What should you write about today? If you’re a business owner who relies on content marketing to bring in new prospects, you’ve faced this dilemma at some point. It can be tempting to just start typing and hope for the best. But diving deep into the different types of blogs to find what works best for your business is a better bet.
In today’s blog post, we’ll look at the most common types of blogs and what makes each of them work. Plus, we’ll look at the mistakes to avoid when you’re creating your blog posts.
10 Types of Blogs for Content Marketing
Regularly coming up with content ideas is one of the biggest challenges for content marketers. Creating a blog is easy – finding ideas for your content plan is not, especially if you’ve been writing for a while and have gone through your initial content plan.
But too often, writers and business owners get stuck in a rut creating the same type of blog content over and over again. Looking at other blog writing formats can give you a boost in creating your own original content. Let’s look at the top ten types of blogs for content marketing.
1. Tutorials
Creating content that helps your audience do, create, or achieve something is valuable when it’s done well. This could be a simple step-by-step guide, or a more in-depth dive into high-level strategy. The point is to inform your viewers, show that you’re an authority on the topic, and offer them free help, which in turn builds trust.
2. Checklists
We all love a checklist – and they’re one of the easiest kinds of content to create. Lists are highly engaging too, and often shared on social media. It could be a “top five things you need to know” list, a checklist to prepare or follow up on an event, or a seasonal topic. You can create a graphic of a checklist to print out if you want to go the extra mile too.
3. Compare and Contrast
Everybody loves a showdown. Pizza vs. pasta. PC vs. Mac. Winter vs. summer. What’s your industry’s favorite rivalry, or just a frequently asked either/or question from your readers? Create a blog post comparing and contrasting them and offering your expert recommendation.
4. Current Events
It’s a good idea to create plenty of evergreen content on your blog – content that’s always relevant. But don’t skip out on writing blogs that pertain to current events that affect your industry.
Here at ContentFirst.Marketing, we’ve been creating plenty of always-relevant digital marketing content. But we’ve also put out guides for how to handle the current coronavirus pandemic for business owners, which is highly relevant right now.
5. Case Studies
These types of blogs are great sources of content for professional services businesses. What kinds of techniques or changes have worked well for your clients or customers trying to solve a problem?
You can write up a quick case study summarizing the client, the problem, the solution, and why it worked for them. Think of it as showing your success in action, and telling a compelling story along the way.
6. Behind the Scenes
Your viewers are probably curious about what goes on behind the scenes at your company – especially if you’re in a specific niche. Give them some details! Show photos from preparations from your big annual event, talk about employee stories and why they love what they do, or talk about the volunteer work you do in your community.
People love seeing what’s really going on at their favorite companies. This takes you from being an anonymous corporation to a collection of real human beings in the eyes of your readers.
7. Interviews
Your industry is probably teeming with other interesting people. Do a quick interview with a few of them and post the results on your blog. This could be an ongoing series of questions you ask everyone, or just a casual chat with industry insights.
You could even create a podcast where you talk to others in your industry for insights, and post them on your blog.
8. Resources
Sharing resources that your readers may find helpful is a good way to build trust with them. Resources could include companies who offer complementary services or products, sites that offer information and news on your industry, or upcoming events in your area.
9. Vlogging
Video blogging, or vlogging, is growing rapidly in popularity. In fact, YouTube is the second-biggest search resource on the web! Creating some video content to add to your written blogs can help you reach a new audience or show a different side of your company.
You can hire a video production company, or you can film and edit it yourself for a budget-friendly choice.
10. Customer Feature
If you have a loyal customer base, use them as a feature in your content! The best ad is a happy customer, after all. Talk to them about how they use your product or service, how it changes their life for the better, and how they found your company.
This is different than a testimonial, so be sure to ask them more personal questions. Stories from real people are one of the most popular blogging topics to read.
Mistakes to Avoid When Considering the Types of Blogs for Your Content
These top ten types of blogs are just the beginning – there are so many more options for the creative content marketer.
But when you’re thinking about new types of blogs to include on your site, don’t make the following mistakes:
Not creating a content planner
Sitting down every once in a while to write whatever comes to mind might work for personal bloggers – but that’s not going to get your business far. You should create a content planner that covers the content and keywords you want to create for the next few months, and includes a consistent plan for posting.
Making your blog too general
If you run a business in a very specific niche, it can be tempting to write more general content to attract a wider audience. But that wider audience might not be a good fit to become customers. Niche blogs can actually perform very well if they’re done right, so don’t be afraid to get in-depth if that fits for your business.
Not sharing your blog posts widely
Once you post a blog, that’s not the end – that’s the beginning of your content marketing strategy. Share your post on your social media channels, send it out in a newsletter to your email list, and get as many eyeballs on it as possible.
Ignoring the basics of good writing
With all the available technology out there, your blog posts should never have basic mistakes like spelling and grammar errors. And your tone should be professional – this isn’t a lifestyle blog, it’s reflecting your business. Your blog represents your company to potentially thousands of people across the globe via the internet, so keep your standards high.
Get Great Content Marketing
Looking for an agency that gets you real, measurable results with attractive functional websites, great writing and a strong digital marketing strategy? We can help with blogging and other types of content marketing.
Schedule a free business review here to find out how we help businesses grow. You can use these insights for inspiration, and let us do the marketing for you.
