Creating A Blog Content List To Attract Readers

Are you the one responsible for crafting your company’s blog content, newsletters, or email blasts? Do you ever get writer’s block or struggle to come up with quality topics that your readers and loyal customers may want to know more about? Trust me, as a writer headed into her 9th year of creating new and exciting content, the struggle is real. 

So what do I do when I am having trouble coming up with new topics for our business blog content or our client’s blogs? Here is the process that I go through when trying to generate content topics for either long term or our newest clients. 

Examine the Numbers

Before you head off brainstorming topics and racking your brain about what content would be appropriate and helpful for your brand, take a good long look at your current analytics. For instance, what content on your site is doing well? This will give you a good indicator about what your clients want to read about. 

Conversely, what blogs are tanking? Is there a reason for this? Did it have appropriate internal and external links? Was it helpful or of use to your readers? Did it share your expertise in a way that was accessible and understandable to laypeople?

Once you have taken a look at your top performing blogs you will have a much better idea how to proceed. Your research will help you understand what content is SEO friendly and what is just filler. If you find that your blogs with video content had the highest clicks and lowest bounce rate you may want to continue with that tactic as many “readers” are becoming viewers when it comes to consuming content on-the-fly. If you find that a certain style of writing attracts your type of readers, tap into that for your next few blogs to continue the trend.

If your site is new to blogging or adding content in the form of social media posts or embedded video, you won’t have analytics to guide your brainstorming. What you will have is the ability to research your closest competitors and what content they are putting out there. We like using SEMRush to compare competitor information. 

Types of Blogs to Consider 

Neil Patel, a popular blogger and renown marketing expert, has recently published his list of 100 Ways to Source Content. While we absolutely agree with him that there are hundreds of types of blogs to capture the attention of readers and viewers, there are some styles that are tried-and-true options for small and medium-sized businesses that I have found to be most helpful when I am simply out of ideas. 

Answer Questions Specific To Your Industry

Every business is unique in that it offers products or services for their industry. Brainstorm with your marketing team (or better yet, your staff as a whole) about what questions current consumers often ask. 

For instance, an exterior painting company may get lots of questions about when’s the right time to paint. Turn that into blog content. 

A pest control company may see an uptick in questions in the spring about combating carpenter ants or termites. Take those topics and turn them into titles for blogs such as “How Can I Combat Carpenter Ants Around My Property?” or “What Damage Can Termites Do To My Home?” 

Since most people searching for services will type a question into a search engine such as Google, Bing, or Yahoo, it makes sense to turn your most asked questions into blog topics. Start with your FAQ page and see if some of those questions can be expanded into a blog that would be helpful to your consumers. 

Search Industry Specific Publications or Online Forums

Every industry, from manufacturing to website design, has industry specific forums and publications. These can be a great resource to get current topics that may be trending in your field. 

I find it really helpful to peruse industry publications and look for problems or issues that are facing each field and use those as topics for content in the form of a blog or newsletter. An often untapped resource for blog content are the live forums where people from across your industry may discuss problems they are encountering or trends they either love or hate. This could be a gold mine of topics for your blog.

Case Studies 

Everyone loves a success story that brings a company or brand to life. Stories about how your service or products aided a client in a meaningful way can be a great approach to convert those online browsers into loyal customers. 

Case studies have long been a way to promote success stories in regards to your business. Question and answer style blogs or interview stories are integral to showing how your company has impacted the people who use your products or services. They are often easy to write and can be a great way to get some traction on your social media posts about the blog. 

Tutorials or How-Tos

Americans are natural “do-it-yourselfers.” We love to figure it out for ourselves and become experts in our own right. If members of your team have expertise regarding your services and they are willing to contribute to the content you may have multiple blogs that show simple how-tos or tutorials. These are the blogs that readers will bookmark and come back to over and over again. 

This type of blog is beneficial for a number of reasons. First, it can present your company as highly knowledgeable and experts in your specific field. It can also add value to your website as loyal customers will return to follow your content in the hopes of gaining more insights about a service or technique that you offer. 

Lists & Checklists 

The ever popular list is a great option for a blog if you find yourself out of ideas. They are easy to read, even easier to write, and actually are digestible by your viewers. 

For instance, a moving company may want to include a blog such as “The Ultimate Checklist for Moving Across the Country” that helps home buyers know how to pack, move, and settle into their new home. Not only do people read these types of blogs because they are easy to scan, but they even come back to reference them or print them out. 

A bonus about list type blogs is that they are easily shareable on social media platforms and you may find the more relevant your lists are, the more readers you will gain. 

Product Reviews 

Not everyone is an expert in every field. If you have experience and knowledge about an industry, readers like to know your thoughts on certain products. 

For instance, a long-term nursing facility may want to write their assessment for therapy equipment or assistance devices. Not only will readers interact with the content, they will continue to see the company as an expert in the field if your product reviews or comparisons work out for them. 

Current Events or Industry News 

If the last year has taught us anything, it’s that the news cycle is fast and addressing what is going on in the world in relation to your business is critical to your success. 

Blogs that address any news in your industry or how your company has been impacted by a world, national, or local event can be helpful. Not only does it inform your readers, but it helps them understand your position and how it may impact the future of your business. 

Final Thoughts 

No matter what type of blog you choose to write, make it genuine and use your company’s unique voice. Be funny, solemn, informative, or helpful. Be innovative, startling, or take a stance on an issue. Just be true to the brand you represent. 

Adding blog content to your site can help improve your rankings, your SEO strategy and help spread the world about you as a brand that can be trusted. 

Every blog writer suffers from writer’s block at sometime or another. Hopefully this list of blogging ideas will help inspire future ideas for your business blog.