Jul 31 2008
Searching For Creativity
I’ve found an interesting technique in coming up with ideas to write about. If you run a website of any kind, chances are you have access to a list of keyword searches that people have used to find your site. This is a really great way to come up with things to write about. I’ve found words and phrases that have led people to my site that had nothing to do with anything I had written up to that point.
The best thing about using the keyword search list is that you know for a fact that someone out there is looking for that exact phrase. You might also notice that the same phrase is used several times, just worded differently. It gives you an idea of what people are wanting to read and that gives you an upper hand. This is where the creativity comes in.
As you look through the list of keywords and phrases, make a mental note of the different ways the same ideas are worded. If you work it right, you can take that one idea and turn it into several posts. For instance, a few of the things listed in the keyword search for this site are “creative writing”, “creative writing ideas”, and “creative story ideas”. On the one hand, they’re all basically saying the same thing. However, with a little work I can turn those 3 phrases into 3 totally different posts on my blog.
A couple of the best ways of finding out the keywords that lead to your blog are by either having Google Analytics installed into your blog, or by having a social site such as MyBlogLog on your site. They are a big help in finding out who’s searching for your creativity.
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Great idea there. I had really never thought about that. Another great tip of the day!
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Nifty! Not sure how well I could use it, though–I don’t get searched much, and when I do they’re rather odd (my personal favorite was the recent “inanimate objects in Watership Down”.)
I’ll admit, tricks like this are one of the reasons I miss the old ad-words we used to have–I’d been playing with the idea of devising a couple writing prompts based around them, and I’d been pretty close to having one when they stopped showing up. (Just as well–would’ve been blasted embarrassing if the change had been made afterwards, right?)
Thanks Brand and Ravyn.