I’ve been blogging for a while but when you’re faced with starting a brand new blog, it’s all a bit daunting. So I thought I’d share some ideas on getting started.

Get planning your blog

Think about why you are blogging – is it for work, for keeping in touch with family, for generating leads etc? Think about how often you can write – if you are writing for business, and to generate leads, then you have to commit to at least two blog posts per week. And think carefully about what you are going to write about – try to avoid a scatter-gun approach to content and instead limit what you write about to a small number of issues. You need to keep it relevant.

Quick blog research ideas

If it is for your business, think about the industry you work in and industries you wish to interact with. What do your customers / audiences want to hear about? How can you add value to them? Look at similar blogs for inspiration and, if you haven’t done so for a while, jump onto Google Adwords to develop a list of keywords. You can use these to influence your choice of topics, making sure your content remains relevant.

Finally, get creative

There are plenty of brainstorming techniques out there to help relieve the strain of writer’s block. I’ll share some of my favourites on the co-writer blog over the next couple of months. But they all involve breaking away from your desk, grabbing some paper and a pen, and a high degree of random thought patterns (as opposed to staring at a blank computer screen getting grumpy because creative juices aren’t flowing).

Try and stick to the co-writer blog mantra – plan, research, get creative. It will keep you focused on delivering relevant content.

Of course if you can’t budge that writer’s block, drop co-writer an email and we’ll take the pain away – josie@co-writer.co.nz And if you fancy finding out more blog-specific tips, try visiting this excellent source:  http://www.problogger.net/