Oh sh*t, it’s already May. 😱
Have you already exhausted your new and exciting blog ideas? Running low on social inspo? Struggling to keep up with the never-ending content machine?
At DTC, we do this content thing on a pretty regular basis, so we thought we’d share some of our go-to tips for generating enough content ideas to last you an entire year.
(Thirteen tips, exactly. Because let’s be honest, ten is soooo boring.)
Bookmark this one for your next content brainstorming sesh! 👇
🚀 Tip 1: Create follow-ups to your top-performing content
One of the oldest tricks in the book, but it still works like a charm.
Try taking your top 5-10 pieces of content and brainstorm ways you can create follow-ups or expanded versions of those posts. You already know they’re popular topics with your audience!
💬 Tip 2: Read old blog comments
This is another way to get a sense of the content types that resonate most with your audience.
Do you have a blog post that received a lot of negative critiques or questions? Create more content that addresses those. On the flip side, if a piece got a lot of positive feedback, see if there are ways you can repurpose that content in another way to duplicate the success.
❔ Tip 3: Repurpose FAQs
Reusing FAQs about your product or service is a great way to create bottom-of-funnel content that answers common customer questions and reduces friction in the buying process. This type of content also tends to kill it with SEO.
Not only that, having a public place to send customers to get their questions answered can be a huge help to your CS teams! 🙌
📄 Tip 4: Utilize internal guidance documents
Do you have internal company docs like how-to’s, cheat sheets, product guides, etc.?
If the nature of your brand allows (i.e., the content isn’t trade secret or proprietary), those can be repurposed into customer-facing content that provides value and educates about your product.
⭐ Tip 5: Look at product reviews (and/or competitor reviews)
Reviews are an absolute goldmine for getting into your customer’s head. They tell you what customers like and don’t like, what they wish they could change, and questions or concerns they have.
Additionally, reading reviews on your competitor’s websites helps you understand if there are voids to be filled in your market.
💬 Tip 6: Social DMs and comments
Another gem for finding content inspo? Look within the dark depths of your social comments and DMs.
Social media is where customers tend to ask questions and voice their opinions most freely (sometimes to our dismay). You can find a lot of great ideas here!
🧑🏽🤝🧑🏽 Tip 7: Chat with CS
Connecting with someone on your customer service team or even looking through support tickets can be a great way to generate content ideas that speak directly to your customer’s pain points.
CS reps talk to customers all day, every day. There’s no one else that knows your audience better!
💰 Tip 8: Partner up with sales
Another great department to connect with at your company is sales since they also have a direct line to customers.
Even better, are there recordings of sales calls you could listen to or live calls/demos you could attend? Then you can listen to exactly what potential customers are saying and the questions they’re asking.
🔎 Tip 9: Use Google Search Console
Understanding what terms users search for when they end up on your site can be powerful fuel for content ideas.
Are they searching for “blueberry popsicles,” but you only have a recipe for raspberry? There’s an idea right there.
Are readers looking for “how to clean a cast iron,” and you sell cast iron cleaning supplies? Bingo. You get the idea.
🔴 Tip 10: Browse Reddit
Reddit is a content bonanza. Just do a little browsing for terms related to your brand, product, or service, and you’ll get loads of ideas for content. Trust us.
You can also follow threads related to your industry to simply stay in tune with the latest trends and get a sense of what people are interested in.
💡 Tip 11: Get inspo from other brands
Now, we’re not saying to copy anyone here, but looking at content from other brands (especially in other industries for a fresh perspective) can help to get your creative wheels turning.
❓ Tip 12: Set up an account on Quora
Quora is literally a platform for asking questions, so it’s a great place for getting a sense of what people need help with and how you can provide value. Once you set up an account, you can follow relevant “spaces” to your industry, as well as ask and answer questions.
For example, if you run a baking website, you could post the question “What are your biggest struggles with baking sourdough bread?” and get tons of juicy ideas for future content.
🙋 Tip 13: Ask your customers!
Novel idea, right? 😏
At the end of the day, you create content for your customers, so directly asking them what they want more of is a surefire way to create content that resonates. Think about how you can regularly ask about your customer’s needs via surveys, social polls, email, phone calls, SMS, etc.
