5 Quick Ways to Find Blog Post Ideas

Quickly coming up with blog post ideas can be a frustrating exercise, but it doesn’t have to be.
What I try to do is have several good blog post ideas on hand all the time.  Once you get behind the curve on ideas that’s when you’ll start wasting time and get frustrated.
My WordPress rough drafts section can have as many as 50 post at one time sitting there waiting for me to put the finishing touches on them.
Getting those ideas means always being on the lookout and jotting them down when I think of them.  Even if I just get the title into the draft, that can be a pretty good start to writing my post.
But first let’s find out how to quickly get those blog post ideas rolling

If you’re in tune to your target market and what interests them, then it’s just a matter of finding ideas and presenting them creatively, which we’ll talk about in my next post.
But for today here are 5 quick ways I use to find blog posts and a few quick bonus reference ideas at the end.
1.  Use Google Alerts
Google’s great for helping me find ideas.   You can do a Google search or have a look on Google News but I think a much easier and faster way is to use Google Alerts.
Start by making a list of your blog’s categories.  Next, go to Google Alerts and use those category titles as search terms for the Alerts.
For example, let’s say you have a weight loss for women blog and your categories are:
- Weight loss pills
- weight loss diet plans
- weight loss tips
- weight loss Exercise
Next, type in the keyword phrase for each category into Google Alerts and complete the requested parameters:

• Type – This is your choice but I want all the ideas I can get so I choose ‘All’
• How often  – I like ‘As it happens’
• Volume – I prefer ‘only the best results’
• Your email address

Delivered to your email inbox will be everything as it happens in Google for that keyword phrase.  This will give you ideas, news and blog posts related to your keywords.
This is a great way to get information delivered directly to you without spending your own time searching.  I’ve even used these alerts to find some excellent blog posts that I can comment on.
2.  Ask Your Readers
If you have your own opt-in email list, and you should, you can easily create a follow-up email that simply asks each reader what they most want to know, or you can create a free survey using surveymonkey.com.  It’s super simple to set up.  Just follow the directions.
Once you have your survey set up, add it to your autoresponder as a follow-up email and you’re done.  As each subscriber signs-up, they’ll get your email asking them your question.   Soon you’ll start seeing responses come in that you can create blog posts around.
I’ve gotten tons of good information this way on a steady basis.  Many people are so anxious to find quality, candid information they’re happy to talk about what their problems are and what they most want to know.
3.  Use your Competitors for Ideas
Take a minute and find popular blogs that compete with yours. To easily find those blogs, use this command:

site:.com inurl:blog “YOUR KEYWORDS”

This command will find all .com blogs that have your keyword phrase in the title and/or description.  You can substitute .com for .org, .net or whatever suffix you want.
Next, if you don’t already have one, create an account on feedreader.com, it’s free. Once you are set up, add the news feed of each blog to Feedreader.
Now each day when you log into Feedreader you’ll see the latest blog posts for your chosen blogs.
The blog posts that get your attention are probably great ideas for posts you can write yourself.  You can create a whole new post of  your own on the ideas you see in other blogs, or you can simply comment on already existing posts.  If  you’re commenting on their post, don’t’ forget to include a link to it.

4. Get Help From The Pro’s

There are 2 places I use regularly to help me get ideas for blog posts.  I use them because they post information that people read, so I frequently find great ideas.
Alltop - This blogging site features all the top stories from all the best blogs for just about any niche.  Just type a keyword into the search box and you’ll find related blogs and their latest blog posts.  From there you’ll get tons of blog post ideas that you can write about.
Technorati - You won’t find as much detail on Technorati as Alltop but their directory will help you find blogs of interest so that you can view their posts for ideas.

5.  No Time to Spare?  Use These Quick Reference Ideas
If you’re still struggling with ideas, here are a few quick things you can do in a pinch:

• Tell a personal story about your blogging experiences.
• Find the best posts from other blogs in your niche and then create a ‘Best Of’ list.
• Create a list of WordPress plugins that you use or that other bloggers in your topic use.
• Do a small video of your home office. People would love to know what your personal office looks like. 

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