Blogging Tips - 5 Steps To Create Fresh Blog Content

This is a guest post by Joe Pawlikowski who writes on A New Level. Also See How To Become a guest author on BlogTipsNTricks.

Consistent content style fuels your blog. Without it, you simply cannot attract an audience. It's no surprise, then, that your inability to come up with fresh new content might signal the end of your blog. But it doesn't have to be that way. You can always find ways to generate more content.

The process is a few steps long, but if you follow them then you'll find yourself rejuvenated and ready to produce content like it was your first day with your blog.

1. Remember your mission

When you started blogging you did so with a purpose. You had something to say, and you made sure to cover it in many ways. When the ideas stop flowing it might seem as though you no longer have anything to say. But chances are it's something else entirely.

It could be that you merely lost your focus. It happens to everyone. At some point you start deviating from your original mission, which takes away from the blogging experience. Thankfully, the fix is simple.

The first step to generating new ideas is to remember your mission. In the process you might even find a new mission. Whatever the case, take the time to think about and write down your blogging mission. That should start the re-energizing process.

2. Read the library

When people tell me that they've run out of blogging ideas, I always ask them a simple question. "Well, what have you been reading lately?" All too often the answer is that they're not reading much of anything. They're too busy, or they just don't have the motivation. That might be the biggest problem right there.

If you're blogging about a particular niche, you should read not only everything published in that niche, but also the larger genres. For instance, I publish a blog about prepaid cell phones. Not only do I read everything on the internet about prepaid phones, but I also read about all types of phones, and even technology trends in general.

Read everything, too: books, magazines, newspapers, and blogs. They all convey information in different ways, and each way will inspire you in a different way. If you are a blogger, reading is part of your job.

3. Free associate

Now that you've reestablished your mission and have gotten into the habit of reading, it's time to start coming up with ideas. The simplest and easiest way to accomplish this is to perform some free association. All you have to do is write down a general term on top of a piece of paper. Chandeep might write "blogging," while I might write, "smartphone."

From there you just write all words and phrases you associate with that general term. You can time yourself to make the task a bit more urgent. At the end you'll have a page full of words and phrases associated with your topic. If you've been doing your reading, you'll be able to connect many of those words and phrases. Hidden in them is a treasure trove of ideas.

Want to make it even better? Do the same thing three times, with three different starting terms. Then look at all your lists at once. You'll make novel connections that will help you create fresh, new content.

4. Get away

You might choose to do this before free association, but that's of little importance. The important part is that every single blogger goes through periods of burnout. Your inability to come up with new content ideas might just be a symptom of burnout. The best way to deal with this is to get away, if even for just an afternoon.

Many of us can't afford to get away in a vacation sense, but we don't need to go that far. Spending a day working in an unfamiliar environment, such as a coffee shop, can work wonders on the psyche. I did this recently, taking my trusty Lenovo Ultrabook to the park and to Starbucks for an afternoon. When I returned to the office I felt like a new man.

If you decide to get away after you do your free association, make sure to go back and look at your lists again. I guarantee that you make some connections that you didn't see previously.

5. Get cracking

By this point you should find yourself refreshed. You've declared your mission, you've armed yourself with knowledge through reading, you've started the creative process, and you've given our brain a break. Now there are no excuses. It's time to start writing that fresh, new content.

When you do this, make sure you eliminate distraction. No Facebook, no Twitter, no email, no instant messages. Just you, the blank page, and some research materials. If you've gotten to this point, I have no doubt that you'll be back to turning out great blog posts day after day.

About The Author
Joe Pawlikowski has written and edited blogs for seven years, including sports and technology blogs. He writes about his experiences with small business at A New Level.

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