Open up that notes app on your phone and take a look at that section you likely have called “Blog ideas.” You know, the one with probably only one to two entries in it. Past-you left some unhelpful note like “something about boundaries???”
Now current-you is trying to figure out what that even means. Boundaries with who? Clients? Should this be about their boundaries? Nobody knows, and it’s too much to think about, so you put it off for another day.
Most people struggle to come up with blog ideas because they sit down in front of a blank Word doc and try to think of something that other people would find interesting. Then they publish it, hear crickets, decide blogging doesn’t work, and go back to spending their lives producing 15-second reels.
In reality, the ideas that bring in both readers and clients come from paying attention to what's already out there… what people are talking about, bitching about, or sharing.
Let’s use a quick example. In the not-at-all-distant past, Meta announced it was going to start crawling people's websites, and it was a big issue. It was all over my feed. People arguing in replies, people rage-quitting, people furiously tagging their friends. So I wrote a detailed guide on how you can block AI training bots on your website…and so many people reshared it. It’s my most shared post of all time. It sent me a ton of traffic, and one client who wanted to create an evergreen blog library that AI couldn’t learn from.
That topic was basically handed to me. All I had to do was notice what everyone was upset about and show up with a fix.
Paid keyword tools are useful at times, but I generally don’t recommend you start there, as they can be distracting for a small business. What I much prefer are the messy and honest conversations people are scattering all over the internet in places like Reddit, book reviews, and elsewhere.
So…let’s go eavesdrop, shall we?
How to Find Blog Post Ideas Online
First, catch the conversations while they’re hot.
Using social media for blog topics
There is constantly something in your corner of the internet that is getting people fired up.
Maybe this week everyone on Threads is arguing about whether or not you can offer free tarot readings, or maybe a big coach posted something really tone-deaf. Sometimes it's tools people use changing the rules, and your whole industry starts to scramble.
Instead of just doomscrolling. Doomscroll with ✨purpose✨. Spend some time each week checking out what people are talking about and how your expertise might lend some extra insight or useful information to the discussion. Ask yourself what you know that would help someone in that conversation. It could be a how-to, a clear opinion that gets widely shared, or a quick fix.
Above all, remember that a good post that shows up while people are still talking about it beats a perfect post that shows up after everyone has moved on. Just get it out there. You can edit and revise later. Share it on your account, share it in comments, and other people will start to do the same.
If there is nothing at the moment, social also provides you with an amazing testing ground to share some controversial takes and see what sticks. Those make good blog posts.
Next, go to where people are asking the deep questions…
Using Reddit and Quora for blog research
These are sites where people go when they want a varied set of opinions, or when they’re too embarrassed to ask in the DMs. This is where they get detailed. You often get the full backstory and what options and solutions they have already tried. You see which advice in the comments people upvote or respond to the most. It’s a goldmine.
While trending conversations come and go, these questions are amazing evergreen content. They get asked over and over again, year-round. This makes them great posts to help bring in readers long after you have published them.
To get started, search for your topic on Reddit and see what turns up. Search inside relevant subreddits you find. Sort by top posts or most upvoted to get the juicy stuff.
Pay attention to the exact words people are using, because those words make great headlines. Those are also likely to be very close to the same prompts people are using in AI search, and matching that will increase your chances of getting cited.
Okay, now an often-overlooked trick…
Using book reviews for blog ideas
This one is my secret favorite. Pick 3-5 popular books on subjects you talk about or services you offer. If you’re not sure, just go to a site like Goodreads or Amazon and type in a keyword to see what comes up. For example, if you’re a social media coach, just go type in “social media marketing” and see what you get as top items.
Then look at their 3-star reviews or lower. People who have read and reviewed these are frustrated because the book did not meet their expectations, and understanding what those expectations are gives you amazing blog post ideas.
You’ll see things like “I wish they explained how to start” or “this only works if you have a big audience” or “there was too much theory and no practical advice.” Boom! Blog ideas, but also ideas for your own social media!
Then for funsies, go read the 5-star reviews. See what people loved. What do they rave about? Was it the chapter with step-by-step exercises that showed them exactly what to do? Then you know readers want clear steps and walk-throughs.
Then…go ahead and steal Google’s homework.
Using Google for keyword research
Google has been kind enough to hand us 2 free idea generators every time we search. Most people might scroll past, or sometimes laugh at the occasional absurdity of them, but they also offer great tips.
The first is autocomplete. Start typing something like “How to prepare for a client call” and stop halfway. Stopping after “client” might be a good choice. Google finishes the sentence with what other people have been typing. I recommend working through all the questions. Here is a quick cheat sheet.
Start with:
What is
What are
What can
What does
What if
How do I
How can I
How should I
Where should I
Where can I
Who can
Who will
Who is
And then apply keywords related to your offers or services, and see what comes up.
The second area is People Also Ask, which pops up in the search results, but its exact placement tends to move around a bit. If you click one of the questions there, you will prompt an answer or another search, and this will continue endlessly.
Do both of these in a private browser window so Google isn’t tailoring the results to you.
Now let’s move on to you.
You may hold the key to the best blog topics
Go take a look at your testimonials, your intake forms, offboarding forms, and DMs. Those are all stuffed with blog post ideas.
Pull out things you find that people were worried about before they booked, things that people tried before working with you, what changed for them, what your process was, and more.
Your clients are writing your copy for you, for free.
And…who doesn’t love a coffee chat?
Using coffee chats for blog topics
This sounds too simple… and maybe even suspiciously fun. Do it anyway.
Ask people out for coffee. Someone in your field, someone in your dream client’s field, past clients, etc. Do it as a video call if that's easier, and have a virtual coffee. Ask about how you might help them, or what kind of things they look for to solve problems related to what you do, if they're willing to share.
This can lead to great topic discovery, and you can meet really cool people and maybe even find some fun collaboration opportunities.
Find your ideas in business groups
Business groups (within or outside of your niche) are also amazing places for information. Listen to what people are struggling with and what they ask each other. You'll be surprised how many of their questions are the same ones your clients may be asking as well.
Find your ideas with other people
This is what we do in Writing Rituals. In some blog coworking sessions, we have members ask each other about their businesses the way someone would if they were searching for help, and those questions turn into topics. I ask you questions about your work that lead straight to things people search for, and I show you how to come up with ideas and use keyword research tools so you’re not guessing.
Eavesdropping on each other’s businesses is pretty much the whole point.
Join Writing Rituals if you want more blogging guidance, help turning those topics into blogs people discover, or a little fun and accountability.
In the meantime, go open that note on your phone. Delete “something about boundaries???” (past-you will survive) and fill it with everything you overheard this week.