Creating great blog posts takes careful planning and copious research. You can’t rush it. At the same time, it’s vital to release content regularly to keep your readers invested. You can’t afford to waste time deliberating over blog topics.
One of the hardest parts about starting and maintaining a blog is deciding which new blog post ideas to write about. What piece of content will engage your readers and keep their attention? The answer is different for every blog.
This article will give you some great blog post ideas and topics you can use in your content marketing. Feel free to bounce from section to section using the links below.
Anticipate writer’s block
If you’ve ever had writer’s block, you know how frustrating it can be. Sitting in front of a blank computer screen for hours racking your brain about what to type next can be incredibly draining.
One of the best defenses against writer’s block is having a predetermined plan for what you’ll be covering in a blog post. Brainstorming topics for your posts in advance can give you a starting point to help launch your ideas.
That’s why it’s wise for bloggers to always have lists of potential blog topics in their back pockets. Preplanned blog ideas help writers to round up their thoughts and start writing content regularly without having to pause to come up with new topics.
Your blog’s purpose
The purpose of your blog will help you decide how to relate to your target audience. If you are using your blog to generate sales leads or add to your email list, you’ll likely write a lot of material about how your products can solve your readers’ specific problems. If you’ll be monetizing your blog as a subscription service, you may want to create a lot of educational or entertainment content that’s valuable to readers in your industry.
The broad theme of your blog as a whole is called your niche. You can find blogs about all sorts of niches like parenting, fitness, cooking, finance, relationships, and everything else you can imagine. Your niche should be something you’re passionate about, knowledgeable about, or something that pertains to your business.
Every post you write for your blog should be related to your chosen niche. But choosing a broad category isn’t enough. Great blog content is highly targeted. If you want your blog to be successful, it’s important to further segment your potential audience.
Let’s say your niche is finance. If you simply write content for finance in general, you’ll be competing for readers with every other finance blog in the world, including the ones owned by large corporations with huge budgets. But if you write finance articles for a specific group, like older generations trying to save money for retirement, you’ll have a lot less competition.
When you understand your audience, you can use search engine optimization (SEO) programs to help with keyword research and make your blog more visible to your intended readers. SEO tools can help you make content rank highly on the search engine results pages (SERPs) for keywords your target audience is already looking for so you can get more blog traffic.
18 best blog post ideas
In the next few sections, we’ll provide a cheat sheet of blog post topics to help kick-start your creative juices, so you don’t run out of ideas.
Lifestyle ideas
If you have an interesting lifestyle, why not blog about it? People love reading about the day-to-day lives of people who are different from them. Or you can write about something relatable. Write about your morning routine. Maybe you live with roommates. Why not tell stories of all the pranks you play on each other.
Some lifestyle ideas include:
- Travel posts: Talk about some of the cool places you’ve been to or even some of the places you want to go to. You can also make these types of blog posts to help people travel to new places. For example, write a post about all the vaccinations someone would need if they were traveling from the United States to Mozambique.
- Food posts: Share your favorite recipe or talk about a dish from a restaurant you love. Maybe you can make a list post of your favorite places to get a certain type of food or your favorite food delivery apps. For example, write a post about the best places to get sushi in Los Angeles.
- Fitness posts: You don’t have to have an eight-pack to write a post about fitness. Write an article about the benefits of a certain type of exercise, like swimming or cycling. Or give workout advice for a specific group of people, like seniors or pregnant women. For example, write a post sharing an effective 10-minute workout routine for busy professionals.
Educational ideas
If you have a talent for explaining complex subjects in a way that’s easy to understand, why not share your knowledge? If you have graphic design skills, you might even create infographics to clarify your educational content.
Degrees or certifications in a specific area can help your credibility, but they’re not always a requirement for writing educational posts. Sometimes, you can use your lack of expertise to your advantage. Posts that explain elaborate topics in layman’s terms can be relatable to other non-experts.
Some educational ideas include:
- Finance posts: Show people the principles of how to best invest their money. Write about economic trends that could affect people’s livelihoods. You can make extremely targeted financial content for several types of people. For example, write tutorials on how to start a 529 savings account to pay for a child’s college education expenses.
- Parenting posts: Raising kids is tough. If you’ve learned a thing or two about parenting, help new parents out by sharing your knowledge with them. For example, write the ultimate guide about what to cook for a picky toddler or the best ways to get a kindergartener excited about learning math.
