A lot has been written out there about what subject matter gets blog traffic and backlinks. What hasn’t been written about enough is how and where to get the inspiration to blog. That’s why I am sharing a few sources of inspiration I use.
1. Reading other blogs. I’ve used many methods of browsing blogs. So far, the easiest and most broad in scope has been through using Google Reader. You can develop a collection of favorite blogs over time and visit them in one place rather than bouncing around blog to blog. The blogroll is all but obsolete when you consider the handy nature of feed readers like Google Reader. As I read, I usually don’t even get through three blogs before I have an inspiring idea for a post. It is a good idea to recognize the blogger who wrote the article in your article. However, if the new post idea is not clearly related, you should feel no obligation to do so.
2. My kids. When I consciously take time away from my duties of life (including my computer) I get at least one or two inspiring ideas to blog on. I guess the only advice here is to do something with them away from the computer. If you end up making it into a profitable post, make sure you pay then with a trip to the pizza parlor or something else they’d enjoy.
3. Movies. I do most my movie reviews at Blogcritics nowadays. After that I usually write a shorter blurb about the movie on my blog to point people there. Sometimes these short blurbs get more comments than the Blogcritics pages. Every time I watch a movie I am imagining what the review will be like. I have learned a lot writing for Blogcritics.
4. Google Trends. This is another excellent service Google provides that shows you what people are searching for. This is probably not a sure-fire way to get visitors but it can get you thinking and therefore inspired to write a post that will indeed be relevant.
Those are four inspiration sources for me. I hope you’ll try them out and find success in your blog journey.
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4 Comments
Twitter: Happymaker
Cool, Damien! I’d never even heard of Blogcritics before. I think my husband would love to do that. Do you get a share of AdSense revenue for that, or just exposure for yourself and your blog(s)?
Twitter: rileycentral
You don’t get paid for Blogcritics writing. However, it is a form of payment that you get backlinks from a very highly rated site. This translates into more opps from advertisers down the road. Plus, you get read by a lot more people and get your name out there. If he has any questions, have him contact me.
Twitter: Happymaker
You are awesome, thank you! :)
Twitter: ConnieFoggles
There’s more listed that I don’t use than I do use. I’m going to have to bookmark this to look through these to see which ones to add.