Do you ever wonder what makes a blog post go viral? How it generates all those likes, shares, comments and revenue? Do you have trouble coming up with those golden ideas?
A select few content experts have an uncanny knack for generating ideas that engage readers, generate leads and convert to revenue. Original blog post ideas must be the main ingredient in your content marketing strategy. It’s essential.
Here’s a fact. 61% of U.S. online consumers have Coming Up With Better Posts Start with a Clear Purposemade a purchase based on recommendations from a blog.
But what’s their secret?
Read on to discover seven surefire tips and tactics that separate the blogging pros from mediocre writers.
Coming Up With Better Posts Start with a Clear Purpose
When planning your editorial calendar, you need a purpose. Know who your audience is, what you want to achieve with each piece of content and how you’re going to achieve it.
Check out these stats:
Blog posts with a purpose achieve 16% more market share, 21% more consumer engagement, 11% more revenue growth and 9% more marketing ROI than posts without one.
Back up your purpose with S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, attainable, reachable and time-based) goals for the best results.
Buyer Personas
Ninja warrior content marketers always start with identifying buyer personas. A persona is a profile of your ideal client or clients you are selling to.
Note these details on paper: your personas’ demographics, job title, goals, challenges, and pains. Know what gets them up in the morning and what keeps them up at night.
You can acquire this info from surveys, email communications and by talking to your sales team, one of the best resources for learning your clients’ wishes and objections.
The Buyer’s Journey
A key component to successful blogging is knowing where your persona is in the buyer’s journey.
This buyer’s journey consists of three stages: awareness, consideration, and decision. Plan your content wisely by writing a separate post for each stage.
- Buyers in the awareness stage are searching for information about their problem online. At this stage, they usually aren’t ready to buy, so tread lightly.
- Buyers in the consideration stage are researching their problem.
- This stage provides a great opportunity to convert your reader from a visitor to a marketing lead.
- Direct them to your signup form and you’ve got a lead to nurture.
- In the decision stage, the buyer is ready to typically ready to make a purchasing decision. This is where talking about the benefits of your product or service in more detail will help the sale.
Coming Up with Great Blog Posts
After you know more about where your prospect is in the buyer’s journey, It’s time to churn out some great content!
With so much regurgitated content online, where do you find those fresh story gems of ideas?
1. Get Them from the News
Become a voracious reader. Check out the publications in your industry. Take a national issue and slant it to your industry. Or take a local issue and make it national.
For example, if you’re a tech company that focuses on the hospitality industry, write an article about how ransomware affects your hotel business.
Buzzsumo is a helpful tool because it lists the most popular articles on the internet. Type in a keyword and the site returns articles with your keyword in it.
See how many shares it received on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+. The site has some other cool tools as well.
3. Interview Experts and Influencers
Find out who the experts are in your industry and do an exclusive Q&A on them. Think of some compelling questions and your work is nearly done for you.
Research industry thought leaders and read their articles. Take a little time to build a relationship with experts and influencers.
Follow them on social media. Respond positively to their post, And read their subscriber comments to gain some insight.
4. Customer Reviews and Comments
Read customer reviews on your website and on review sites. You’ll see what issues matter to your target audience. Then do a write-up on the topic.
This lets your audience know you’re listening. It also presents an opportunity to address issues in negative reviews.
Another way of coming up with ideas for posts is to read the comments on your own blog, social media platforms and in industry forums.
See what questions viewers are posting, what topics motivate readers to act and which ones they ignore.
5. Q&A Sites
Discover what people are thinking by reading questions on Q&A sites. A great site for this is quora.com.
Quora is the go-to website for readers to ask burning questions. Follow the threads and notice how many people ask the same questions like “Which is the best island in Hawaii?”
Q&A sites are priceless because they provide you with the exact questions users are searching. Using these questions improves your SEO in a big way.
6. Base a Post on Eye-widening Statistics
The worst thing you can do is write an article based on opinion alone. A good way to come up with blog post fodder is to use statistics that back up your ideas.
Statistics create value for your reader and show you’ve taken the time to research.
7. Use Blog Post Formats That Work
Here are the most widely read blog post formats. Write one and see if you get more page views.
Listicles
We love them. We despise them. But we can’t deny that when done well, they work like a charm.
How-to Articles
How-to posts provide answers to reader’s questions and guide them. They are one of the most popular types of articles users search for.
“Best of” Posts
We all want to know the best products and services to buy. That’s why best of” articles get read.
Get Writing Better Blog Posts!
Coming up with great blog post topics isn’t as hard as you think. Follow these tips, and next time you see a blinking cursor, you just might know exactly what to write.
Looking for more handy business tips? Explore our website. Or if you’re ready to beef up your SEO and get started on a winning marketing strategy, contact our team today!
