1 Guaranteed way to come up with blog post ideas that generate search traffic.

I’m taking a break from my normal holiday/seasonal related blog post ideas this month. Mainly because the only ideas I could think of for Mother’s and Father’s day are gift guides. So, post those if it fits your blog. There’s also Memorial Day coming up, which could provide some post topics for you too.

Today though, let’s talk about how I come up with blog posts ideas that always generate search traffic: answer a question.

Questions make great blog posts.

Questions make fabulous blog posts because they genuinely help people and are usually easy to write. Think about the things you search for in Google, how many of those searches are questions? Most of them, right? People are always asking Google questions, might as well provide them with the answers in your blog posts!

How to come up with questions for your posts.

Let’s go over 4 ways to find questions to answer as a blog post:

Forums

Join forums related to your blogging niche and start paying attention to what people are talking about in those groups. They could be actual forums, Facebook groups, or Google+ communities. My husband’s 80 something Grandma even uses forums. Just the other day she was telling me about quilting forum group she was a part of. She explained that she loved how everyone shares their projects and asks/answers each other’s questions.

Bonus: not only can you get ideas for posts from forums, but you can also reach out to new readers who might not have found your blog otherwise, like Devin’s 80 something Grandma.

I still remember the first time someone created a blog post based off a question I asked in a forum. I felt super special and like I helped change the world. You can make someone feel that special too! (Obviously, don’t spam forums – be a genuine contributor.) Plus, if they had the question, chances are someone else will too.

Your area of expertise

As a wedding florist, I make ribbon bows all the time. I created a simple tutorial: “How to make a bow” and it quickly became a popular post on my floral blog. Think of the things you know how to do really well or are very familiar with that others might want to learn and create a blog post about that subject.

Figure it out on your own

I’m sure you’ve all had one of those questions that you can’t find an answer to anywhere, so you figure it out on your own. For me, it was how to change your Pinterest board cover pictures. It used to be super easy and you just hovered over the board image and it prompted you to change the picture. Then Pinterest updated and it didn’t work that way.

You probably already knew how to change the picture, but it drove me bonkers. Once I figured out the solution, I created a tutorial (plus why it is important to change your board picture regularly) and published it on this blog. I get search traffic to that post every single day.

When I figure out the best way to cut a mango – I will do a blog post on that too. Even though it doesn’t match the content of this blog. I’ve tried a billion methods and I still think cutting a mango is a pain (if this is your area of expertise, please post the tutorial for me and I’ll love you forever).

Comments

Watch for common questions readers ask on your blog posts. If you are a fashion blogger and notice people asking on every post where you get your cute accessories, do a whole post on where to find accessories.

If you are a food blogger, you might notice readers always asking for ingredient substitutes. I see this question ALL the time when I am reading the comments on recipes, “What can I use as a substitute for oil?”

Your question post might not be popular – at first

Here’s my little disclaimer on posts that are answering a question. Your regular readers might not be that excited about the post. Or, it might not be Pinterest popular. Back to my Pinterest cover board example – it was a DUD with my newsletter subscribers, twitter followers, and repins. However, a few months later it is bringing in solid Google search traffic.

Depending on your site, it could take a while to start noticing search traffic to that post. But, if your site is optimized you should see search traffic landing on your question post (here’s how to see what people search for to get to your blog).

Have you created a blog post that answers a question? What was the question? How is it performing?

Need help coming up with blog post ideas? I’ve got you covered! Enter the Blog Post Ideas Year Guide. The guide isn’t any ordinary list of things you could blog about. I performed keyword research for the top things related to specific seasons/holidays. The 20-page idea book is full of ideas people are actually Googling. This will help you grow your blog because you will be writing posts that people are interested in reading. They are looking for the answers/ideas to these topics.

Blog Post Ideas Year Guide

Subscribe to my newsletter for regular tips and updates on growing your blog and I’ll send you the BLOG POST IDEAS YEAR GUIDE. The Year Guide has blog post ideas for major holidays and season along with helpful tips for coming up with blog posts that people are searching for.