Use almost anything to inspire your next blog

USE ALMOST

ANYTHING TO INSPIRE

YOUR NEXT BLOG POST

BY RYAN SULLIVAN

@NOMOREBACON

WWW.NOMOREBACON.COM

CREATE STELLAR POST IDEAS

“An idea that is not

dangerous is unworthy of

being called an idea at all.”

-Oscar Wilde

SOLVE A PROBLEM

INVOKE AN EMOTION

MAKE A POINT

Source: XKCD.com

SELL SOMETHING

RESEARCH IT

YOU KNOW THAT PART OF HOMEWORK

THAT NOBODY REALLY LIKES…

WARNING

Getting lost in research is a real possibility. The tools

and information that follows is meant to help you

generate great post ideas that you can then write about.

Once you have gathered a good group of ideas step

away and get writing!

Please don’t make us plan an intervention.

GOOGLE IS YOUR FRIEND

Wonder Wheel

Use it to start with a very generic idea that can stem into very

specific highly searched topics.

GOOGLE IS YOUR FRIEND

(CONT)

Google Keyword Research Tool

Using the Google keyword tool won’t only help you find out

how your post will do on search engines, it can help you

come up with even MORE ideas and will let you get inside the

heads of what people are searching and want to know about.

GOOGLE IS STILL YOUR FRIEND

Use Social Search to See If Your Friends

Are Talking About Your Blog Post Idea

• You can quote your friends and give them credit.

• Share their link as a resource in your post (great for

community)

• Check and see if your idea has been beaten to death

recently

MORE PLACES TO GET

POST IDEAS

• Stumbleupon Buzz – most viewed content http://stumbleupon.com/discover/toprated

• Delicious Popular Page - top bookmarked content http://www.delicious.com/popular

• Yahoo Answers – A community of people asking ?s http://answers.yahoo.com/

• Google Hot Trends – What’s popular right now? http://www.google.com/trends/hottrends

• Print Magazines – Great examples of headlines RANDOM FACT: The headline in the top left corner of the last 12 issues of Cosmopolitan are all sex related.

CROWDSOURCE IT

BECAUSE ASKING PEOPLE WHAT THEY

WANT USUALLY GIVES YOU A BETTER

IDEA OF WHAT THEY WANT…

WARNING

Simply asking people “What Should I Write About?” can

make you come across as unsure of yourself or wishy

washy. Ask in confidence and phrase the question

carefully. “What would you like to see me write about

more?” might be a better way to phrase the question.

• Ask followers what they’d like you to write about.

• Bounce a potential blog idea off of people to see if there’s

any level of interest.

• Ask a specific question and use people’s replies to the

question as content for your blog post.

• Do a twitter search on your topic to see what everyone

else is talking about and then put your own spin on it.

• The Yahoo Answers for professionals

• Experts in many fields willing to share their time and

expertise

• Ask specific questions to get specific answers.

“What are some highly recommended programs for

people looking to lose over 100 pounds?”

• Community can upvote/downvote replies (weeds out

trolls).

• Many times you’ll get replies from actual founders of

programs. Great additions to any blog post.

GOOGLE FORMS

Using Google Docs you can set up a free form that you can

post on your blog to ask users what they want to learn more

about from you.

• Keep it anonymous (don’t require name or email)

• You may get a few trolls, just ignore them

• Increases probability that people will engage

• Use the feedback you get!

MASH IT

IF GLEE HAS TAUGHT US ANYTHING, IT’S

THAT PUTTING TWO UNEXPECTED THINGS

TOGETHER CAN HAVE AN AWESOME RESULT

COMBINE TWO RANDOM THINGS

+

=

EVERYTHING IS A

POTENTIAL BLOG POST

Insanity Isn’t Just The Name Of An At-Home Workout

Look at the intensity and the

fire in his eyes. This bomber is

clearly not a man who messes

around. His middle name is

testosterone and his first

name is “Made of.” Following

his lead we’ll be assured to

take our next workout to

another level. “Go hard or go

home” is the resounding

message from this master

craftsman.

COMBINE OLD POSTS

INTO A RESOURCE POST

Combining some of your old posts on a topic into one great

resource is a great way to build links to your site and become

a true resource and awesome information source to your

readers.

“The Ultimate Resource For…”

“A Beginner’s Guide to…”

“27 Ways to…”

LIVE IT

NO SUBSTITUTIONS, NO SHORTCUTS, NO

EXCEPTIONS

IT’S ALL BEEN

WRITTEN

IT’S ALL BEEN

WRITTEN

COMMON HANGUPS

• Don’t get stuck researching (I did)

• Just because you’ve read a post on a topic doesn’t mean

your readers have

• You have a unique voice and a unique way of

communicating ideas that your readers like

• Look at topics or stories from multiple angles.

• Thinking that an accomplishment or something you did is

insignificant.

BE YOURSELF AND

TELL IT THE WAY IT IS

One of my more successful posts ever was a post about

Whole Foods. I didn’t go out of my way to praise them but I

made some observations that pretty much everyone who

read it said “Yeah, that’s totally how it is!”

BE YOU AND

HAVE FUN!

FIND ME ON THE

WORLD WIDE WEB!

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @nomorebacon

Facebook: facebook.com/nomorebacon