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We have all been there before: sitting around a table with fellow coworkers, racking our brains for new blog ideas. Maybe it’s Monday, maybe you’re tired or maybe you just have no idea how to best jump on the blogging train. Whatever the reason may be for your unsuccessful brainstorming session, don’t worry! Brainstorming about the best strategies for our clients is something the Agency Entourage team does on a regular basis. Here are some of the best ways to crank out content ideas that rock!
- Define target audience. You won’t get far if you don’t know who your blog is for. While using successful blogs for inspiration is productive, don’t forget that your content must be targeted to your audience. What kind of calls have been coming in? What does your company or your clients want to learn? Listen to those around you and pay attention to the kind of people who are engaging with the company. Don’t get distracted with content that won’t relate to your message.
- Research the business. Whether your blogging for your company or someone else’s, immerse yourself in the history of the company as well as where they stand today and what’s important to them. Who are their employees? What do they do on a day-to-day basis? Also check up on what the company does outside of work. Are they involved in the community? Do they enjoy weekly happy hours at a local dive? Every piece of the company puzzle should fit together and be well presented on their blog.
- Interview stakeholders. The most well-informed individuals of a company are those at the head of the table. While a company’s stakeholders may not take part in the blog, they can still provide valuable information to share to the blog’s audience. Perhaps it’s a family company that has been passed down through generations – that’s a great story. Take the time to set up an interview with as many key players of the company as you can. Split up parts of the interview into different blog posts and use parts of the interview for quotes in future posts.
- Find inspiration. Blogs can be a useful resource when you’re in need of inspiration but it shouldn’t be the only place you look. Scan a newsstand and look closely at the cover stories that stand out. Take time to read books, magazines, newspapers – whatever you can get your hands on. Pinpoint some of your favorite authors and articles then try to decipher why their style of writing gets your attention.
- Go to Google. If you aren’t sure what kind of topic you should write about, let Google tell you. The automated search suggestions when you start to enter your search term can actually be a useful tool. For example, if you know you want your blog to be about the purpose of a press release but you want to be more specific, type in “should a press release have” then see what Google fills in. Their suggestions will reveal the most frequent questions about what press releases should include. Let your blog have the answer!
Check back next week for the remaining five content brainstorming ideas. In the meantime, you can find us coming up with our next award-winning idea for a client. Call 214-414-3035 if you want a top DFW social media agency to brainstorm for you.
