Every piece of content you create is so crucial for your online business. Every blog post has a purpose, right? You are not simply creating content and publishing it just because you could (or you should!).
I am sure you are quite busy! And if you are going to put your fingers on the keyboard and create a piece of content, you have to make sure it is going to be of use to you and to your readers.
How can you be sure that the blog content you create is going to be of use to you? And to your readers/prospects/customers?
It will be useful to either side only if you manage to choose the RIGHT topic for your content.
Not every topic you could write will serve the purpose. Not every blog post would do its job unless it is the RIGHT form of content.
So what IS a right blog post?
The answer is quite simple. A post that serves the purpose both for the readers and to the blog owner is the right blog post.
So as a blogger how can you choose the right blogging topic? Simple! You have to first get clarity about what you want to achieve with your blog post.
It could be any of the following!
- Do you want people to subscribe to your email list
- Do you want them to purchase your product?
- Do you want them to contact you for a quote for one of your services?
- Do you want them to click on a promotional banner?
- Do you want them to register for the webinar?
- Do you want them to leave a comment on your blog post?
- Do you want them to share your post on social media?
This list could go on and on…
You know it, much better than anyone else. So I can’t give you a specific purpose. It is something that you need to get clarity about.
How can you get clarity on what you want to achieve with your content? Well, for that you have to go back to square one my friend (if you haven’t done that bit properly when you started out)!
But wait, it doesn’t end there! Even if you are crystal clear about what you want to accomplish with your content, it doesn’t mean you can simply pick out that topic to blog about. It is not such a direct relation I’m afraid.
You have to pay attention to the following aspects. Let’s dive in!
Are you interested in the topic?
This is crucial. While it is so important that you get more subscribers and more product sales, if the topic that you are trying to publish is of no interest to you, how can you churn out content?
You have to think about it this way - Can you create content on this topic without getting stuck or getting bored?
A very good example that comes to my mind spontaneously is Ana Hoffman. Have you read her Marketing Skinnies? Here’s one.
When she started this series, I thought whether it will be possible for her to consistently write such a collection - she has to sift through hundreds of posts (as she claims!) every week and collect the nuggets and then present them in a good format. Weekly. And this does take quite some work, right?
But she is doing it consistently - every Saturday. So you got my point.
Well, your content won’t cut it if there is no “you” in it. I mean, you have to inject your personality in your content - and you have to create it with your heart. You have to put yourselves in and give in your best shot in creating that content.
And that my friend, is not possible if you are not interested in the topic, in the first place.
OK so the fact that you are not interested doesn’t really stop you from creating content on that topic.
You still have the chance to do so…
Are you willing to create interest on the topic? For the sake of your business? And for the sake of your readers? Think about it…
Are you an expert in the topic?
How much do you know in this area? If you start to write a blog post about how to build a successful blog, you should be an expert. Mediocre blogging advice is everywhere. And people have seen enough of it.
If you want to stand out from the “me too” crowd, your post should be in-depth. And without expertise I’m sure you won’t be able to create such an outstanding post!
So before you pick a topic to write about, think about the following things:
- How much do you know about the topic?
- Can you call yourself an expert on the topic?
- Will others accept you as an expert? - what proof or other material do you have that establishes your expertise on this topic.
- Can you teach this topic? (Knowing something is different from the ability to teach the same to the others) - Hint: Think about it this way - If I call you upon the stage suddenly and ask you to deliver a presentation/speech on this topic in front of about 100 people, can you do it spontaneously (without prior preparation)?
If you are confident about your expertise, you can write on the topic! Note that I am not saying that you should only write/create content fully from your own head. Of course you can and you should do the research and find out what others are saying and add them to the mix (with reference).
And don’t confuse what I am saying here with “uniqueness” - you don’t have to create 100% unique content. Just giving any existing content/topic/idea your unique spin/touch/voice is enough - and this is possible only if you are an expert in the topic!
Moving on…
So what if it turns out that you are not an expert, but you still need to write on this topic to run your business in this particular niche?
You still have the chance to do so…
Are you willing to expand your knowledge on the subject? Are you prepared to do some tests/case studies? Are you willing to keep yourself educated on the topic via resources like books or courses? Think about it…
Can the topic serve the purpose?
So I am going back to where I started this blog post. I said every content is created on the RIGHT topic only if it serves the purpose - both for the readers and to the blog owner.
Even though many topics might sound to be closely related to your niche, not all of them will help you serve the purpose. It doesn’t matter if you took enormous time and effort to create a BIG list of 200 marketing tips - if that post fails to generate sales or email subscriptions as you expected, then the topic didn’t serve the purpose.
