What is content? Content is any form of media that you create for your audience. And it’s not just about what you post on social media, it includes all the blog posts, videos, photos, and podcasts that you produce.
But how do you create content that your audience will love? That’s a tricky question. This post will help to answer that question by teaching you how I create content—and why I think it works so well.
There are three ways to get started: brainstorming ideas, taking inspiration from others, or looking at what your competitors are doing. But which way should you choose? Read on to find out!
Who is your audience?
If you want to create the kind of content that your audience will love, then you need to have an idea of who they are. And that’s not easy to work out. But it’s not impossible either.
You can start by thinking about Great Guest Posts the topics your audience is interested in. If your blog has any specialties in that area, then that will help you to make more targeted posts in the future. If you write about financial topics, then it will also be useful if you know a little about currency markets, since those can often be a key focus for your readers.
Are you a career coach? Then perhaps you can see what people in your target audience are interested in through the job ads section of your website.
What are the benefits of brainstorming ideas?
When you brainstorm ideas, you’ll think of all kinds of content ideas. And sometimes, you’ll come up with several that are so good you just know you have to write about them.
But how do you know what content you should create? This is a tough question, and the best answer is the one you’re left with after you write down all the ideas that come to mind. But there are a few good reasons to brainstorm ideas first:
Get all the ideas out of your head
Do a thorough analysis
Give yourself time to explore ideas
You’ll be surprised at how many good ideas you have. But it also helps to make sure you’re using your time wisely—and thinking of the best ways to tackle each one.
The creative process of taking inspiration from others
It’s actually quite easy to take inspiration from other sites.
Inspiration from others
Is it okay to read books, magazines, and online articles to get inspiration for content? You can. But do you really want to read articles all day?
If you ask any publicist, they will tell you that I am an absolute rockstar at doing both in one sitting. I write, edit, and schedule content all in one sitting, then submit it to multiple email lists and social media feeds. (Think I’m joking?)
But don’t you sometimes get sick of reading the same stuff over and over? Don’t you get tired of listening to a certain new podcast? It’s actually OK to turn to other sources of content—it’s just a question of how you use it.
If I’m feeling stuck in my current work flow, I may turn to a social media feed of related industries to inspire my current work. Or I might look at similar articles to mine.
Looking at competitors in the market
When you want to build a product or a service, it’s tempting to compare yourself to the competition. You might look at what your competitors are doing, and you may even use some of their content to help you in your own journey to success.
When I first started my YouTube channel, I used all the videos from “famous YouTubers” as my inspiration. But after a while I found that these videos weren’t providing me with the kind of inspiration and information that I wanted.
As soon as I started to compare myself to the competition, I lost all of my excitement and passion for creating content.
Instead, I started to watch other video creators. They were doing something that I wanted to do—and it was working.
How to build a content calendar and post schedule
It’s been said that great content is timeless. As someone who produces content for their audience (specifically, the full-time editor of Escapade Music & Video Magazine), I wholeheartedly agree. What’s also true is that if you want to be successful, you have to continue to produce quality content at the appropriate times—both for the audience and for your own personal growth and development.
So, how can you create a content calendar?
The number one rule for creating a content calendar is to never allow yourself to put content out that you don’t believe is strong and relevant to your target audience.
How I create my blog posts and videos
The first thing I do is to brainstorm ideas. This can be difficult.
I think of a lot of things to write about. But I always struggle to pick something to write about. If I was to tell you my top 20 most popular articles, you’d probably be very disappointed.
My blog has evolved from a learning blog to a DIY site. And that means I write a lot of different posts and videos. But I always aim to focus on the areas of my blog that are a natural fit for DIYers and hobbyists.
My main purpose for doing this is to make sure I write about topics that people really care about—because the more that people want to hear about a particular topic, the more it’s likely to work for you.
Content ideas don’t necessarily have to be perfect or coherent.
Conclusion
With any new idea, you’ll likely have a ton of questions, like:
Which type of content should I create?
How do I get my audience interested in my content?
Should I create articles, videos, etc.?
How much do I need to spend?
How much do I want to spend on content?
These are just a few of the questions that I get asked about what content to create.
I’ve been doing this long enough that I’ve created a plan that I believe gives me the best chance of turning my ideas into successful content.