Are you lacking inspiration? Struggling to find a subject ?
You know you need to write a blog to remain consistent and add fresh content to
your website, but where do you look when the ideas run out?
Firstly have a think about what your blog is there to
achieve, as blogs don’t have to be ‘news’ they are just you adding content to
your site. They can be advice, comments, photo based, case studies, anything
you want to share, so don’t be restricted by the belief it can only be news.
This list of 7 things should help bring ideas flooding in...
1: FAQ's
What are you asked the most? Expand on the questions you
already feature and if you don't have a Frequently Asked Questions section on
your website, think back to when you were last asked an interesting question
that you enjoyed discussing. If that's too much of a stretch, look at the
information you provide on your website with the eyes of a client, customer or
someone who needs your help. Think about what you can share with them to remove
any fear or anxiety about using your service or picking up the phone and write
what they need to hear, not what you want to tell them.
2: Teach
Offer 'how to' advice on a particular subject related to your
business. For example, we offer help in every area of marketing, so we’ve
narrowed down the marketing part to social media and narrowed that down further,
to blogs and blog ideas. Maybe you use specific techniques in your trade, or
there's a knack to achieving a desired result that you can shed some light on
for your clients.
Don’t worry about pages and pages of technical detail, just
give people enough to get them thinking for themselves and feel like you’ve
helped them get started.
3: Past achievements for current clients
Share what has worked for your clients, not in a boastful
manner but in a way that others can see how that success could be replicated by,
or for them.
You can speak from experience, give advice and offer support
to others without coming from a hard sales point of view. Be honest, you're
proud of your achievements and your clients, and readers love stories.
4: Got an announcement?
Company news is brilliant 'share-worthy' content but it’s
appeal is very limited to anyone who is not directly affected, so share
something a bit more personal that offers some business insight. Get the intern
to write a blog on their impressions of a ‘proper job’, '10 Things you’ve
learnt as a company, MD or admin assistant. Don't forget, sharing is about engaging
with people and building rapport, so the human element is important and
appealing.
5: Feature an employee
I'm not suggesting you feature an employee of the month -
even if you have enough staff members to fill a year. But if someone who works
for you has shown consistent excellence in their work, or has an announcement
of their own, ask if you can share it with the world. Again, people like to do
business with people and this style of blog goes a long way to bringing
personality into business.
6: Write a review
Speaking as the expert, review a product, a service or
information you've used. People will benefit from your knowledge and you may
even start a discussion going. You can do it with software, paint brushes or
even your favourite tea bags, don’t be negative or inflammatory just let people
know what works for you and why.
And last but by no means least...
7: Top 10 lists
Everyone loves a top ten, or top 5, or top 3 - depending on
how far you stretch your lists! Use any subject related to your business, or a
personal interest - top 10 ways to , my favourite top 10 of, 3 great ways to
ensure... Lists are simple to create and read. Stick with bullet points and you
can't go wrong!
When you have ideas for blogs, hopefully we have got you
thinking, write them down and create a plan so that when you’re struggling for
ideas or want to delegate the job the hard part is already done.
We are happy to feature guest blogs so if you want us to
share your content too and it is relevant to Push Start Marketing let us know.
