If you are reading this, you’ve probably already given some thought to what blog topics to tackle. But how do you know which ones are the most important and will generate the most excitement?
It can be hard to know where to begin when it comes to planning a blog. After all, blogging is rather uncharted territory.
You have no shortage of blog advice out there; from the most basic (e.g., “write about your favorite food”) to the more complicated (e.g., “communicate your unique brand voice”). But as with any other new venture, you need to figure out what kind of blog you want to launch first.
If you are going to give it serious thought, it is probably a good idea to answer these questions ahead of time so that you have an idea of where your future posts might go:
- What kind of content should I write about?
- What type of audience do I want to attract?
- And What Should I Blog About First?
And if you are interested in learning how to figure out what to blog about, keep reading for some tips on how!
1). Consider your passions, interests, and style
This is the first step in figuring out what to blog about. As you are planning to launch your blog, it is important to consider what kind of content you would like to write about.
For example, if you already have a lot of experience in one area (e.g., fashion), then it would be wise to stick with that topic. If you are a budding writer and want to start blogging about writing or literature, then that topic might be a good choice for your first post.
As an added bonus, writing about something that holds close personal meaning can also help you gain an emotional connection with your readers.
And this is why some of the most popular blogs on the Internet (e.g., Huffington Post) cover topics that are tied directly to their founders’ personal lives.
In addition, take into account the type of audience you want to attract for your blog posts.
If you are a fashion blogger who wants people from all over the world to read your posts, then it might be best not to write about something so niche as cooking, despite how much fun it may be!
Another example would be if you are trying to start a business blog, but don’t have any experience in marketing or selling products online. In this case, it may make sense not to tackle such broad topics until after you have gained some more experience in the field!
2). Consider the blogs you read.
It can be difficult to know what type of topics should be the focal point of your blog when you have no prior professional experience in blogging. However, by taking an audit of what you already enjoy reading, you can have an idea of what you would be interested in writing about.
For example, if you enjoy reading fashion blogs, then you would probably be interested in blogging on the topic of fashion. If you enjoy reading food blogs, then you would probably be interested in blogging about cooking. And if you enjoy reading political blogs, then it is likely that you would be interested in blogging on political issues.
Taking a brief audit of what topics have caught your attention on other blogs, will help to give you a better idea of what topics are most popular with your target audience.
3). Think about missing content from your favorite blogs
Another way to figure out what to blog about is to look at what your favorite bloggers are doing.
For example, if you love the blog GourmetFood.com, you can use their content as inspiration for your own blog post.
While at it, look at what they are missing. What topics aren’t they covering well?
Are they not covering a particular subject that you feel is important?
What do their readers say they want to read about?
Take these insights and apply the findings to your own blog.
For instance, if you want to blog about your passion for cooking, pay attention to what the big blog within that niche is doing well and what they are not covering.
Then, use these insights to inform your own blog posts.
4). Present solutions to problems
This might be the easiest way to figure out what to blog about.
You can think of your blog as a place where people come to find solutions to their problems.
If you want your blog to be about how you solve problems for yourself, it is important for you to write posts that are useful and practical.
For example, if you want to learn how to grow a successful blog, research what others who have already succeeded in blogging have done.
Make notes of the things that made them successful and apply these insights in your own blogging.
5). Write to a specific person
This is a very useful way of figuring out what to blog about.
Whenever starting a blog, you are often asked to figure out the ‘avatar’ or the persona of your target audience.
You can use this to figure out what to blog about.
What is their age? How much do they earn? What do they like?
This information will help you decide what kind of content you should be writing for your blog.
Tailor your content to this specific person and you will be able to write posts that they will find useful.
6). Consider your professional experience.
What have you been working on lately? What have you learned that might be useful to your readers?
If you have been working in the publishing industry, for example, there are probably writing tips and tricks that your readers might appreciate. Or if you have been working on projects in the field of social media, you may have some insights to offer that are unique.
7). Consider your personal experience.
What have you been doing lately? What have you learned that might be useful to your readers?
If you’ve recently lost a loved one, you might have some insights on grief. Or if you’ve been going through some personal struggles lately, maybe your readers could relate.
8). What do you want to teach your children?
If you have children, what are you going to teach them? What do you want to help them understand about life, love, and loss?
Maybe your readers are also parents and this is an easy way for them to connect with you.
9). What type of life do you want to design for yourself?
Another way to figure out what to blog about is to ask yourself what type of life do you want to design for yourself?
- What are your goals?
- What are the things that make you happy?
- What do you enjoy doing?
- What do you want to be known for?
- What do you want your legacy to be?
For example, if you want to live a long and healthy life, you want to be able to promote healthy living. If you want to be remembered as a successful businessperson, you want to promote business success.
If you want to be happy, you want to be happy. If you want to live a long, healthy, and productive life, you want to be able to promote healthy living. If you want to be successful in business, you want to be known for successful business practices.
Do you get the idea?
10). What area of your life do you want to improve?
This is another way to figure out what to blog about. What area of your life do you want to improve?
For example, if you want to be financially successful, you would want to blog about finance. If you want to become more positive and productive in your life, you would want to blog about personal development, lifestyle, and behavior.
If you want a healthier lifestyle, you would like to make healthier choices, and so on.
11). What makes you angry?
You might want to go through a list of things that make you angry.
By auditing things that disgust you, it is possible to identify things you can blog about.
For example, if you are not a fan of something, you can use that rage to power your blogging.
12). Consider ways to monetize your blog.
If you are going to blog, you need to know how to make money from it. Before blogging, I had no idea how to monetize my blog. I started a blog and thought that I would get some hits, but what I didn’t realize was that it would take me about two years to build up traffic.
If you don’t know yet, blogging isn’t free.
You need a way to pay for the domain and hosting every month or every year.
As such, when choosing a topic to blog about, consider its income opportunities.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there are many different ways to figure out what to blog about.
But if you keep these four tips in mind, then you will be able to find your perfect niche and write about it for years to come!
And remember: Blogging is a very new field of writing. It’s not going anywhere any time soon.
And as long as people want to read blogs, there will always be a demand for content that touches on the human experience from the perspective of someone who has lived through it firsthand.
It is up to us as bloggers whether we choose to write about our passions or personal struggles—it all depends on what we think our readers would enjoy reading about!
