If you’re a writer or content creator then you know how unpleasant a writer’s block can be and wonder how to get rid of them. Charles Bukowski said that “writing about a writer’s block is better than not writing at all” and I agree, but also, taking a break or doing something relaxing is a great way to bring inspiration back.
However, what happens when the deadline is looming and you still haven’t produced anything? I suggest you take a look at what fellow writers are working on to find some great articles that will help nip stress in the bud and get your creative juices going.
Doing that, I found six articles that can spark your creativity and help you release that writer’s block. Here they are…
A Very Simple Template to Decide What Content to Create For Your Business Blog (MackCollier.com)
When it comes to content strategy, brands and marketers are often faced with the same question: “How can I make sure that my posts are valuable enough to increase sales?”
Most of the time, the resulting content resembles a typical phone call from a salesman. After explaining how much their product rocks, they will ask if you are interested in giving it a try. However, rarely do they speak from the “you” standpoint. It’s unfailingly about them.
There is a huge disconnect between what brands want to achieve and what they actually do to achieve it.
In this post, Mack Collier doesn’t just ask us to rethink the way they craft their messages and pitches. He also challenges us to show instead of tell.
“You don’t want to blog about your product directly, instead, you want to blog about how your product fits into your customer’s life. That’s how you create content that engages your customer.”
To read the article, click here.
8 Places to Find Great SEO-Friendly Content Ideas (SEMrush)
Anyone with experience in content creation will tell you this: New ideas are easy to come up with but turning them into relevant and targeted pieces of information is another story.
You can’t achieve that with guesswork. Instead, you have to go where your potential audience asks questions.
Do you work with startups and small businesses? Quora is one of the best platforms to visit. Is Internet culture your thing? Reddit will probably suit you better. And what about B2B marketing? LinkedIn to the rescue!
In his excellent article, Mark Walker highlights five additional resources to fuel your inspiration. He also explains how to use Google Search to filter the huge amount of content published on those sites.
To read the post, click here.
Simple Cures for Business Blog Writer’s Block (Business 2 Community)
Corporate blogging goes beyond sharing your latest product news and responding to comments. It is also a way to show consumers why they should choose you over competition.
As such, your blog should serve as a treasure-trove of customer-centric information. Focus on what matters to them. Connect the dots of seemingly unrelated topics. And let backstage take precedence over fluffy announcements.
You probably know many of David Leonhardt’s suggestions. However, I like the angle he takes to give them a new lease on life. My favorite is this one:
“Get into pop culture. Think about movies, books and songs that relate to your product or to your target market, and don’t be shy to draw analogies or pull lessons from pop culture – lessons that will be useful to your audience. I wrote a blog post around Into The Woods, the movie, and I reworded a Christmas carol to better engage my audience. I love pop culture references.”
Read the post here.
Why Vocal Employees Are a Company’s Best PR (Fast Company)
Do you know that LinkedIn hosts more than 50,000 new posts every week?
The platform has become a repository of insights from corporate employees, executives, small business owners, and solo-preneurs. And as such, it’s the perfect spot to study “how smart companies are responding to [the] demand from their workers to be more public,” according to Linkedin’s executive editor, Daniel Roth.
Roth has been keeping an eye on those companies and his conclusion is as follows: There is a lot to gain from encouraging employees to publicly document a brand’s journey.
A great example is Dell. The company has used staff to build advocacy via content that matters to them. This is almost unheard of in the corporate world.
“Executives, HR directors, PR pros see only potential pitfalls—a vocal employee is a poachable employee; someone sharing sharp takes can also share sensitive information; what if employees are boring or, worse, interesting? Better to just to keep the barn door firmly shut.
The approach seems safe. But it’s not. Staying silent means not being part of the dynamic business conversation that is happening everywhere around the world.”
To read the post, click here.
Students Were Forced to Write BuzzFeed Click-bait For Grades. What Happened Next Will Rock Your World! (grow)
As much as we love to despise BuzzFeed, no one can deny that the company has turned click-baiting into a very powerful content strategy. According to Quancast, the website receives an average of 500 million visits every month, 70% of which are mobile only. And every post on Facebook draws engagement levels that most of us could not even dream of achieving.
Scott Cowley, a university marketing instructor, asked his students to follow the Buzzfeed model and craft hyper-targeted content related to Valentine’s Day. Read what happened here.
Examples of Effective Branded Tweets – Learn Viral Secrets (Sendible Insights)
“The harder I work, the luckier I get” – Samuel Goldwyn
Anyone who knows me is aware of my dislike for the word ‘virality’. I don’t believe in it. And I don’t think Psy does either. The musician released five albums before experiencing global stardom with Gangnam Style.
Betting on luck for leads and exposure is the best way to get zero result. It’s much safer to try and find case studies for inspiration.
Matthew Yeoman has done the research for us. Even though I would have used a different title for the post, I think he shares some excellent examples of branded Tweets that had crowds in RTing mode.
As you will see, the wheel was not reinvented. The companies used humor, creativity, and occasionally played with fire. My favorite example is KitKat. What about you?
Read the post here.
I hope you found this list of suggestions helpful.
Join us for our next #BizHeroes chat on Tuesday, April 14. We look forward to reading your insights!
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