You could have written a meaty post about social media success - but if that post fails to get enough social shares, the post didn’t serve the purpose.
Let’s talk from the point of view of your readers.
You could have given them 100 ways to make money online - what if none of them applies to your target reader? The post is a flop!
You could have given 20 best ways to increase email subscribers - but if those tips didn’t practically help your readers to build their email list, the topic is a failure.
Find the topic that serves the purpose can be tricky but you should think carefully about this every time you start creating content. It just has two components to think about:
1. What do you want from your blog (or the content you create)? - be specific. You probably have a list of goals already. Create content that would help you make progress towards any of those goals.
2. What does your reader want? For this you need to first know your ideal reader (ideal customer avatar). And then you need to know about their problems, pain points, fears, interests and so on… you need to deliver what THEY want/need!
Wrapping up…
Before you start creating your next piece of content I want you to think about these points. Oh wait! If I say it like that, you will simply leave after reading this post (hopefully leaving a comment and sharing it on social media) and then forget about it! Right?
Download it and keep it handy. You will need it for every blog post you create!
Hi Jane,
AWESOME post. I totally believe clarity comes first. Really true!
I used to blog like everything under the sun and it was bad enough. I wasn’t able to plan and at the end, most of the blogs goes into bad path.
Great tips and shared around!
Keep up the good work!
~Reginald
Clarity first definitely - I learned it the hard way!
Hi Jane.
Yes, clarity first. I’m learning this the hard way.
I’ve spent so much time reviewing these things recently, and now I need to re-invent myself.
If only I had done this much earlier.
Nathan.
Amen Nathan. Oh I just left a reply to Reginald before reading your comment! See, I’ve learned it the hard way too
Thanks for this awesome post and I like the resources as I was able to think clearly about my audience. Thumbs up
You are welcome Awazie
Excellent points you have raised here Jane. I think that we can all agree on the importance of clarity. We need to sit down and think about what we want each post to achieve before we ever write it.
Glad you liked the post Kostas. Without clarity I’ve wasted a lot of time in my early days of blogging career
Hi Jane,
This is an excellent topic because looking back I made a lot of these types of mistakes. I mean I just wrote about topics I was interested in so I had a feeling that anyone else in my same situation would be interested as well.
Luckily for me it worked to my advantage but I really didn’t have a plan which of course is the smart way to move forward. Flying by the seat of our pants is not the smartest decision we can make, not with all the competition out there now.
I think though if you’re passionate about what you’re writing about, you really know your topic and your audience then that’s more than half the battle right there. Your points though are very spot on so thank you for sharing these and I sure hope everyone coming into this now maps out a good plan. I think I just got lucky.
Hope you’re enjoying your week and thanks for this awesome post.
~Adrienne
You were really lucky Adrienne. Nevertheless such a strategy won’t work these days
The competition is very tough and most of it is quite smarter (than us) in finding out precisely what their audience want - like the big companies and established bloggers with a huge readership.
If we have to create a space for us in this overcrowded sphere, we certainly have to find and server our target audience
Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the rest of your week
Hey Jane,
it’s not about creating valuable content. It’s not about creating quality content. It’s all about creating the right content that will benefit both you and the reader.
I’m glad that you pointed that out. I’ve read so many blog post about creating quality content for your readers, but hardly do I ever read blog posts that talk about content that benefits both the reader and the author.
Yes you can give away free information, but if doesn’t benefit you as well, then you definitely must make a change and figure out how you’re going to make it a win/win situation. When it’s a win/win, then that is the right content you should consistently put out!
Thanks Jane for the share! Have a great rest of the week!
So true indeed - internet is filled with mediocre everything; how can that kind of content serve anyone’s purpose, right?
And thanks so much for the shout, Jane. Doing my Weekly Marketing Skinnies is partially fueled by my own goal to stay on top of all marketing news for the sake of my own business as well as labor of love - it does take a good chunk of my day, every day, to read everything to stay on top of it! Sometimes I am surprised myself that I am still doing them… lol
That’s a good list for my next posts.There a lot of quesition to need to be asked before publishing our content.Thanks for letting us know.
Hello; I followed you here from a comment you left on adrienne smith’s site. this is an unusual take on the subject of choosing successful blog topics to write on. I’ve heard get to know your audience and write to solve their problems many times before. but i’ve never heard anyone talk about is the post or subject good for the author or site owner. way to go, Max