Whether you write your own blog or hire someone else to do it for you, you must choose topics your target audience is interested in learning more about. You can select these topics based on your industry knowledge and on your own research and analytics.
This article will break down how to develop blog post ideas that will help your SEO and benefit your target audience. Keep reading or check out our summary video to learn more.
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Blog Topic Ideas Based on Your Target Customer
One of the best ways to develop blog post topics for your business blog is to think about what your target customers want to read.
An influential blog will share content that is valuable and accessible to its target customers, so this is an excellent starting point.
Questions Customers Ask You
My first piece of advice for choosing blog ideas is to think about the questions customers most frequently ask you. Your blog should answer your customer's questions, so thinking about what they often wonder about can help you come up with specific blog post ideas that work for both your audience and yourself.
Because you have probably answered these questions many times, these blog posts will basically write themselves.
Consider how-to posts that teach your customers how to do something themselves and informative posts that help them learn more about what you do.
Here is an example to help you better understand how customer questions can be the perfect blog post inspiration.
A pool company often visits homes to provide quotes and answer questions about their services before a customer hires them to install their pool. The pool company owner has completed more of these visits than they can count over the years.
The owner knows that nearly every potential customer asks the following questions during this visit:
What are the different types of pool lining that I can choose from?
Which pool shape do you think will work best in this space?
How deep can I make my pool?
These three questions become the title of the first three posts on the company blog.
Your experience in the industry is one of your greatest tools, so use that experience to figure out what you should write about in your blog.
Trending Topics in Your Industry
Another way to come up with blog post ideas is to look at the trending topics in your industry. What are people talking about right now?
Here are a few suggestions to help you think of trending topics:
New products or services gaining popularity
Industry news stories or headlines gaining attention
Topics that other bloggers are writing about (especially their most popular blog posts)
"People also ask" section on Google after you type in "What is *your industry*?"
Paying attention to the news around your industry can generate many content ideas that people want to read. Consider setting up a Google news alert for your industry name, most popular services, or other keywords directly related to what you do.
Guest Posts
Trending topics are a great starting point for inviting others to guest post on your blog. Sometimes people are talking about a topic in your industry on many popular blogs, but it just isn't something you often do in your own business.
Instead of writing the post yourself, invite someone with more expertise to contribute a guest post.
Ask them for an interview or to share written or video content that you can post on their behalf. Aside from being an excellent source for creating content, these posts can also help you grow your network and get your blog in front of more readers.
Blog Ideas Based on Research
While your industry knowledge is an excellent source for blog post ideas, you will likely have to complete some research to keep the blogging ideas coming.
You can complete research to choose the best keywords to focus on in your posts. You can also use your analytics from past posts to decide which topics lead to your most popular blog posts and higher blog traffic.
Keyword Research Tools
Keyword research is essential to an effective blog because it will improve your search engine optimization and drive more traffic to your blog. Keyword research is vital for making sure your website appears when people type specific phrases in the google search bar.
The goal of keyword research is to figure out what your potential blog readers are searching for on Google. Once you know what they are searching for, you can optimize your posts and blog topics to target these keyword phrases. The keyword phrases themselves will provide article ideas for your next post.
As you read through popular keywords in your industry, consider the intent behind the search. Remember that the keywords themselves might not be the exact phrasing for your next blog post.
Your customer typed in the keyword phrase, but what specific information were they looking for? That's what your blog posts should provide.
The last thing to consider is the type of keywords that you choose. Small businesses are better off optimizing for long-tail keywords because competing with big marketing budgets for shorter keywords is challenging.
For example, a small furniture store will have better luck optimizing for the phrase "white couch for small living room" instead of "white couch." Big business competitors will likely monopolize the keyword "white couch" and stop smaller companies from ranking for it.
Google Keyword Planner
Google Keyword Planner helps you find keyword ideas, learn how often people search for specific keywords, and decide which keywords should generate your next blog post ideas.
Simply type in your industry, products, or services, and receive a list of keywords people search for on Google.
Remember, you are looking for long-tail keywords to focus on here (described in more detail above).
Google Search Console
Google Search Console is a free tool Google provides to help you see how your blog is performing on Google search and what keywords take people to your site.
Knowing how people find you can help you develop new blog post ideas related to the same topics.
Paid Online Tools
In addition to Google's free tools, you can use many paid online tools to complete your keyword research. SEMrush, Surfer SEO, Ahrefs, and Moz are popular options.
After trying out a few tools (and using some for different clients since I started blogging), I personally decided to purchase Surfer SEO. I like their Content Planner tool and find Surfer to be the most bang for your buck in terms of pricing.
Whichever tools you choose, use the suggested keywords (keep them long-tail keywords) to create a content calendar of upcoming blog topics. An editorial calendar like this will ensure that you always have a topic on hand when you need one.
Content Marketing Analytics
Another way to develop great ideas for your blog content is to use analytics to determine which existing posts are your most high-quality content. Once you figure out which of your past post ideas were most popular with your customers, use them as a starting point for new blog post ideas.
Your analytics offer a ton of information about each full blog post on your site. You can use the built-in analytics tools wherever you host your blog or an outside program like Google Analytics to get this information. Try to focus on the information most directly related to your business blog goals.
For example, if you are looking to drive blog traffic with your posts, look at how many people visit your site to read each specific blog post and note the topic. If you are looking for higher engagement, look at your blog comments to see which topics people comment most on.
Looking at your blog comments and Google Analytics will help you develop more ideas for your blog posts and learn more about what is working well on your blog. Aside from generating new blog ideas, your analytics can also help you develop new content marketing ideas in general.
3 Tips for Beating Writer's Block When Thinking of Blog Ideas
If you're really stuck on coming up with ideas, you might be suffering from writer's block, just like many bloggers before you.
Here are three tips for beating writer's block and getting your creative juices flowing for your next post.
Complete one simple task and then start writing again. Some people prefer to walk away and return when they have new ideas to write about, but I definitely recommend the opposite. In my opinion, the longer you walk away, the harder it is to get started again. Instead, complete one simple unrelated task (moving the laundry along, making a cup of coffee, emptying the dishwasher, etc.) and then get back to it.
Discuss your blog with someone who can help spark new ideas. Find someone willing to chat with you and start talking about your blog and favorite posts. Pay attention to the questions they ask and the topics they are interested in. This can help get you excited to write and suggest new blog ideas to focus on in your next blog post.
Ask someone in your group of target readers what they are interested in learning more about. Go right to the source. As you ring up a customer, ask them what they are interested in. Include a survey on your website, blog, or email newsletter asking people to suggest topics. This will remind you that people are reading what you write (hurray!) and spark new blog content ideas.
Wrapping Up: How to Find Blog Post Ideas
Many bloggers struggle behind the scenes to develop new blog post ideas their target readers are interested in learning more about.
If you're struggling with this, use your own industry experience or complete research to help you come up with new and creative blog post ideas.
Beat writer's block by taking a short break to complete a simple task, chatting with someone about your blog, or asking one of your target readers what they want to learn more about.
If you're looking for more help with your blog, or someone to do the job for you, check out our blog services page to learn more about how we can help. We create blogs that are customized for your small business (and your budget).
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