7 Ways To Build Killer Blog Content

This post is in reply to the 100’s (if not 1000’s) of times I’ve seen the question: “Where do I get content for my blog?” In the past I’d answer “From your own brain” but this time I’ll go into a bit more detail.

There are literally thousands of ways to get ideas for blog content, but the following 7 should be enough to get any new blogger started:

1. Write about things you’re passionate about.

Some of the best, not necessarily the biggest, blogs on the internet are written by passionate people. They understand that in order to write on a subject day after day, they need to be interested in that subject, or better yet, fascinated about it… and that shows through in everything they write.

Whether it’s a 2000+ word tutorial on the intricacies of CSS, or a three word sentence commenting on a link to another blog, that passion will show through. It’ll engage the reader, and that’s what keeps readers coming back for more.

2. Give a unique perspective on what other people are writing about.

If you follow blogs at all, you have probably noticed how, when one of the bigger blogs writes on a particular story, it has a cascade effect across dozens or even hundreds of other blogs… but the other blogs often only echo what the original blogger wrote.

Of course, you don’t want to be the only blog in your niche who doesn’t cover the story or you’ll look uninformed, so write about the same story, but from a unique perspective. You can play devil’s advocate, concentrate on an angle that no-one has done yet, bring to light a point that contradicts the status quo, etc.

3. Subscribe to everything and everyone in your niche.

In the point above I mentioned being informed. One of the best ways to stay on the cutting edge of what’s going on in your niche is to subscribe to other bloggers, news sites, Google Alerts, bookmarkeing sites like del.icio.us, reddit and digg, etc. in your niche.

Yes, you’ll be instantly flooded with more news and content than you may be prepared for, but you’ll never have an excuse for not having anything to write about again.

4. Use photos, illustrations, graphs and charts in your posts.

Content isn’t simple text. Photos are content too. Use illustration to make a point about , or simplify something complicated. Got data? Generate a colorful pie chart ot 3D graph and embed it into your post to add visual interest. It’s all content.

5. Product reviews and ratings.

Every niche has related products and if you’re stuck for something to write about, do an in-depth product review outlining your own experiences of using a product related to your niche. The more detail you go into the better as it makes for a much more comprehensive article.

6. Create or embed video content.

Youtube, Metacafe, DailyMotion and Myspace Video are excellent sites to go and search for videos related to your niche. Not only can you find ideas for blog posts, but all these sites let you embed those videos right into your blog posts and give your readers a whole new level of information and entertainment.

Of course, if you have a webcam of your own, turn it on and film yourself talking about or even demonstrating products in your niche. Then upload the video to Youtube and embed that video into your blog.

7. Find guest bloggers or columnists.

Ask other bloggers in your niche, or even your readers, to submit a guest blog post or two, or more, and publish that. You could take it a step further by either paying someone or taking on an intern as a regular daily or weekly columnist for your blog. You’d be surprised how many people would jump at the chance to submit an article or two to a blog they read regularly.

The above 7 tips are merely starting points to help you with ideas for generating blog content. The main thing to remember is this: Make sure your content is original and engaging. Scraped or autogenerated crap is just that; crap.

[Blocks photo by Holger Zscheyge via Flickr.]