9 ways to create more consistent content for your blog right now

There are an infinite number of company blogs today that are wildly inconsistent, and for those that let their blogs sit idle for too long, it actually hurts your brand trust. After being a former head of marketing and communications, I understand this constant, nagging struggle for good content all to well.

Over the last 15 years I've engrained content creation into my everyday thinking. This has allowed me to publish great content and use proven search engine optimization (SEO) tactics to not only increase discovery of your brand content, but also to build trust among your current stakeholders.

If you're reading this, chances are your blog needs more love and attention. Let me show you nine ways that work for me to create a constant and consistent stream of content for any blog.

Make a list of every problem that your customers have

Starting here is the easiest way to begin. You know their pain points, right? Good, let's use that. Write one blog article for every issue that they have.

For instance, if your client doesn't know what to write about for their blog, you could write an article like this one.

Additionally, its important to keep a list of new issues that customers experience that are leading them to you. You can gather these from direct conversations, social media comments, customer surveys, and the like. There may be issues that are niche, nuanced, or industry-specific that you previously were not aware of.

Know what the public is searching

Sites like AnswerthePublic.com allow you to see what people search for to find resources in your industry. These search listening tools can be extremely effective.

Start by creating a list of topics that are related to your business.

Next, go to AnswerthePublic.com and type in those topics (more specific the better) one at a time.

What you'll see next are keywords that can form the basis as topics for new blog articles. The research on what to write is up to you, but it will give you a platform to start from.

Dive into your data

I recently read an article about how data that exists within your organization can benefit journalists. This effective tactic for media relations is also valid for your blog.

Now I'm not saying to publish confidential data or anything that would be damaging competitively. I'm just asking you for a nugget. Your goal should be to find one good statistic. Then, take that and turn it into a headline and tell its story.

It is that simple.

Conduct Q&A Sessions

No good data? You must have good people working with you. Take a proactive step to find out more about what they do and what is important to them through an email question and answer session.

I say email because not all people are good at thinking on the spot. It also allows you to work on the questions together.

If they don't have much time, a quick 20-minute conversation can be had and transcribed.

Customers love learning more about those who are doing the work. It allows for a more personalized brand feel. And, as an added benefit, these types of articles translate well into social posts - many times seeing higher engagement rates.

Cover relevant industry trends and current events

This is pretty self-explanatory: write about what's trending. For instance:

• If you're a healthcare company, you may want to be writing about COVID-19 or vaccines in general.
• If you're a specialty insurance company, you may be inclined to write about hurricane season and the "need-to-knows" related to that.
• If you manufacture vintage-inspired baseball bats, you want consider writing about the recent Field of Dreams game or Miguel Cabrera surpassing 500 home runs.

And, finding current events can be relatively easy. Turn on the news; open your favorite social media app; ask colleagues, executives, and friends. This information is out there for you to find.

Bonus: One way that I used to like to cover industry news is to draft monthly round-ups from some of the top headlines in niche publications. This was helpful for external, as well as internal, audiences.

Write a case study

I love long-form writing. Especially, when you can clearly show “How customer X used your product/service Y to achieve Z results.” Consumers like to learn about how others similar to them have had success without being sold to. A long-form case study can do exactly that.

And, there are a couple of ways that you can do this:

• Use the traditional approach of Challenge, Solution, and Results
• Record a 2-minute video story to publish, along with an executive summary
• Develop a downloadable whitepaper on common issues and how to overcome them related to your industry, and include the case examples within

Massive industry events

Take the biggest events in your industry (think CES or SXSW level) and begin developing topic ideas. You can start by writing tips on how to prepare for such large events or write a recap based on your observations following the completion or after each individual day.

Events are also a great way to discover additional topics based on presentations given by other industry experts. Chances are that there will be a few ideas that interest you.

No matter what you write about, these types of blog articles are a great tie-in to timely email marketing campaigns and they can prove impactful in improving your rankings in search results.

Don't ignore your competition

Remember that every blog that your competitor posts is available for you to see. And, chances are, if they’re posting about specific topics, you’ll likely have your own input to share on those topics.

As long as you are writing your own original content, you can take inspiration from anywhere.

Use your notes app

Finally, using the Notes application on your phone is one of the easiest ways to save good stories for later. As many of us know, ideas can come at any time - no matter where you're at.

I use this every single day.

Why? Because, a good story idea to explore can come from anywhere. For me, I've opened this app while:

• taking a walk,
• laying in bed,
• on vacation,
• mowing the lawn,
• or in 1M other situations.

Finding the ideas and building great content can be difficult at times, especially when other demands at work can steal your attention and time. The aforementioned thoughts should help you gain more content quickly, but, if you still have questions or want to talk it through, message me!