It’s a familiar story to anyone running a website or a blog: you need more content, and you need it now. But you just don’t have any ideas left. You’ve used them all up, and the well is bone-dry. Worse, you know that this is a problem that isn’t going to stop any time soon. The content machine is always hungry, and you’ve constantly got to find quality content to feed it.
While the writing might be tedious, often the most exhausting part is simply coming up with new topics, new ideas, and simply new directions. The more you right, the less there seems to be to cover – even if you’re scouring the news and industry blogs for some little nugget of gold that will bless you with a ton of all the good stuff.
The good news is that you’re not alone: everyone, even the most successful content marketers, have this uncomfortable, never-ending Mt. Everest of ideas to scale, but that doesn’t mean that you’re stuck. If you’re tired of searching Quora and forums for new ideas, then here are a few ideas that might help you to approach this thorny issue from another angle.
Tools are awesome for finding content. By tools, I mean websites such as Buzzsumo, one which gives you a mountain of content based on the simple keyword you use. Better yet, you can also see how popular the subject is. Most importantly, it cuts down on research.
What’s really cool about these tools is that you can simply plug in a keyword, wait a few seconds, and bam: content ideas a-go-go are waiting for you. It also lets you see what people are talking about, as well as judge whether the traffic is worth your time.
Rewriting OK, this might be something of a dirty word, but in a pinch, it’s your best ally. Why reinvent the wheel? I don’t mean that you should put something through an article spinner, cross your fingers and hope for the best: I mean take the article and swap it all up into your own words.
This strategy also lets you take advantage of the painstaking research of bigger names and the stacks of money they put into researching what works for their content marketing. Why spend your own dime on it when it’s already done?
All you really need to do here is regularly check up on big blogs in your niche and find inspiration. Just don’t copy! Rewrite so it’s 100% plagiarism free.
Testing is another great thing to check out. Ever feel like you’re getting tunnel vision from rehashing the same old, same old time and time again? Then why not start experimenting with headlines? Headlines are super important, and can make or break your article. If it’s not a great headline, a lot of people won’t even look.
So, it pays off to do some experimenting to see which headlines give you the most bang for your buck and ask people which they like best: the one which gets their attention, rather than makes their eyes lazily scroll over to the next page.
Note that these ideas aren’t about stealing the hard work of others. Instead, you’re looking for ideas and approaches that work, and then adding your own spin on it. In other words, research what’s working, and then adapt it to your style.
Content ideas can be tough – but that doesn’t mean you can’t still knock ‘em out the park!