In the world of sales it helps if you are selling something that people want to buy, and if you are a blog owner then you are in the world of sales.
The word sale does not necessarily mean that it has to have a financial jingle to it. On the contrary, by merely writing and publishing a story, for free, you are still selling. You are still desperately hoping someone will read it.
But how do you know what people want to buy? Here are five top tips for finding current content.
1. Google Zeitgeist
Google Zeitgeist is the home of all things trendy. Zeitgeist is the word used to describe, “What the world is talking about.”
Now the world is a big place and Google Zeitgeist does what it can to sort it’s billions of search enquiries into list formats such as The Fastest Rising and Fastest Fallingtopics.
At the end of 2011 the fastest falling search was Myspace and so to write an article about Myspace may not be the greatest of ideas, where writing something interesting about Rebecca Black may well pull forth more readers.
2. Google Insights for Search
Another gem from Google is Google Insights for Search. This little beauty allows you to filter searches by geographical area, categories, seasonality and lots, lots more.
I have recently noticed, that despite writing my blog from within the UK my audience is primarily from the United States. Google Insights for Search allows me to see what American web users are interested in thus allowing me to write material that they want to read.
3. Google Analytics
If you have been a blog owner for quite some time then you need some analytical software like Google Analytics. You should spend at least one day per month browsing the data on your own blog to see what articles are interesting to people and write more of the same.
Also look through your comments and see which articles are creating more input from your readers. Once again this is a great way of understanding what your readers are interested in.
4. Amazon Best Selling Books
The ebook is on the rise, but it is still print books that are the most popular form of reading material on the planet. Figuring out what type of fiction people are reading will help you come up with content ideas.
Currently the Amazon Best Selling section is being dominated by E. L. James and the Fifty Shades of Grey series. So there is a market for lonely housewives desperate for a little bit of bondage. Great if you have a bondage site and if not why not start one?
5. ClickBank Trends
ClickBank Trends is another research and analytical tool that can help you find everything that people are interested in. There is a section called “More Gravity Clickbank Products” that groups the most sought after products on the net. Search your own niche and see what is selling like a hot cake?