How to write content for a blog?
How to write content for a blog? A question that I get asked almost every day.
Thats bad news because blog content is the number 1 ranking factor in Google. And some people are really missing out.
In this post, I will tell you how you can come up with new blog content and write it so everyone enjoys reading it!
Why content is important for your blog
Everyone who is browsing the web has questions they would like to have answered. Probably just like you, reading the blog post.
Most of the time people search Google, youtube or other search engines to find what they are looking for. If you have a blog with great content there is a good chance that you can provide the answer to their questions.
Content plays a huge role in SEO, if you talk about a topic and cover all the information people need, search engines will notice. They are always looking for the most accurate solutions to provide in the search results!
Do keyword research for your content
To create content that will rank high in Google and other search engines you will need to know how to do some keyword research. There are a lot of tools online that will help you with this process. Some popular ones that I like to use are:
- SEMrush.com
- Ahrefs.com
- Mangools.com
- Moz.com
- Ubersuggest.com
Use one of these tools to check competition and search volume for your keywords.
So how do you use these tools to get new blog content ideas? Easy! Type in a keyword and these tools will give you a list of related keywords.
These related keywords are called: long tail keywords. They are great for marketing and will be much easier to rank for.
Note: More details on traffic? Read how to get more traffic
Use Google to get inspiration
Google is a great tool to get some of the best content ideas!
Go to google and type in a search term related to your niche. Now you can see that Google will give you suggestions. When they suggest you a term it means it’s searched for and thus a great tool to get perfect content.
Tip: If you execute a search and you scroll down to the bottom of the page you will find even more related search terms.
Use forums for content ideas
Forums are a great way to find subjects to write about on your blog. Type in any keyword that is related to your niche in Google followed by the word “forum”.
You will get a ton of results from people asking questions in your niche. These are great ideas to write content about and reply to their question with your post.
Here are some examples of forums you can search on:
- TripAdvisor – Travel blogs
- The fashion spot – Fashion related niches
- Writing forums – Copywriting
- Warrior forums – Marketing and business
Use Reddit and Quora
This works a bit the same as a forum search and works just as good. Go to your search engine of choice and type in your keyword + “Reddit” or “Quora”.
These sites are used for every kind of questions and because of that a great resource for blog post ideas.
Be very specific
Sometimes running out of content ideas is a sign that you are not writing in the right niche. Or maybe your niche is to global and you need to focus on a more specific niche.
If you find the right niche, you will know it because the content will come naturally.
This does not at all mean you should switch niche the first time you run out of content.
It is not bad to write an article a little bit off-topic every once in a while. This way you will get a new view on your niche and get into the habit of creating new original content again.
Note: Looking for a good niche? Read finding the right niche
Learn from your competition
Another way to come up with some of the best content for your blog is by looking at what your competition is writing about.
A free tool I use all the time for this process is Ubersuggest. It lets you analyze your competitors’ websites for free and see which keywords they are ranking for.
If you have an idea for a new blog post write one better then your rivals. This way you will end up higher in the search results!
Get SEO content from other webpages
For this part of this tutorial, I will be using SEMrush but another great tool you can use is Ahrefs.
This technique will help you find keywords that will rank. This is because we will use your competition to find the pages they are ranking for.
Here are the steps you need to follow to get the right words:
Search for competitors and their content
In SEMrush navigate to Domain Analytics > Organic research. Once you are on this page you will see all the organic keywords your competition is ranking for. This could be a way to find content ideas for your blog already. But there is more…
Find out where their traffic is coming from
Under the tab “pages” you will find the top pages from your competitors. These are the pages that generate traffic and they rank for in Google.
To use this data in our advantage to create the best content possible we will be looking at the keywords. Search for a page in the list that has a decent search volume and that is related to your niche
When you found a page you like, head over to the “Keywords” tab and click the number that is displayed.
Use the keywords for your post topic
Now there are a couple of things you can do to find the best keywords for your SEO content. First of all, I would suggest setting a filter for the search volume. Also, I would order the results on KD, especially if your blog is relatively new.
What you will end up with is a list of keyword ideas that you can create content about!
Use the right images
Images are very important to use inside your blog content. It creates a Hierarchy for your reader and divides long pieces of text.
There are a couple of ways to find stunning images for your blog:
Use a stock photo website for images
Stock photo’s are beautiful images that will give a unique feel to your site. A lot of websites have free stock images. Some websites that I always use are:
- Unsplash.com – Free
- Burst – Free
- Shutterstock – Paid
Use explaining vectors in your content
Think about a graph or an Infographic. Vectors are sometimes the best way to explain a subject in a visual way.
There are plenty of websites that offer free vectors but the one I always use is Freepik.com
Note: If you want more details, read best photography content
TIP: choose a niche you like!
Creating content for your travel blog is maybe the easiest thing to do. Here is how I get content for my own website:
If you are a traveler:
Think about the places you have visited and what you can write about your experience there.
A lot of places have no good information about them online. This is your chance to get in the top results with your travel content!
If you are not a traveler:
You should be a traveler if you are writing a blog about it! However, if you are not there are still great ways to find subjects for your blog posts.
TripAdvisor is a great website to find travel topics to write about. One way to get ideas is to go to their website and visit the forums section.
Here you will find thousands of questions of travelers that are looking for answers.
Note: Did you not start a blog yet? Read: why you should start a blog
