How to Find Blog Post Ideas?

If you’re staring at a blank screen, cursor blinking, and wondering how to find blog post ideas, you’re not alone. It can be a challenge for any WordPress blogger, whether you’re running an online shop, promoting a service, showcasing a portfolio, or selling digital products. But fear not! This guide will equip you with methods to generate endless content inspiration.

Why Consistent Blog Content Matters for Everyone:

Regardless of your blog’s purpose, consistent, high-quality content is crucial for:

• Driving Traffic: Search engines love fresh content, which boosts your SEO and attracts organic traffic.
• Building Authority: Sharing valuable insights establishes you as an expert in your field.
• Engaging Your Audience: Blog posts develop interaction, build relationships, and create a loyal community.
• Boosting Sales (For Shops & Digital Products): Content marketing can promote your products and services.
• Showcasing Expertise (For Services & Portfolios): Blog posts can highlight your skills and past work.

Let’s Dive into Finding Blog Post Ideas:

Save Your Brainstorm Ideas

You know those little sparks of inspiration that pop up at the weirdest times? Don’t let them vanish. Keep a running list of every idea, no matter how small. Use a note app on your phone, a notebook, or whatever works. And then, when you’re stuck, you’ve got a whole pile of potential topics to search through. Think of it like a bank for your blog. You never know when a tiny thought might grow into a huge post.

Here are a few tools to help you with that:

• Google Keep – A free note-taking service that allows you to easily capture and organize ideas across devices.
• Notion – A versatile workspace that allows you to create notes, databases, and project boards, perfect for organizing complex ideas.
• Evernote  – A widely used note-taking app with robust organization features, including tagging and notebooks, to keep your ideas organized and easily accessible.

Analysis Your Competitor for Successful Content

It’s not about copying, it’s about seeing what works. Take a look at what other blogs in your niche are doing. What topics are they covering? What gets a lot of engagement? If you’re running a gardening blog, you might notice everyone’s talking about vertical gardens or organic pest control. And if you have an online coffee shop, looking at other coffee blogs could reveal that people want to know how to store beans properly, or the difference between roast levels. There are tools like SEMrush that can help you see what keywords your competitors are using, and that gives you a good starting point.

• Ahrefs – A powerful SEO tool suite that provides an in-depth analysis of competitor backlinks, organic keywords, and content performance.
• SEMrush – A comprehensive SEO and competitive research tool that allows you to analyze competitor content, keywords, and traffic.

Utilize Keyword Research

Knowing what words people use when they search for things is key. And you don’t have to guess. Tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and Ahrefs can show you what people are typing into search engines. If you’re writing a baking blog, you might find that “easy chocolate chip cookie recipe” or “how to make French bread” are popular searches. And for a digital marketing agency, “local SEO services” or “social media marketing strategy” might be what you want to focus on. Don’t just go for the broad terms, though. Long-tail keywords, those more specific phrases, can bring in a more targeted audience. So instead of “running shoes,” try “best running shoes for flat feet on the pavement.”

• Google Keyword Planner – A free tool within Google Ads that helps you discover keywords and get search volume data.
• SEMrush 
• Ahrefs 

Understand Your Audience or Ask Them

The best source of ideas is the people who read your blog. You need to really understand what they’re looking for, and what problems they’re trying to solve. You might find this out by watching their actions, or just by asking them directly. If you’re a fitness coach, you might find that your audience, busy professionals, wants to know how to fit workouts into their schedules. Or if you sell handmade jewelry, they might be interested in how to style different pieces. And don’t forget to look at online forums like Reddit. You can find subreddits related to your niche and see what people are talking about. You can also use tools like Google Forms to run polls or surveys, or just ask directly in the comments section.

• Reddit – A platform with numerous community forums (subreddits) where you can find discussions and questions related to your niche.
• Google Forms – A free tool to create surveys and polls to gather feedback from your audience.
• AnswerThePublic – A tool that visualizes search queries and questions people ask around a specific keyword.

Find Trending Topics

Staying up-to-date on what’s happening in your field is important. You can use Google Alerts to get notifications when new articles are published on topics you’re interested in. If you’re a tech blogger, you might set up alerts for “artificial intelligence.” Or if you’re a fashion blogger, “sustainable clothing” might be a good one. Social media is also a great place to find trending topics. Pay attention to hashtags on Twitter, and join relevant Facebook groups. And tools like Hootsuite or Buffer can help you monitor social media mentions and trends.

• Google Alerts – A free service that sends you email notifications when new results for your chosen keywords appear in Google Search.
• Hootsuite – A social media management platform that allows you to monitor social media mentions, trends, and schedule posts.
• Buffer – A social media management tool that allows you to schedule posts, analyze performance, and engage with your audience.

Expand Existing Blog Posts

You don’t always have to start from scratch. Look at your old blog posts. Are there any that could be updated or expanded? A post from 2020 about social media platforms, for example, could be updated with information about TikTok and Clubhouse. Or maybe you have a popular Instagram post that could be turned into a full blog post. And don’t forget about repurposing content. You can turn a blog post into an infographic, a podcast episode, or a video. And if you have a series of related topics, you can create a series of blog posts.

Conclusion:

Figuring out how to find blog post ideas isn’t as hard as you might think. By understanding your audience, doing keyword research, and exploring your area of expertise, you can generate a steady stream of engaging content. Remember to stay consistent, provide value, and engage with your readers. Your blog will thrive with a well-planned and executed content strategy.