Pump up your writing muscle!
Good blog writing is not about using big words or smothering your reader with unnecessary details.
Instead, use a blogging magnet that works. Plain and simple writing.
Keep your visitors reading your posts, and taking it all in.
Park your blogger’s pencil by these 7 Secrets. They work. Read More→
At the core of this blogging tip is an essential truth: Ideas are around you all the time. Everywhere. Every day.
Sometimes they sneak up on you when you’re not looking and voila! You knock out your best blog post yet, and in record time.
Yet much of the time you may be reaching for new ideas for your content, and the well seems dry.
As for writing that terrific post? Riding a bicycle backwards in a rainstorm looks easier.
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What’s a little blogger to do?
Develop a handful of ways to find ideas, and use them. Regularly.
Many times, even though we’ve absorbed a few blogging tips for our idea factory, we forget we even know them! We find ourselves staring at that scary blank screen… again. Hoping some flash of brilliance will come our way.
Okay. That said, here are my top 4 ways of finding new ideas.
Huey Lewis and his band are still playing, and so is the daily news.
Check out the headlines of the day on Google News and Yahoo News. See what’s popular on the Web at Yahoo Buzz. Look for stories that would make a good lead-in to a topic related to your niche.
As I write this, we’re in the midst of an election season. Pay attention to political ads and stories. What the politicians are (and maybe are not) saying may fit nicely under your thinking cap.
One thing to keep in mind when perusing the news for ideas, is to allow yourself to stretch a bit. News stories can often have an indirect relationship to your topic or theme.
Here’s an example: 3 Blogging Tips (and 1 Mistake That Could Sink Your Ship!)
Remember, they’re popular for a reason. Here are my top 3:
Mashable
Billed as a “Social Media Guide,” this multi-layered site really has it goin’ on. Along with Social Media, categories include Web Video, Mobile, Tech, Business, Entertainment and Social Good.
Copyblogger
Okay, you’re right, I’m biased. Not only is this blog solidly in the top twenty, it happens to be the number one blog in my niche. Think I go there often?
Problogger
The blogging tips on this site are all about how to make money blogging. Hmm… might you find some good content ideas here?
There are plenty more. Those are just my personal faves. Find yours.
There’s no need to go cloak and dagger when spying on your competition. Many bloggers in the same niche develop great working relationships.
Use Google Blog Search to find the popular blogs in your niche. There is a nifty little search box that allows you to limit your search to blogs.
Once you’ve located them, bookmark your favorites. Visit regularly.
Plug your keywords into their search box and see what comes up. What are they talking about? How are they talking about it?
NOTE: Do not ever copy and paste someone’s material. Not only will the search engines ding you for duplicate content, it’s just unethical. And unnecessary! You can quote the piece giving due credit; link back to the original story or post; or just grab the core idea, rework it and make it your own (highly recommended).
Since I began blogging and posting regularly, I have often found myself viewing the events of my day through a different lens.
“Ooh, that would make a great blog post!” or “I must tell my readers about that!” really are common thoughts. If it hasn’t yet happened to you, it will.
Here’s an example of a blog post created from attending the theater:
A Wickedly True Story About Content
My last blogging tip today is to keep a swipe file of all those good ideas.
What’s a swipe file? A text document with a list of those stellar ideas you’ve come across. Maybe a short description of each, and where it applies, a link back to the material that inspired you.
You may not always be ready to use that idea the minute you find it. Store it in your swipe file and you can forget about that short term memory loss.
Got a great idea? Need a boost in putting it all together? Do yourself – and your business – an enormous favor and take a good copywriting course. Here’s one I recommend. Excellent material, incredible price: The Ultimate Copywriting Crash Course
Is online copywriting dead?
Video marketing has been an active player in the internet world for a while now.
The medium works well with a culture that has become more and more visually oriented.
Do you really need to learn copywriting? Especially online copywriting?
I mean really, is there any reason to write anything anymore? Read More→
Our attention span is shrinking.
Some studies say that on the web it’s less than a minute.
Others say it’s as short as 7 tiny little seconds.
What’s a blogger to do?
Here are 6 quick blog writing tips to help you grab their attention. Read More→
Jonathan Budd is making big claims about the traffic generation potential of the Facebook social networking site.
He also sees Facebook rapidly advancing on search engine giant Google. If this scenario plays out, it may please some folks.
The little understood “Google Slap” has been a big topic among networkers. Everybody knows one thing: it’s been bad for business.
Jonathan Budd’s “Get Traffic 3.0,” is his new video series, aimed at finding a cure for your Google woes. Read More→
