You know your business can benefit from publishing blogs and video blogs (or vlogs), but how do you choose what to blog about?

5 Important Tips before you get started:

1. Think about SEO – Your blog or vlog can be a huge opportunity to improve the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of your website. Things like website SEO optimization plug-ins and paid ads can help your site rank higher in searches, but quality blogging is an often-overlooked opportunity that can really help your business get found.  Find out how your blogs or vlogs can help your website rank higher in search results – Check out our blog “Why is Blogging Important for SEO?” 

2. Topics and Titles Matter – Before settling on a topic for your blog, try to think about it from the perspective of the person who might be searching for the services or products your business provides. What are they searching for?  How will they enter their query into a search engine?  Keep your topics positive, upbeat, and relevant to your target audience and the key terms they’re likely going to search for. Try to create a title for your blog that appeals to your target audience, promises to provide value, and focuses on keywords.  For example, “The Easiest Way to Potty Train Your Puppy” will likely get more traffic than “Potty Training and Your Dog” because the first title is more appealing, shows value to the reader, and includes long-tail keywords.

3. Don’t be Salesy! People read blogs because they are entertaining or educational in some way. If you turn your blog or vlog into a sales pitch, it comes off badly to readers or viewers and they will quickly click away from your website to another listing in the search results.

4. Proof Read. Proof Read.  Proof Read.  A few accidentally overlooked typos can be all it takes for a reader to decide that your blog isn’t the quality content they’re looking for and click off to another search result.  Take the time to thoroughly proofread your blog and the written description of your vlog on YouTube.  Take a break from writing and proofing and come back to it later to check it over one more time with a fresh set of eyes and consider asking someone else to proof it for you, just in case you missed something.

5. Don’t Forget About The Descriptions When You Post – Whether it’s a blog or a vlog, it’s important to create a descriptive snippet of text that helps to describe the topic and value of your blog to encourage people to click to read it. These short descriptions can be used in a variety of places: as part of the meta data that shows in searches, as the preview text on social posts, or as the teaser text on your main blog page that encourages visitors to “Read More.”

Here are 50 Ideas to Help You Start Your Blog/Vlog Topic

1. “The Easiest Way to…”
2. Demonstrate how to use a product
3. “The Best Way to…”
4. Show a project in progress
5. “The Quickest Way to…”
6. Answer a frequently asked question
7. “Why You Should or Shouldn’t do ____”
8. “The Ultimate List of…”
9. “10 ____ Mistakes that make you look ____”
10. Explain a process
11. “____ vs. ____: Which is best?”
12. “The 10 Best Apps for ____”
13. Explain when (or when not) to use your company’s services or products
14. “The Top 15 Blogs Every ____ Needs to Read”
15. Interview an expert
16. Teach a technique
17. Review a book
18. Discuss an industry trend
19. “Go Behind the Scenes of ____”
20. Tell the story of how your business came to be
21. Create a resource list for your clients
22. Share some tips and tricks for getting the most from your product or service
23. Create a step-by-step how-to post that relates to your target market or industry
24. Post a product or service demonstration
25. Share company news that demonstrates your company culture
26. Highlight a charity or non-profit your business supports
27. Ask for a guest post from another person/company related to your business
28. Share a list of your favorite industry-related quotes
29. Explain what your company’s mission statement means
30. Share a case study
31. Interview a client or customer
32. “A Day in the Life of ___”
33. Share a list of your favorite industry-related books/movies
34. Share highlights of a recent event or industry conference
35. Explain common industry acronyms
36. Take a seemingly unrelated topic and explain how it is relevant to your industry
37. What is the best part of what you do?
38. Share your plans for the future of your business
39. Share a list of common industry myths and facts
40. What’s the best part of your job/business?
41. How has your industry/business grown or changed over time?
42. How is your company helping to give back to the community?
43. Share a weekly link roundup of the most popular industry news or blogs
44. Give a sneak peek of a new product or service offering
45. Share popular industry trends and make predictions about future trends
46. Share what other industries can learn from yours
47. Create a roundup of your most popular blogs from the past year
48. Introduce staff and share their skills and interests
49. Highlight a business that you partner with and explain why you’ve partnered
50. Create a poll or survey and share the results on your blog

Need help with your blogs?  Niche is happy to assist!  Give us a call to schedule your marketing consultation: 443-787-4951