Creating content is important, but let’s face it, sometimes it’s difficult to come up with new content ideas. When you get to that inevitable stuck point, review this list to help trigger your next brilliant content idea.
1. List Article
Seeing as how this very article is a list article (sometimes referred to as a listicle) it seems to be a fitting item to start off our list. Creating a list article is simple, you choose a topic that allows you to outline multiple options. Each of those options then become a list item. The articles almost always start with a number such as 9 Incredible Ways To…, 16 Super Simple Things You Can Do To…, or The 6 Cheapest Tools To…. Titles with a number have also been shown to be one of the most commonly shared pieces of content on social media.
2. Debunking Myths
Every industry has myths. Highlight some of the common myths and reveal the truth behind the myths. You can also take the opposite route and create an article about facts. Or, you can mix the two together with an article that lists statements and then reveals if each item is factual or a myth.
3. Bizarre Holidays
There are a ton of bizarre holidays. From National Beer Day to Hairstyle Appreciation Day there is a bizarre holiday to fit almost every industry. Review the bizarre holidays and identify any that can be related to your business. Keep track of those holidays on your editorial calendar. You can create a content piece around that topic and inform your readers about the holiday.
4. Interview Experts
Interview experts in your industry. For your content piece, you can interview one or more experts. A popular method to gather this content is to prepare your questions ahead of time. Then determine the experts you’d like to interview. Contact them either via e-mail or social media and explain the situation. Let them know that you’re writing an article about a particular topic and you’re looking for experts to share their opinions. Give them a question or set of questions you’ve put together and let them know you’d love to include their opinion in the article if they have time to respond by your deadline. When your article is finished, reach out to each expert referenced in the article. Thank them for participating and provide the link. They will typically want to share the interview with their followers.
5. Build a Glossary or Complete Guide
Create a useful resource specific to your industry. Create a glossary defining terms, acronyms, and jargon commonly used in your business. Or, you can choose a specific topic within your business and create a complete guide explaining exactly how to do that particular item. If you decide to create either of these content ideas, make sure they are detailed, beautiful, and meaningful. If they are, they will get shared and be a wonderful source of backlinks.
6. Share a Study or Survey
Create a content piece using unique research. The simplest way to do this is to send a survey to your users and then share the results in an article. You can also share a case study. Interview a user that has been very successful with your product and outline the experience and successes. Users naturally want to share this type of content with others.
7. Post Reviews of Industry Items
Review items related to your field. This can be applied to physical items or digital items. You can review apps, software services, or physical goods. You can write an extensive review on one item, or create a comparison guide which reviews the pros and cons of multiple similar items.
8. Infographics
Infographics combine data with visuals. Infographics are shared more often than list articles. You may already have content with a lot of data that you can build into an infographic. If you don’t have design experience, you can build an infographic easily using Canva.
If you need data, here are a few good resources:
9. Seasonal Industry Topics
How do seasonal trends affect business in your industry? Are you in the health or beauty industry? How do the seasons affect skin care or allergies? And for the fitness industry, new years resolutions and bathing suit months can cause seasonality trends. There’s also the more obvious seasonal trends such as the holiday gift giving rush for e-commerce shops. Write content specific to the time of year. Try and write this towards the beginning of the season so you can share it throughout the season.
10. Industry Updates
Keep your audience up to date with the industry in general. Things are always changing, make it easy for your users to stay up to date on current trends and best practices.
11. Top News Stories
Need even more content ideas? Share current events and highly discussed news stories. Give your opinion and unique point of view on the situation. Don’t just copy and paste the same story but add value to it.
12. New Product Updates
You can also write content highlighting updates to your product. Of course, you only want this to be a small percentage of your content. However, it is valuable for your users to stay updated with changes to your product. It could also be beneficial to create tutorials and guides to help users get the full potential out of your product features.
Hopefully these content ideas will help provide inspiration for your next post. Do you have an idea for an article not mentioned on this list? Let us know in the comments.
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