{"id":11283,"date":"2012-11-26T08:00:23","date_gmt":"2012-11-26T13:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.shareaholic.com\/?p=11283"},"modified":"2014-05-09T12:38:58","modified_gmt":"2014-05-09T16:38:58","slug":"what-to-blog-about-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/what-to-blog-about-right-now\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Should Blog About RIGHT NOW"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re a blogger, you sometimes feel like you’re out of ideas. Everything you write feels rehashed and stale. It happens–we\u2019ve all been there.<\/p>\n

In this post, I’ll show you how to find out what people are interested in\u00a0right this minute<\/strong>\u00a0and use it to put a fresh spin on your blogging.<\/p>\n

Introducing Google Trends<\/h3>\n

Google Trends<\/a>, a keyword search tool the search company recently revamped, is a\u00a0great tool to\u00a0find out what’s trending.\u00a0You may already use\u00a0Google’s Keyword Tool<\/a>\u00a0to compare and and finding keywords and their search volumes, but that data doesn’t change much month-to-month.\u00a0On the other hand, Google Trends can help surface\u00a0new ideas and topics every month and give you a understanding of what people are interested in at this moment.<\/p>\n

Find the Breakout Keywords You Should Be Writing About<\/h3>\n

Let\u2019s start with \u2018Rising terms.\u2019 These are keywords seeing a recent surge in search traffic. Check this chart at the beginning of each month to ensure your blog’s\u00a0editorial calendar<\/a>\u00a0includes the newest, hottest topics in your niche.<\/p>\n

For this example, we’ll be researching “pumpkin recipes” from the perspective of a food blogger.\u00a0First, add your target keyword to the “Search terms” box in the left sidebar.\u00a0You can limit your search by geography, time, or category if any of those are important.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The first chart that you’ll see tracks the popularity of your search term over time. Predictably, interest in pumpkin recipes spikes every October and November. We’re on the right track.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

If you find a search term that’s more popular at other times of the year, just add a note to your editorial calendar to blog about that topic then. Remember,\u00a0demand for your topic already exists–you just need to create content to meet the demand.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Below the \u2018Interest over time\u2019\u00a0graph, you’ll see two more boxes. The second box, \u2018Related terms,\u2019\u00a0is the more important one.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Historically, the top pumpkin recipe searches are for pie, soup, and bread. Good to know.\u00a0Now, here’s where it gets interesting\u2026<\/p>\n

Click the \u2018Rising\u2019\u00a0box to show\u00a0which searches are\u00a0growing<\/em>\u00a0in popularity.\u00a0This short list is a goldmine of data.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Notice that the keywords are different from the\u00a0\u2018Top\u2019\u00a0keywords? We\u2019ve found four new, trending topics: cupcakes, muffins, spice, and bars.\u00a0Now our food blogger can give her readers what they\u2019re interested in right now: pumpkin cupcake recipes.<\/p>\n

Using \u2018Rising terms\u2019\u00a0is a great way to\u00a0find new angles of your topic that you know people are searching for. Your competitors won\u2019t be as on top of these breakout keywords, so they can help you stand out from the pack and differentiate your site. Plus, you\u2019ll have a great opportunity to rank well in Google for these keywords and generate more SEO traffic<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Put a Popular New Spin on Your Same Old Topic<\/h3>\n

Besides finding hot topics within your niche, you can also put a new spin on an older topic.\u00a0A new post doesn\u2019t have to be 100% original–a change in perspective will help the post resonate with new readers and can rejuvenate your writing. The technique below is a great way to generate new ideas when you\u2019re feeling tapped out.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

You can find your blog\u2019s most popular topics using\u00a0Shareholic Analytics<\/a>‘ top content report, then find a new spin on those topics using Google Trends\u2019\u00a0\u2018Hot searches.\u2019<\/p>\n

Here, Google aggregates the most popular stories, regardless of topic. You’ll typically see lots of news, celebrity, and entertainment stories.<\/p>\n

These topics aren’t always directly\u00a0related to what you blog about, but they\u00a0are\u00a0top of mind for the general public.\u00a0The challenge is to\u00a0relate these topics back to your niche<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

For example, here are some simple formulas to try:<\/p>\n

    \n
      \n
    1. What [Celebrity] Can Teach You About [Your Topic]<\/li>\n
    2. The [Your Topic] Guide to [News Story]<\/li>\n
    3. [Number] [Your Topic] Lessons from [Movie]<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/ol>\n

      You can find the \u2018Hot searches\u2019\u00a0section at the top of the left sidebar.\u00a0While exploring Google Trends, I found Hostess to be trending.<\/p>\n

      \"Hostess<\/a><\/p>\n

      Hostess would be a topic for our food blogger to write about. She could write a post like \u201cMiss Hostess Already? Here\u2019s an Easy Homemade Twinkies Recipe.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

      The \u2018Hot searches\u2019 section is a great way to look at your niche from a fresh and current angle. Copyblogger is great at writing headlines and framing posts this way. For an example, read\u00a020 Content Marketing Lessons from the Immortal Jimi Hendrix<\/a>.<\/p>\n

      Now you can find newly popular topics within your niche and hot news stories to inspire new takes on your topic. Do a few test searches for your target keywords.<\/p>\n

      What did you find? What will\u00a0you<\/strong>\u00a0write about today?<\/p>\n

      Fred Perrotta is the co-founder of\u00a0Tortuga Backpacks<\/a>\u00a0and a freelance startup marketer.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

      Featured photo courtesy of\u00a0m4tik<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      If you\u2019re a blogger, you sometimes feel like you’re out of ideas. Everything you write feels rehashed and stale. It happens–we\u2019ve all been there. In… 
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