Tuesday, February 11, 2014

9 Blog Post Ideas For Business

9 Blog Post Ideas For Business

Geoffrey Gordon


Coming up with fresh content is not always easy if you are in charge of a blog. And the better the blog becomes, the higher the expectations are from its readers. If you are a regular blogger, it may be challenging to think of new topics and ideas to blog about. Even I battle from time to time. I have a few half finished posts that didn’t quite come out as nicely as I hoped. So I thought… why not share some of those ideas with you, my fellow bloggers to help kick start the creative juices!
1. How To Guides
Image Credit: Microsoft Clipart
I must say surfing the internet can be quite an education if you’re looking to learn something new. You can simple Google a topic and… “Hey presto!” a gazillion topics pop up to tell you all you need to know about what you looking for. Now if you are a producer of the answer to the question people are looking for in your industry that makes you quite valuable. A few good aspects to make your “How to” guide really viral are… good visuals, a working example, simple steps and downloadable content. Think of what you can produce related to your industry and you will have lot more interaction on your blog.
2. Industry Problems
Image Credit: Rawart
If whining were a profession, there would be many experts in our day and age. Many people look for topics of common problems and how to combat them online. Having a structured approach to your article like … “What is the cause? How does it impact? and what are the possible solutions?” can really put you in the limelight as a knowledgeable individual on that particular subject. Now if you offer the solution as a product, it’s a great selling point. You’re giving before getting and the subject doesn’t necessarily need to be industry related, as long as it’s relative.
3. Case Studies
Image Credit: Mr Dream
Examples are powerful! People believe most what they can see in front of their eyes. It is hard to dispute when it’s right in front of you.  So apply it to the work you’ve done. Talk about what the problem was, then show how you’ve helped the client, organisation etc… Lastly show what the outcome of your help, service or intervention was. The key is to highlight all three areas and display it simply, almost like a 1 2 3 process. It gives the reader an honest look at you as the writer. And you don’t have to do any convincing because your work speaks for itself.
4. Universal Resources
Image Credit: @riku
This one can either take a little or a lot of effort, depending on how far you are willing to go. There are certain universal resources in each industry, for example…  “The design industry provides lists of free fonts, vector resources, programs and tutorials to help designers.”
You could
adapt this to your industry, look for the common need. For example… if you’re in the food business it may be a great idea to provide a downloadable guide to choosing correct foods. If you produce the resource, readers will probably refer you more. You can also collect common resources online in your industry and write a blog about it.
5. Top Stories
Image Credit: DigitalRapture
You need to be quick on the draw with this one, by keeping your finger on the pulse of what is happening in your industry. New issues are always arising no matter what industry you’re in… Why not be the voice that alerts your customers or readers? In this way your blog becomes a great place for readers to be informed and stay current. News often comes at the spur of the moment. “Don’t delay!” Post it as you hear it.  You need to react quickly or someone else will beat you to the punch line.  No one likes to read a story that’s been repeated, when it was announced 6 months ago.
6. Life Lessons
Image Credit: Uploathe
Every now and then I read a good topic or an experience someone has had in their life. If it is well written and honest, with attention to emotion and realism, it normally hits the spot in your brain where you have an “Aha moment”. If it’s relevant and current and you can teach a lesson, form your experience to the industry you’re in… go for it. I also encourage this one just to remind your readers that you’re human. So much emphasis is put on better, faster, more… that we forget to take a breather. You can provide that moment of putting on the pause button to stop and think.
7. Old vs New
Image Credit: André Kutscherauer
Similarly to the “Top Stories” point I mentioned earlier – the issue of how things are done in your industry is also a topic to blog about. There is always room for improvement! Organisations, companies and people that continuously improve, are normally the ones who innovate and implement change. Their stories are almost always news worthy. Blog about conventional methods used in your industry vs. “a better way”. If you show better ways of doing things, it will not only improve your own work but inspire others to change.
8. Book Review
Image Credit: Unknown
If you blog often, you are probably reading often too. Make a list of books that you have read related to your industry and talk about them. Take each book in turn, write about what you can get out of it and how it has improved yourself. Chances are with your list of books, you will appear more knowledgeable. This is a great way to stimulate conversation on your blog.
If you choose to take on this subject,
make sure you know what the book covers, as some readers may have read them already. If you try to fake that you have read it, readers will see right through you
9. Ask For Feedback
Image Credit: Microsoft Clipart

Feedback is a powerful mechanism! Sometimes it can be skewed but most times the uncomfortable stuff is quite close to the truth… we just don’t like it. Open up your blog topics for criticism to your readers, telling what your intentions are for writing the blog. Ask if your content is helpful or meeting the criteria they expect. Some answers might surprise you, some will inspire you and some may not be what you expected. Either way it will stimulate new ideas and improve you as a blogger for the future.

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