Friday, April 29, 2011

A Never Ending Source for Blog and Article Ideas!

As a social media manager specializing in blogs and written content, I often hear people say, "I would start a bog, but what would I write about?" Here is one way to have an almost inexhaustible supply of fresh article or blog ideas. The internet is full of articles, informational websites and news stories that are full of fresh, timely ideas for you to write about, but hunting them down daily, or even weekly takes a lot of time. Automate the hunt for ideas with a Google Alert or two.

                                                       (click on pictures to enlarge them)

First, log in to your Gmail, or Google account. If you don't have one, Google Gmail and sign up for free. Next select More from the menu button in the task bar at the top left of the screen. Select the bottom entry, "even more".

                                         
                                         Select the "alerts" option next to the golden bell icon.


Type in any search terms that you like. For example, writing for a lawn care blog? Enter "lawncare tips", or "mower repair tips". Set the frequency that you want to receive your alerts. Enter an email address that you want your alerts sent to and wait for the great ideas to be delivered to you!

Set up as many alerts as you want. Keep track of the ones that deliver the best ideas and delete others. While you're at it, set up one for your name, your company name, and anything else you want to know when it's mentioned online. Use quotation marks around your search terms for exact results only.

So, what about you? What tips tricks, gizmos, gadgets or software do you use in your writing? Leave us a comment to let us know!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Welcome to my blog! I hope you enjoyed your stay. Be sure to check out my other posts while you are here!