche-specific bloggers and industry organizations websites, then subscribe or bookmark them. You can also enter in various industry-related keywords in Google News Alerts, which will then notify you via email when a new news topic is published.
Look for relevant news stories and then link out to the source and offer a unique perspective on the topic. Try to provide a detailed explanation or valuable insight that the reader can gain from your blog post. You might even gain a link back to your blog post if you reach out to the original author via email.
Invite Guest Bloggers
Ask your co-workers if they would be willing to write a blog post based on their expertise. For example, perhaps you work in a manufacturing company. Susan, in product development, might have some interesting insights into how people can use the products of your company to solve various problems they might not have thought of prior.
You could also interview the CEO of your company, and that will allow the reader to get more familiar with your brand. Alternatively, you could also reach out to your internal sales department and see if there’s a happy customer that you could interview for an upcoming blog post. You could even create a case study along with the blog post based on the interview you conducted.
Keep It Simple
One of the biggest mental blocks to writing a great blog post is the feeling that you have to write something completely mind-blowing. While these thought leadership blog posts often perform very well, it’s outright challenging to come up with them regularly. Instead, you can take a simple topic and then expand upon it.
Try to get inside the minds of your readers. They’re probably not an expert like you are, so there’s a good chance that they might find value in a blog post that is more simplistic in nature. A how-to article is one such example that can help your readers gain a better understanding of your product or niche.
Final Takeaway
Coming up with a list of blog topics that will help fill your content calendar takes a little bit of forethought and preparation. By targeting long-tail keywords and thinking strategically, you’ll find a wealth of new ideas that will provide inspiration and allow you to write content that your readers will find valuable.
If, after reading this post, you’re still struggling with content generation ideas, give us a call at (214) 865-9484 or contact us via our website. At Witmer Group, we can help you manage and write all of your content marketing needs.