Do you ever wonder how businesses uncover ideas to write amazing content that reaches their customers?

You are not alone. In talking to small business owners about writing content, it is clear that finding new ideas every month is a challenge.

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Content creation is a vital marketing tool. And with more than 5 million content pieces published every day, it’s essential to write about important topics to your target audience.

But the process to uncover ideas for writing is one of the hardest things to do.

So, where can you find the best content ideas? Research.

While quantitative research can offer valuable statistics on customer response to products and services, qualitative research allows you to gather information by talking and listening to customers and staff.

Below are some easy ways to conduct research to uncover audience-focused content ideas.

Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using the links.

Connect with the Customers You Have and the Customers You Want

Chiara McPhee, COO and co-founder of Bizzy, offers this advice: “I’ve found it incredibly helpful to have a framework in place to systematically collect, prioritize, and implement product features based on customer feedback–both from customers you have, and the customers you want!”

In addition to finding out what your customers think of your products and services, find out what problems they’re facing. Uncover content ideas from the information collected.

Plus, here are some other things you can do:

If you use an email service provider like ConverKit, you can ask your email distribution list questions like:

• What issues is your business facing today?
• List 3 questions you have for me [or my company].
• How can I [or my company] help you solve a problem you’re currently facing?

Use the information collected to meet customer needs and write educational content that will help others.

Consider connecting with your audience while they’re visiting your website. HubSpot offers a Live Chat feature where you can interact with current and prospective customers and see what questions they’re asking. Write content based on the topics you repeatedly see in the chat.

Listen to Audience Discussions through Keyword Searches

An excellent way to find content ideas is through search engines. In addition to Google, there are more than 16 other search engines available such as Bing, Swisscows, and DuckDuckGo.

Additional ways to search include:

Answer the Public allows you to search for keywords or phrases, and then it generates a circle of question keywords related to your topic.

BuzzSumo is great for everything, from topic research to brand marketing.

Ahrefs not only offers keyword search capability but lets you enter your competitor’s domain to see how frequently they’re publishing and republishing content on the same topic.

Uncover Ideas Using the Skyscraper Technique

As you search for ideas for content writing, consider using Brian Dean’s skyscraper technique. This technique examines high-performing content and makes it better. What is high-performing content? Posts with lots of social shares or high-ranking blog posts that appear on search engine pages.

Next, Dean recommends taking the content to the next level. He recommends taking all four of the following steps:

• Make it longer
• Use better designs
• Offer up-to-date information
• Create a more thorough version

Dean offers a few ideas on how to improve existing content.

Hold on to Your Research by Creating an Idea System

Coming up with ideas to write content can be hard. So once you develop a process for generating ideas, it’s essential to create a system for saving your ideas.

1. Keep a notebook

Jot down a new idea as it comes to you. Get a notebook that transports easily and can fit into any bag. Carry it with you as ideas and inspiration may strike at any time. If you are in a position where you cannot write, like a car or on a treadmill, record your idea on your mobile phone.

2. Keep a digital idea log

Any idea from your notebook that you decide to pursue can move to a digital file. Use Dropbox or Google Docs to organize your ideas. You can also use these tools to store photos.

3. Idea board

If you work with a team in an office environment, consider adding an idea board in a central location. Encourage staff to add ideas to the board regularly. Reward employees for their willingness to share. If some team members are remote, consider using a tool like Trello or Mindmeister.

Keep the Ideas Flowing Using a Fixed Repeating Schedule

Manufacturers use the Every Product Every Interval or a Fixed Repeating Schedule (FRS) to manage product production schedules. Using the FRS approach allows the manufacturer to repeat the same production schedule to produce the product.

Once you develop a process to uncover ideas, use the same approach daily or weekly. Evaluate how the process is going for a few weeks or each month. If necessary, make adjustments to your ideation process.

Find the Beauty in Capturing Your Ideas

A few months ago, I read about James Altucher’s approach to capturing ideas. He writes ten ideas every day. Altucher believes if you make a list of ten ideas each day, you will become an idea machine. I love this!

As a person who wakes up in the middle of the night with all kinds of ideas, I was excited by this approach to capturing my ideas each day.

As someone not afraid to jot down ideas on anything – journals, Post-It Notes, napkins – the concept of making idea-collection an intentional part of my day was great.

One of the things I learned by consistently capturing my ideas is that some ideas make it, and some don’t. My new approach is progress for me as I once thought every idea I came up with had to live and breathe. Today, I am just satisfied to get my thoughts out of my head to explore the possibilities of making at least one idea come to life.

How do you uncover ideas for blog posts or projects? Please share how your idea process works. Feel free to share your comments below.