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20 Best Blog Post Ideas for Small Business Blogging
By Donna Gunter (c) 2009

"So, what do I blog about each time?" is a question I often
get from clients. To keep your blog active and healthy, I
recommend blogging at least 3 times per week. However,
that notion is overwhelming for many. Even though you may
be an expert in a topic, your mind may go completely blank
when it comes time to blog, and then at other times when
you're not blogging, your idea cup runneth over.

The primary thing to remember is that blog posts don't have
to be long and complicated. You're not writing an article,
a report or a thesis. Many times a blog post is only a
paragraph consisting of a few sentences that contain your
thoughts about something. Now, doesn't that sound easier
than composing a 600-word post each time you sit down to
blog?

Here are 20 ideas you can use to help you create a blog
post when you're stuck for an idea:

1. Current events. Can you link what you do in your
business to a current event? Open up your daily newspaper
or your RSS news reader and see what's happening in the
world, your country, your state, or your city. Give your
opinion about the event and a solution, if you have it, and
relate that to your business if you can.

2. Trends in your industry. I read constantly and
subscribe to more industry publications than I have time to
review. However, there are a handful that I do regularly
read, and it's to those that I look to for what the trends
seem to be. When you blog about the trend, put your unique
perspective on it, or write a rebuttal post, disagreeing
with the relevance of the trend.

3. Get personal. Tell a story about what's happening in
your life or in your business that would be useful or
instructive for your readers. Chronicle both your highs and
lows, your wins and your struggles. One key to successful
blogging is getting personal with your readers. The more
"real" you are with your readers, the better your reader
gets to know you and begins to like and trust you. You
become a "real, live" human being to them who faces similar
issues that they face.

4. Top 10. Most of my writing is in the form of a Top 10
list because it's an easy way for me to outline the points
I want to make and then go back and fill in the details for
each point. In this case, each of your points for a topic
can become an individual blog post, and when all the points
are complete, you can compile the full list for an article
for your ezine or website.

5. Frequently asked questions. If you've been in business
for awhile, you know the questions that clients and
prospective clients ask you to answer over and over again.
Instead of repeatedly responding to the same questions,
write a series of blog posts that answer your target
market's most frequently asked questions.

6. How you helped a client solve a problem. Clients hire
you to solve a specific problem they're having, whether
they do that when they buy your service or your product.
List 3-5 most recent problems that you have helped your
clients solve. Create a post that talks about the problem
and the solution you provided (either with your client's
permission, or by making it generic enough to hide the
client's identity) that becomes a learning experience for
your readers.

7. Interview an expert. What people do you know and
admire in your industry? If you admire them, chances are
that members of your target market do, as well. Contact
them for a short email or recorded interview and ask them
3-5 questions that you'd like to hear them answer about
their lives, their businesses, industry trends, or how to
solve a particular problem. Publish the interviews as blog
posts, adding audio and graphics if you have them.

8. Solicit and answer questions. Ask your ezine
subscribers or blog readers to ask you their most pressing
question related to what you do. I do this and get
questions for 1-2 blog posts per week, and it helps me stay
in touch with the needs of my readers, as well.

9. Review something. Read a good book lately related to
your industry? Just purchased a product to help you solve
a problem? Reviews aren't limited to the critics at the
New York Times. Blog about your experience with a product,
book, or service, highlighting both the high points and low
points, and whether you would recommend that others use or
purchase it.

10. Read other blogs. Go to Google's Blog Search or
Technorati and find other blogs related to your industry or
your target market. Add those to your blog reader and take
an hour or two each week to read the posts on those blogs.
Do you agree or disagree with the post? Have another point
of view? Think the blogger was on target but you want to
expand on her point of view? Reading other blogs is a
great way to generate ideas for your own blog.

11. Keep an idea file. Sometimes a blogging idea or
concept will strike you when you don't need (or want) to
blog. Begin a blog idea file by creating a document or
spreadsheet to track your ideas and thoughts. If you're in
the zone, go ahead and write the post, and then you can
post it to your blog on a day when the idea well is dry.

12. Create a tutorial.  There's always something you can
tell your target market how to do. Create a written,
audio, or video tutorial of the process as your blog post.
Depending on the complexity of the tasks, the tutorial may
need to created in multiple parts, like Part 1, Part 2,
etc., which would make for multiple posts to your blog.

13. Share a positive/negative email. I often share
exceptionally positive or negative emails I receive from
people (without names to protect their identity as
appropriate) either to celebrate kudos I've received or to
demonstrate how I responded to a particularly nasty or
upsetting comment. I get the most mileage out of the
negative emails, and I often ask for feedback about how my
readers might respond to the situation.

14. Take a tour. Take a self-made in-person or virtual
tour of something useful to your readers. For example, if
you're a dating coach, tour the top 5 online dating sites
and report your experiences as a client in each. If
you're a restaurant consultant, visit 3 local restaurants
and evaluate what's often overlooked in staff training
based on your experience as a customer.

15. Write about a Twitter or Facebook update. You only
get 140 characters in Twitter to write about something. If
you need more space, or want to respond in greater length
to someone's Tweet or Facebook status update, do so in your
blog. Thought-provoking questions are often asked on
Twitter, and the answers may inspire you to blog.

16. Create a "Best of" list. What are the top 7 blogs to
read in your industry? How about the top 5 people to
watch? What about the 10 most useful online tools you use?
Nothing attracts attention on a blog quicker than a list,
so create one yourself or ask your readers to help you in
the process.

17. Report from an event. Attending a professional trade
show, conference, or networking event? You can report live
about your experiences at the event on your blog. Talk
about the workshops your attended, the vendors you met, the
speaker you heard -- the sky's the limit!

18. Debunk a myth. Each industry is plagued with myths
and fallacies about success/failure or what does/doesn't
work that the industry professionals would like to see
vanquished once and for all. Use your blog to debunk some
of the most common myths/preconceptions/notions in your
industry and set the record straight.

19. Talk to newbies. Picture yourself as a newbie in
your industry once again. What do you know now that you
didn't know then? What questions did you ask? What
knowledge do you have that you think everyone knows?
Getting back to the basics can help bring all of your blog
readers up to speed.

20. Write about a client conversation. Many times I'm
inspired to blog as an expansion or continuation of a
conversation I had with a client. The blog post focuses on
a topic of the conversation, not the conversation itself.
Typically the strategy/idea/technique you've discussed with
one client will benefit your blog readers as well.

This is just the tip of a very large iceberg of ideas for
posts to your blog. Take a look around your life, your
business, conversations with clients and colleagues, and
what's happening in the world around you. You'll soon begin
to see more potential for blog posts than you ever thought
possible!
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Internet Marketing Strategist and Boomer Biz Coach Donna
Gunter helps baby boomers create profitable online
retirement businesses that they love by demystifying and
simplifying the tools and strategies needed to market and
grow their businesses online. To claim your FR*EE gift,
TurboCharge Your Online Marketing Toolkit, visit her site
at http://www.OnlineBizU.com . Ask Donna an Internet
Marketing question at http://www.AskDonnaGunter.com
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