Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
Angela Howard – Culture Expert
Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
Look around your workspace. There are tons of potential blog topics you could write about, from your new ergonomic furniture and that cool treadmill desk, to the awesome marketing hack you were just discussing with one of your members.
What really matters, though, is what your readers want to read about.
Sounds obvious, doesn’t it? But it’s amazing how often bloggers overlook that one crucial element: write about topics that your readers will love.
Here, we run through a list of topics you may choose to write about on the pages of your workspace blog. Some are directed at helping small businesses grow, some aim to inspire or instruct, and others aim to educate by focusing on key customer service topics.
Quick tips to get started:
- Remember your audience. Let them guide your choice of content.
- Read blogs in your industry niche or those with a similar target audience. Don’t rip off other people’s content — you’ll only end up on Google’s blacklist. Keep a list of ideas and write unique posts with your own commentary and advice.
- Write for your readers and the readers you want to reach, not for SEO. Cramming your article with irritating keywords is just, well, irritating.
- But do include a selection of relevant keywords to attract traffic. Work them in naturally.
- Think about your readers, and the readers you want to attract. Aim to solve their problems by writing about topics and issues that directly affect them.
- Don’t blog for the sake of blogging. Always aim to add value.
- Read Cat Johnson’s 8 content marketing tips to get started.
Topics to Solve Problems:
1. “How to Choose a Business Name”: If you’re in the coworking business, you probably have a strong community of freelancers and startups — some of whom don’t have an official business name. Offer tips on how to mindmap a business name and apply it to other naming processes too, such as web domains, URLs, blog names, company taglines… you get the idea.
2. “Our Pick of the Best Accounting Software for Small Businesses”: You can directly target your readership base here and offer advice on apps, programmes and digital tools that you, or your members, can recommend.
3. “Outsourcing 101: How to Hire Freelance Talent You Can Trust”: The gig economy is growing every year, and outsourcing helps cash-strapped businesses achieve their goals with low outlay. Offer advice on how to post jobs and search for people with relevant skills, along with a selection of recommended freelancing websites.
Customer Service Topics:
4. “How to Login and Use XYZ”: This won’t appeal to companies outside your workspace unless you’re using an off-the-shelf product. However, posts like these are invaluable for providing constructive step-by-step advice for workspace members, especially if you use screenshots. Consider making a short video too.
5. “There’s This One Coworker Who [insert complaint] – What Should I Do?”: Whether it’s the one who takes loud phone calls or the one who leaves dirty dishes in the shared kitchen sink, you can help your coworkers reach harmony by offering useful advice on how to handle the problem. Better still, it’s totally discreet and anonymous.
6. “How to Make an Anonymous Complaint / Suggestion”: Much as we hate hearing it, constructive criticism drives improvement. Make it easy for your members to make complaints or suggestions — you’ll score bonus points for making the process user-friendly.
Topics to Inspire:
7. Interview a member of your community or a business partner who overcame adversity. Even if it’s not directly related to work or business, people extract value from uplifting stories in many different ways. You might just make their day.
8. “How I Built My Business from Nothing”: Everyone loves a good rags-to-riches story, right? These articles will always attract startups and freelance businesses, particularly in a B2B workplace environment.
More stories for you
9. Coming back from a business failure: Interview a member or a colleague about how they overcame a business failure or a rejection, such as a failed loan application. Be sure to include key lessons learned and how they put the problems right.
Current Affairs or Seasonal Topics:
10. Pick out local recommended places to visit, such as picnic spots, parks or cosy independent restaurants. Highlight interesting landmarks and recommend walking or jogging routes that members can fit in during their lunch breaks.
11. Another helpful seasonal topic is to focus on how to improve productivity during the summer, and how to keep business moving during seasonal quiet times. Use your own experiences and ask members to chip in, too.
Topics to Boost Business Growth and Productivity:
12. “Expenses 101”: No-one likes paying too much tax, especially small business owners. Any article dedicated to simplifying accounting, such as detailing viable expenses and offering tips on making tax returns a little easier, will always score points. If you have an accountant in your workspace, ask for their input in return for a link to their website.
13. “10 Ways to Smash Your To-do List”: These types of articles are everywhere, so make your title snappy and try to differentiate your content. For instance, ask 15 different people for one single piece of advice, and use the 10 most unusual or proven tips.
14. “How to Save Time by Automating Monotonous Tasks”: If you know of any great time-saving apps or tips on automating mundane tasks, now’s the time to share it.
15. “Earn While You Sleep: How to Generate Passive Income”: The world has become transfixed with Tim Ferriss and his bestselling book ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’, and for good reason. As a workspace operator you can add your own practical advice, all while touting the benefits of workplace flexibility and ‘work from anywhere’ mentality.
Marketing Topics:
16. “Social Media Tips and Tricks for Time-Strapped Entrepreneurs”: Posts like these hit the nail right on the head. Every entrepreneur knows he or she should be more active on social media, but it’s easily pushed aside. Cover off key tips like scheduling tools, apps, automation processes and top level analytics. If your workspace provides marketing assistance, use this as an opportunity to remind members of your additional services.
17. “How to Measure Content Marketing”: Even if you know you should be writing regular content or posting 3-5 tweets per day, how do you know it’s working? If you’re a little stuck, check out Neil Patel’s post on how to measure content marketing.
18. An explanation of the latest SEO techniques and algorithm changes will help your members steer clear of black-hat techniques, but be sure your advice is spot-on — even in 2017 there are far too many shady “SEO experts” who are out to make a quick buck.
19. “5 of the Best Free Email Marketing Platforms”: Whether it’s email marketing, social media management, website builders or the like, everyone loves free — especially when it comes recommended by a trusted source (ie: you).
20. “What is a Klout Score?”: From Klout to Google Page Rank to tons of other marketing terms, to some people it’s plain old jargon. Help clear the fog and explain what it means, how to use it and what value it offers their business.
Got any more workspace blog ideas to share? Let us know at @Allwork_Space or via Facebook.
