How to come up with content for your blog #YouWannaBeABlogger

So you’ve started your blog.

You’ve got your URL.

You’ve got your blog name.

The next step – WRITING.

This can be the most daunting part of blogging… the realization that now you have to come up with content for your blog AND on a regular basis.

Don’t worry, I promise – it’s not nearly as daunting as you think it might be. I’m going to share some tips as to how you can keep coming up with content and consistently keep it fresh.

1. Create an editorial calendar.
This is something I don’t do regularly, but it’s VERY helpful. Sit down with a calendar and just start jotting down ideas that you have for the month. Let them flow easily and don’t hold back. If nothing seems to make sense as a whole – that’s OK. If you’re talking about fashion one day and fitness the next, don’t worry. It’s very helpful to give yourself conversation/topic starters for your blog. You can also google “editorial calendar ideas” and many different calendars will pop up giving you ideas as to what kinds of holidays or trending topics are going on that month.

2. Think about what you REALLY want to blog about.
If you’re a foodie blogger, you might want to try and have recipes up 2-3 times a week.
If you’re a crafting blogger, you might want to try and have crafts up 2-3 times a week.
If you’re a fashion blogger, you might want to do fashion breakdowns/round-ups every single day.
If you’re travel blogger, you might want to hone in on different travel topics for the week.
Really think about the content you love to write and want to write about. It’s easier to come up with content once you know you have a direction. I’m a lifestyle and a fashion blogger, so I make sure that each day I blog about SOMETHING fashion related. I’m either posting a fashion round-up, a look of the day, a fashion deal or something that I’m just loving that week.
I also love to write about my personal life, so I open myself up to personal stories about my kids and daily doings and happenings with my family. With my family, there’s “new” content every single day, but it’s just deciding what it is I want to share and feel comfortable about putting out there.
Really THINK about what is it you want to write about because it will give you a sense of direction for your writing and allow the content to flow easily.

3. Give yourself a SERIES.
Sometimes the easiest thing to do is to give yourself an assignment for your blog. When I first decided I wanted to write about fashion, I literally gave myself the blogging assignment of “365 Days of Fashion Advice for Moms.” I knew that every single day throughout 2012 I was going to write about something fashion related. I put it out there and I held myself accountable. It was easy for me to come up with steady content because I literally had given myself a certain niche and a certain topic to write about.

4. Google Trends/News Outlet
If you’re stuck on trying to come up with content, a great thing to do is check out what’s going on in the news or what is trending. It might spark some inspiration for you! There are some days I just don’t know what to write about and I’ll see what’s trending and then I’ll be “hit” with some inspiration… it really helps.

5. Photos and Videos
If you’re worried about trying to come up with consistent written content each week, another suggestion I have to adding in a heavy photo day or video day. If you’re not comfortable with video, I understand… but it’s a great way to mix things up and have some different content out there. I love participating in “Wordless Wednesday” and “Throwback Thursday.” It’s a great way to pop up some content and have it be fun and easy for you.
If you’re not familiar with Wordless Wednesday or Throwback Thursday – on Wednesday you pop up a photo and only write a little text / on Thursday you pop up a photo from the past. It’s a really fun and engaging way to add some content to your blog.

I hope these 5 different ways help you get yourself going!

If you have any question, please feel free to ask me – I’m always here! 🙂

Past posts that might be helpful:
Blogging Advice: 5 Tips for New Bloggers
Twitter 101: Understanding Twitter
So you wanna be a blogger? 5 tips to get you moving!