By Monika Jansen, Jansen Communications
(First published on “Grow Smart Business”)
If you’ve been blogging for a while, it can be easy to get stuck in a rut and develop writer’s block. Coming up with new topics all the time – that is hard! To jump-start your creative juices, I’ve put on my thinking cap and done some research to present you with new ideas. Here is the first of two blog posts that will help reinvigorate your blog:
1. Designate days or weeks for certain topics
Depending on how often you blog, you could choose a specific subject for each day of the week, or, if you blog once a week, each week of the month. By giving yourself more structure around topics, it might be easier to come up with blog posts ideas.
2. Let Google Analytics be your guide
Look at the traffic on your website to see what pages web visitors are not only visiting, but spending the most time on, and write blog posts based on your findings.
3. Write a beginner’s guide
Jot down all the basics anyone just starting out in your field needs, whether it’s online tools, legal paperwork, or steps that should be followed in a certain order. In other words, help people avoid the mistakes you made when you were just starting out!
4. Interview experts
You’d be surprised at how eager experts are to share their knowledge with others. While this might not work for some industries – good luck getting Steven Spielberg or Ralph Lauren on the phone – this might very well work for yours.
You can use expert interviews in one of two ways: a full-length interview of one expert (consisting of several questions) or the same 1 or 2 questions asked of several experts compiled into one or two blog posts.
5. Interview employees
If your employees are highly specialized in a specific niche, interview them. You could ask how they got started in their field, what they wished they’d known back then, what they’ve learned, and where they think the industry is headed.
6. Write about how to improve something
If there’s something you just can’t stand that is industry-specific – an online tool, “best practice,” widely used methodology, or “definitive” book – write a blog post about why it sucks and how you would improve it or do it differently.
7. Republish popular posts
If you’ve been blogging for a while, you have a treasure trove of material that you can reuse. Pick posts that were super popular when they originally appeared and are still relevant, and republish them for new readers.
Get more communications ideas from Monika on her website!
Tags | Categories
blogging, communications, marketing, Monika Jansen