Writing Blog Posts: 9 Tips for Creating Killer Topics
The most important aspect of writing blogs is creating topics that people will want to read. Click here for 9 tips for creating killer topics for your blog posts.
Did you know that internet users in the United States spend three times more time reading blogs than they read emails? If you want to get your piece of that pie, then you need to be writing a blog.
Blogs need to engage and educate readers. They’re a powerful tool that can set you up as an authority in your field, help establish your brand, and helps educate your readers.
They build rapport between you and your readership.
When written consistently, interesting blogs create a dialogue between you and your reader. Before you can write, though, you need to know what to write about.
Keep reading to learn how to craft topics that will lead to a killer blog.
Writing Blogs to Engage the Reader
The ideas that follow to generate topics range will allow you to create a textured reading experience. By this, I mean that your readers will have access to different types of blog posts so that they don’t get bored.
Killer Blog Topic #1: Curate a List
“Listicles” or articles written in the form of a list (like this one!) are popular because readers can quickly scan the main points. They can read for more details on the points that interest them the most.
The efficiency of lists is at the heart of their popularity, and your readers will thank you for prioritizing their time. Here are some types of listicles you can write:
- Your favorite blogs from other sites
- The most groundbreaking innovations in your industry in the last decade
- Best images in your industry of the year
These are just some suggestions; the opportunities for types of listicles are endless.
Killer Blog Topic #2: Ask Your Audience
There’s no better way to engage readers than to ask for their input. It automatically ties them into your blogging process. They’ll feel like you care about their needs.
Embrace social media to “poll the audience”. Currently, Twitter is great because it has a built-in polling system called Twitter Polls right inside you Tweet.
Writing about the topics they choose will help ensure they’ll come back to read.
A word of caution: Don’t do this for every single blog post. You don’t want to pester your audience, either.
Killer Blog Topic #3: Interview an Expert
Just because you’re an authority in your field doesn’t mean there aren’t others who have something valuable to add to the conversation. When you interview someone on your blog, you can reap a number of benefits.
You show readers that you don’t assume you know everything, and that like them, you have questions. The expert you interview might interview you sometime, and could link to your blog and share it on social media.
There’s no harm in engaging readers while getting some extra publicity. You can even do a series of interviews.
Killer Blog Topic #4: Write About Trends
Trends are engaging because they’re temporal and popular. While it’s great to write about evergreen topics, you can write occasionally about more temporary topics as well.
Sometimes trends come back, too, and then you can revisit older blog posts down the road. If you’re not sure what’s trendy, check out Google Trends for some inspiration relevant to your industry.
Killer Blog Topic #5: Current Events
While I’m talking about temporal topics, another to consider is writing about current events. If you’re an SEO professional, and Google just released an algorithm update, there’s a blog topic!
By writing about industry news, you not only inform your readers but show them that you’re up to date with the latest in your field. This helps build more trust and authority.
Killer Blog Topic #6: Tell Your Story
Stories are compelling because readers connect with the characters and the changes they experience. Stories provide catharsis, information, and inspiration.
Be the main character and tell your story. Readers want to get to know the entrepreneur behind the startup. They want to get to know the person writing blogs they’re reading.
Build that trust, that relationship, and take them with you on your journey so that it also becomes theirs.
Killer Blog Topic #7: Recycle & Repurpose
Do you have an older blog that performed well? You can recycle it into a new blog post. By creating an infographic or video, for example, you can breathe new life into an old topic.
Another way to do this is to use an old post to talk about changes in your industry since you first wrote about the topic.
An added benefit of repurposing content is that you can internally link to the old post, which can provide these benefits:
- Help search engines crawl your site
- Give readers additional material to consume
- Boost your site’s ranking for linked keywords
Killer Blog Topic #8: Write a Case Study
Case studies make great blog topics because they’re packed with evidence and facts. They prove that a product or service works or doesn’t work. They build trust.
Case studies also position you as an expert or authority in your field. They can be more time consuming than other posts, so you’ll want to steer away from writing one three times a week unless you have a team to research and analyze for you.
Killer Blog Topic #9: Writing Blogs About Things You Want to Learn
When you learn new information and share that on your blog, a few things happen for your readers. They’ll learn the information as well, which will educate them.
They’ll also see you as someone who wants to continuously learn and improve. Even if you’re an industry expert, this is a good trait to have. It means you’ll be on the cutting edge.
It creates a bond between you and your reader. Remember that they’re visiting your blog to learn something. If you like to learn too, then you share common ground.
Conclusion: What Blog Topics Do You Like Most?
Whether you have experience reading blogs or writing blogs or both, I’d love to know which topics engage your interest. Drop me a line and let me know.
You should also make a list for yourself of the blogs and blog topics that grabbed your attention and had you bookmarking or following a site to come back for more.