- Case study posts: Share a behind-the-scenes anecdote from your personal life and tell your readers what it taught you. Or write about an instance where another party used your products or services. For example, post a story about what you learned about project management from helping your first software development team.
Productivity ideas
Everyone wants to be more productive. Do you have any tips or pointers that can help your readers get more done or hack to help them tackle certain tasks easier? There’s a huge demand for productivity content.
Some productivity ideas include:
- DIY posts: DIY stands for “do it yourself.” Show your readers how to do something they would normally have a professional do. These posts can be about topics like home improvement, auto repair, gardening, and technology. For example, make a DIY post teaching a remote manager how to set up a home studio to film their training videos.
- How-to posts: Give your audience step-by-step instructions for completing a specific task. How-to content should be easy to follow. Try to use basic language and spread out your text to be easier to read. For example, write a post about how to apply for student aid and various scholarships.
- FAQ posts: FAQ stands for “frequently asked questions.” If you sell a new product, keep track of the questions people ask most often about your service. Answer these questions in your FAQ section. For example, write a post answering all the common questions that users ask about editing software.
Entertainment ideas
People are immediately drawn to stories about celebrities, giveaways, and pop culture. You can also post book reviews or lists of inspirational quotes. You can find relevant entertainment topics people are looking for using tools like Google Trends, checking trending pages on social media platforms like Twitter or Facebook, or viewing trending results on forums like Quora.
Some entertainment ideas include:
- Fashion posts: Help your readers decide what to wear or show them what their favorite celebrities and influencers are wearing. You can write fashion posts aimed at all different types of people and in all different types of situations. For example, write a post about the most fashionable winter outfits available on Amazon that cost under $100.
- Music posts: Let your audience know what some of their favorite artists are up to or about up-and-coming bands they might enjoy. You can even write lists ranking musicians from different eras or genres. For example, write a post ranking the best rock and roll keyboardists of the 1960s.
- Sports posts: Give your audience results about popular sporting events or breaking news about their favorite athletes. Speculate about how teams will perform. For example, write a new blog post about the 10 teams with the best chance to reach the Super Bowl.
Repurposing content ideas
If you’ve already got popular blog posts, maybe you can reuse them as springboards for other posts. Sometimes, you can also use content from other businesses or creators. Just be sure to give credit where it’s due and avoid plagiarism.
Some repurposing content ideas include:
- Your take on compiled relevant topic tweets posts: Make a list of others’ tweets that pertain to your topic and analyze it. For example, write a post highlighting the best examples of how corporations use Twitter to engage their consumers.
- YouTube video transcription posts: Video content is a great way to reach a huge audience, but some readers prefer to read. Making a written version of a popular YouTube video or even a webinar can help you reach both types of consumers. For example, you could post a text version of a video on how to choose the best security software for a company.
- Update existing blog posts: If there are new developments about a topic you’ve written about before, let your audience know about them. You can update blogs about popular events, or you can post personal updates. For example, post a monthly update denoting your progress while you’re following a particular workout program.
Promoting business ideas
If visitors believe they can rely on your blog for helpful business ideas and suggestions, they’ll likely become loyal readers. Write about things like business best practices, principles, and misconceptions people may have.
Some promoting business ideas include:
- Business posts: Give readers guides, tips, and strategies that can help them run and expand their businesses. You can also give them updates about news and events that could impact their business. For example, write a guide on how to apply for a “doing business as” (DBA) name to open a new branch of a company.
- Interview posts: Find experienced professionals in your industry who can provide valuable insight to those who are just starting. Featuring professionals on your blog or even having them make guest posts is also a good way to increase your credibility. For example, you could post an interview with a software developer who has 25 years of experience in the industry and is looking to share knowledge with computer science majors just entering the job market.
- Success story posts: Running a business can be draining. Everyone needs an occasional pick-me-up. Inspire your readers with stories about your success or the success of someone else in your industry. For example, you could write a story about how two entrepreneurs started a T-shirt business that earned over $1 million in revenue over the last year.
Keep your new content coming
One of the most important keys to making your blog successful is to deliver content consistently. If subscribers don’t get value from your posts regularly, they’ll find the information they need elsewhere. If you plan out your topic ideas beforehand, it will be much easier to churn out articles that will satisfy and delight your audience.
But if you’re a busy business owner, you might not have the time or energy to write your content. Upwork has experienced blog writers from all over the world waiting to help your small business succeed. Let us know what you’re looking for, and we’ll introduce you to the top freelance professionals to meet your business needs.
