Blogs are a popular information channel among consumers. With the development of digital, consumers can now search for information independently and they want to find valuable information before they buy: 84% of them1 expect brands to publish compelling content.
To do so, businesses need to publish articles on their blog regularly and to constantly look for topics that will appeal to their consumers: 45% of marketing professionals2 consider this search as one of their main challenges.
Discover our 6 tips for finding compelling blog topics to appeal to shoppers.
#1. See what your competitors are doing
To find which articles are appealing to shoppers, you should look at the blogging strategy of your competitors. They are in the same industry and are often targeting a pretty similar or identical reader, so it's crucial to analyze their existing content: 32% of professionals2 say that this is the most effective content marketing strategy.
For each blog, a business should identify the articles which have had the most success with shoppers. Among the key indicators2 to monitor when gauging their impact: organic traffic (76%2), time spent on the page (39%2), number of shares on social networks (37%2), comments (19%2)… It is also essential not to duplicate your competitor's blog articles: each written content must be unique and provide real value to shoppers (angle, tone, style…).
#2. Find out what shoppers are querying
To identify article topics in line with consumer interests, it is essential to look at what they are researching on the web. Search engines like Google give them access to the content they want to find: 80,000 queries3 are made every second, or 6.9 billion per day3.
So, a business needs to find article topics that are relevant to consumers' search engine queries: this is the main source of traffic4 for this information channel.
The business must also choose the best keywords to include in their articles to make them show up on the first page of results: only 0.78% of shoppers5 click on the second page of search engine results (SERP).
#3. Follow industry trends
To find articles that will appeal to consumer, a business most constantly follow the emerging trends in their industry (proposed legislation, innovations, new certifications…) and regularly monitor pertinent and reliable information sources (specialized press, professional revues, newsletters…).
This media watch is an absolute necessity. To get information on a specific industry, consumers read the content published by brands and consider it to be an information source in its own right: 56% of consumers1 trust it more than traditional media sources.
#4. Figure out what's on the minds of consumers
To find topics for articles that will be valuable to consumers, you need to know what they're interested in and better target their needs. This is why a business should keep a regular watch on the discussion platforms used by consumers: forums, social network groups (Facebook, LinkedIn), blog comments…
For example, a business can join discussion groups related to their industry and use the most frequently read and commented discussions1 to find relevant article topics. They could also help forum users by providing clear inspiring answers to some of their questions and leading them towards their own blog article.
These interactions enable the business to create a link with consumers and to gain their confidence.
#5. Talk about your business news
It is essential to look at your company's activity to find topics that will appeal to and entertain consumers: 68% of them1 spend timing reading brand information.
Therefore, you should publish company news items: launch of a new product and/or service, participation in a trade-fair, signing a new client… You should also write about topics related to the company's growth: recruitment campaign, international development, modern and innovative culture… These topics are essential to improve a brand's reputation and to promote a dynamic company image: 57% of marketing professionals2 use them for this reason and 19%2 use them to promote new products.
#6. Use your expertise
Capitalizing on your expertise is a great means of publishing compelling articles. Publishing a large volume of informative articles boosts a company's credibility among consumers and puts them in a position of industry reference: 45% of professionals3 say that this is one of the most effective content marketing strategies.
To do this successfully a business must use the whole range of internal resources (expertise, experience, capacity for innovation…) and make use of useful and informative formats: infographics, guides, expert opinion, product comparison… 74% of shoppers1 trust them.
So, to sum up, if a company wants to remain competitive, they must regularly publish new blog articles. They must also keep a constant watch to find blog topics that are both appealing and interesting to consumers: target the right search queries, keep a watchful eye on competitor websites, keep up to date on the activity of your industry. This task can quickly become time consuming and tedious when you are publishing many articles at a high frequency.
1
Henault, J. H. (2019, october 17). 50 faits sur le Content Marketing en 2019. semrush.com.
2
Petrova, A. P. (2021, january 14). Content Marketing Statistics You Need To Know For 2021. semrush.com
3
Coëffé, T. C. (2018, july 21). Chiffres Google : toutes les statistiques à connaître en 2021. blogdumoderateur.com
4
Hubspot. The Ultimate List of Marketing Statistics for 2021. hubspot.com.
5
Si Quan Ong, S. Q. (2021, february 18). 63 SEO Statistics for 2021. ahrefs.com.
6
Mehdi, M. (2017, september 14). Comment (toujours) avoir des idées d'articles de blog : 11 méthodes de filou. fr.semrush.com