20 Ways To Create Common Sense Content

“Common sense is not so common” — Voltaire

Ah, common sense.

It seems somewhere along the path someone got it wrong; calling it COMMON sense, that is.

What’s sensible to you may not be so sensible to me.

And as for having sense in common? HA!

So while I may think the 20 topics below are just common sense content choices, perhaps you’ll think differently.

A Question I Hear Over & Over & OVER Again

“But what will I write about?!” 

Usually accompanied by:

• I don’t have anything new to say
• I don’t know what my audiences want me to write about

I say HOOEY!

There are plenty of places to generate ideas for new content.

So go ahead, steal our common sense content ideas.

We won’t tell.

Common Sense Content: 20 Ideas

1. Mine for problem language in your industry and then SOLVE THAT PROBLEM in a post.
2. Use CASE STUDIES to show how others (with similar interests or issues) succeeded in your field.
3. Tell a (VERY good) STORY that’s relatable to your customer (and hasn’t been told eleventy-billion times).
4. Make a LIST OF TOOLS you know your clients have used successfully to grow their business.
5. Provide a CHEAT SHEET of some sort for beginners in your industry.
6. Write a HOW-TO article for something most people in your field struggle with. Bonus: Include visuals for a step-by-step process.
7. Create EVERGREEN CONTENT people want to bookmark and go back to again and again (example: a list of the best articles on a particular, popular topic).
8. Play DEVIL’s ADVOCATE and argue the other (not-so-popular) side of a trending topic in your industry.
9. SHOW versus tell (aka: visuals are highly important; videos often have a great ROI).
10. Use SLIDESHARE to show off a recent presentation.
11. Create a list on List.ly of your BEST OF/MOST POPULAR for last year/last month.
12. CROWDSOURCE your next article from your social media audiences.
13. Feature experienced industry leaders with an INTERVIEW or by listing their best advice/tips.
14. Be a MYTH BUSTER and burst the bubble of common myths in your field.
15. Be TOPICAL OR SEASONAL and tie it in with your content.
16. Have two or three FAQs that keep popping up? Use your content to answer them; make the article super detailed and link to it on your FAQ page.
17. Pen a BOOK REVIEW that is popular in your industry and list the best tips, resources, and ideas you gathered while reading.
18. Perform a click audit to see which topics are most popular with your audience – then CURATE more of those topics.
19. Make a list of MISTAKES OR NO-NOS that are common in your field and share solutions for correcting them.
20. RECYCLE data (charts, pie graphs, interesting conclusions) from a white paper or eBook you’ve published and use it for an article (if you add a call-to-action and a link, perhaps you’ll make a sale or capture contact info!).

So, there you have it. Common sense, or perhaps not-so-common-sense, tips for creating valuable content.

Are these as well-known as I thought? Or would you categorize them as “new” ideas?

Either way, I see 20 reasons you shouldn’t be at a loss for creating some awesome sauce content!

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Brooke B. Sellas

Brooke B. Sellas is the in-the-trenches Founder & CEO of @HelloBSquared, an award-winning social media, advertising, and social media customer care agency. She's also the author of Conversations That Connect -- a book all about social listening and social media customer care. Brooke's marketing mantra is “Think Conversation, Not Campaign” so be sure to give her a shout on the socials!

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