Small Business Saturday Blog

Don’t know what to write about? 9 ideas for your next business newsletter, blog or social media post

Wednesday, September 04 at 21:59

Staying in touch regularly with potential clients is crucial if you want to get more sales. Emails are a particularly useful marketing tool to drive more traffic to your website, to build your relationship with potential and existing clients, and to build your credibility and profile with them. Blog posts are great for publishing relevant content on your website and are a good starting point to increase your ranking with the search engines.

But if you’re feeling a bit stuck, here are nine ideas for what to write about to keep your audience interested and engaged.

1. Why did you start your business?

Was there a special reason you became your own boss? Who or what inspired you? Is there a bigger purpose behind your business? Readers like to know more about your personal motivations, and writing about the origin of your business is a great starting point.

2. Where do you live and work?

Are you in the middle of Shoreditch or in the middle of Wales? How does your location influence your work? Write about your location, and how that specifically impacts on your work and business.

3. Review an exhibition, event or book

Share your inspirations, passions and values. Write a book review or create a photo-based blog post about an exhibition that you loved. Share pictures of a city visit or quiet walk. People buy from people. Show your personality. Dare to be a little different and stand out!

4. Show designs and products in process

Show how you get inspired. How you sketch out your ideas. How you create prototypes or select the right materials. Create a series of emails or blog posts that reveal a new collection step-by-step – from the initial ideas to the final pieces.

5. Share in-depth case studies

Collect case studies from clients. Talk your reader through all the different stages: your meetings, the changes you made, the challenges. Show the end result and some quotes from your client - not just about the final piece, but about the process and what they liked about working with you.

6. What is special or different about you?

It’s a pretty competitive market out there. What makes you different or special? Niche is good!

Write about what is special about you, your team, your business, your products? Do you use only ethical materials? Are you one of a very few in your sector?

7. Share useful tips and recommendations

Sharing practical tips or resources that are useful to your audience will make them value you. For example, if you sell wedding rings, recommend other small businesses, such as letterpress designers, a makeup artist, local photographers, and florists. If you are a printmaker, write about how to hang pictures on the walls for best effect.

8. Do a timely post or email

Make your communications more relevant and newsworthy. Be aware of WHEN your readers are most likely to buy. When are their key gift giving moments? Christmas? Mother’s Day? Valentine’s Day?

9. Invite others to write for you!

Invite guest contributors to your blog. Interview someone you know your readers would love to hear about. Or create a so called ‘wrap up blog post’ where you ask three to five contributors to respond to the same questions.

This is from more in depth post by Patricia van den Akker of The Design Trust.