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Did you know that companies with blogs produce an average of 67% more leads monthly than companies that don’t blog? And businesses that blog get 55% more website visitors than businesses that don’t. Blogging connects you to your audience in a way that social media just can’t.
It’s a long-form style of communicating and teaching that not only positions YOU as the expert, but also sheds some light onto your perspective, backgrounds, and point of view. This is valuable as all get out because people don’t want to buy from sterile, cold, impersonal businesses. They want to buy from personalities and people they trust. And blogging can help you to gain that trust, WHEN you blog about the right things. Plus, it’s a killer way to bump up your SEO or search engine optimization efforts by consistently bringing in fresh content that ideally uses keywords and phrases to help get MORE people on your website.
I believe that blogging isn’t just important for your business to run to its fullest potential… it’s necessary. But the MAIN issue I see entrepreneurs facing is just knowing what to write about. Writer’s block is real and there’s only so much to cover in your area of expertise, right? Nope!
These are the things that you ACTUALLY need to be blogging about. Yes, some of this will fall within your business niche, but not always. This system has allowed me to blog 4 to 5 days a week for the 9 years I’ve been running a business and never run out of topics to write about. Plus, it allows you to create the right content that your audience wants and needs from you, so that they keep coming to you as the trusted expert in your arena. That’s something worth blogging about… Let’s jump in!
Evergreen Content
So often when we open up a draft to write a blog post, we run through a list in our minds of what’s been happening lately. What’s topical in the world right now, what’s new in the business or your life, what would be timely and interesting at this current junction in time… If that’s how you approach blogging, no shame there. I think that’s what MOST people start with, but I want to urge you to instead start your brainstorming not with what’s most timely or relevant right NOW, but what will be relevant for a long period of time — what can stand the test of times in an ever-changing online world.
Evergreen content is content that doesn’t go out of date. It’s created intentionally to make sense a week from now, a month from now, heck even a year or two from now. It covers a timeless topic that will always be relevant to your readers, no matter what time of year it is or what’s happening in the news. This sort of content is GOLD in the blogging world because it’s something you can promote and re-share time and time again.
One thing to remember is that sharing something once is fine, but only a fraction of your audience sees AND actually clicks through to it. If you’re sharing it in a variety of ways and in a variety of places, your odds of it getting seen and consumed and engaged with are WAY higher. That’s why evergreen content is so key, because it allows you to talk about it anytime without it feeling weird or inauthentic or outdated.
When creating with evergreen in mind, a few things you want to avoid include any talk about past or future posts, seasonal or holiday references, current events or pop culture, any mention of dates, or any other details that might not age well. You want each piece of content to be able to stand on its own and act like someone just landed on your site for the first time when you’re writing it.
And remember, just because you might work in sales, or social media, or photography, or some other specific industry, does NOT mean you only need to blog about that one industry. Do you run a wedding planning business but also love gluten-free baking? Weave that into your content! If someone finds your website because of some stellar gluten-free banana muffins that she’s made 14 times now, she’s more likely to remember you and your brand when the time comes that she needs wedding planning support. It’s okay to branch out from your main realm of expertise and share other things that are important to you. I’d suggest picking 4 to 6 topics that you’re genuinely interested in and know a lot about already, and begin to run through those in your blog content.
Searchable Content
The next thing I want you to focus on in your content creation is answering what people are searching for. Did you know that you can easily use Google and Pinterest for content research and topic inspiration by simply typing a few keywords into the search bar and then scrolling through what it auto-populates in the dropdown menu below?
So for example… if I want to write about money management for entrepreneurs, I can type “entrepreneur income” into the search bar on Pinterest, and the menu auto populates what other people are already searching for in the platform, like entrepreneur money quotes, entrepreneur income tips, entrepreneur income ideas, money making ideas entrepreneur, blogging for money entrepreneur and so on. You can pull so many blog post topic ideas from conducting keyword searches like this using your own list of topics you cover on search engines.
Lots of times we turn to just creating time sensitive content or personal content because it feels natural and easy, but people usually aren’t typing those sorts of subjects into the search bars and if someone doesn’t know you, they likely don’t care about that content. Give them something to care about, be the solution they are looking for, and create with the intention of being that valuable piece of content waiting for someone when they hit that search bar.
Take the time to ask yourself what people are searching for so you can serve your people as they’re looking for answers. Simple step-by-step or how-to posts are some of the BEST forms of educational content because they’re just meant to teach and serve. A lot of times we’re so far in the journey that we forget what it’s like to begin.
If you’re an educator or educating your clients is a part of your process, these step-by-step posts can be super helpful for your audience because it’s what they’re already searching for and breaks down a system or method that might come simply to you but maybe not to all of your audience.
Plus, almost 50% of people reading blogs admit to skimming, not reading everything thoroughly word for word. (I mean, hi, I’m guilty!) These types of how-to posts can easily break down your content into a list of steps with headers and blocks of text that’s easier for readers to consume quickly and move on. Check out what other people in your industry are blogging and teaching about, and adjust the topics to make them your own.
We recently began looking at some super quote-”simple” processes that a first-time entrepreneur might be Googling, like how to make a pin on Pinterest or how to start an email list with no email marketing experience, and we’ve been weaving more of this beginner-specific content into our plan to be able to be the guide to new people entering their business journey.
Personal Content
Finally, the last thing you can incorporate into your blogging content calendar is the occasional personal post. I don’t want this to be your main source of content, but you can certainly pepper in personal posts to keep people connected to something deeper than your brand. Show pieces of your life so they’re connected beyond just what you do or sell. It’s important for people to know/like/trust you, and your story will allow them to build that trust and feel that connection form.
We currently publish about 4 blog posts a week: Two of them cover show notes or recaps of our two weekly podcast episodes, one is geared toward entrepreneurial education, and one covers a more personal topic. That means just 25% of our blog content is “personal,” so I definitely don’t want you to fall back on this as a crutch — because let’s be real, it’s easy to talk about ourselves and what’s happening in our world! But that doesn’t mean it should be our main focus or objective when we create.
Use these posts more as a treat to show your audience what life behind the scenes looks like, or to share something non-business-related like home decor, health and wellness tips, recipes you love, places you’ve visited or other lighthearted lifestyle-related topics. It can also just be a personal update on where you’re at in your family, what you’re grateful for, or what you’re learning in this season. I tend to write just one post covering this sort of deeper personal or family content per month, so definitely don’t feel like you need to dive deep all the time!
The Big Picture
Okay my friend, there you have it! Are we feeling more confident about our blogging plan and coming up with what in the world to actually write about? I know it seems so simple when it’s broken down, but just like everything else in your business, it can easily get bumped down on the priority list if you don’t have a thoughtfully processed plan. I have a team of people helping me create content, so blogging 4 times a week is doable for me in this season, but that doesn’t need to be your approach!
If you can aim for once-weekly or even biweekly blog posts, and stick to that consistently, then you’ll get to experience the benefits of blogging: meeting your audience and serving them where they’re at, boosting your website’s SEO, improving your leads and monthly website visitors, and forging a deeper and more meaningful relationship with your people through personal, how-to, and evergreen posts.
I hope that you feel equipped with a plan to never run out of content ideas ever again, and to totally simplify your blogging approach to be fun and impactful, without a bunch more work! You got this, you blogging star, you.
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