We Create Content.
Steem is not about blogging. It might have been so in the past, but those days are long gone. Steem is about content in any form or shape. We have DTube, 3Speak, Vimm and a bunch of other cool things that gives users a choice. Each user can decide for themselves whether they want to write posts or to record videos for instance. It's about content creation and to find the option that feels right. Steem is for content creators.
If you solely title yourself as a blogger, you will sooner or later find yourself in a position where you become stagnant. You will see obstacles instead of solutions, much like if you would focus on the negative instead of concentrating on the positive. This is one of the biggest problems for many bloggers out there, on- or off Steem, and this is also why entrepreneurs like Neil Patel and Jeff Bullas are successful with many of their "tips and tricks".
- How to Come Up with 93 Blog Ideas in 10 Minutes
- 6 Ways to Find Blog Topics When You’re Stuck
- 189 Creative Blog Post Ideas
You have probably seen similar ones all over the internet. These tips and tricks exists to help struggling bloggers because everyone knows that bloggers will run out of ideas sooner or later.
With #newsteem and all the hype about it, some users have sent me messages on Discord talking about this whole "reward high quality content" approach and mindset we've seen since HF21 and many of them are slightly worried. Not because they might earn less rewards, but due to the never-ending talk about high quality. It was difficult for some to produce content regularly before HF21 and by the looks of it, it might be even more difficult nowadays. Especially as people makes content in an attempt to earn. This was basically the reason for my previous post, where I talked about wasting time, but I wanted to give this another chance and try to explain and clarify certain things more in-depth.
- What is the hardest part about creating high-quality content?
Before anything else, you need to come up with things to write about. Coming up with ideas is by far the hardest part about creating high-quality content. This is often extremely time consuming for bloggers, but other content creators, like marketers for instance, doesn't struggle as much because they often document everything they do rather than focus purely on the creation of new content, which is the bread and butter for bloggers.
So, instead of calling yourself a blogger or a video creator, you could easily just call yourself a content creator, as content creators can produce content in several niches. If you want to take things one step further, I would suggest calling yourself marketers, as you market yourself on Steem regardless of the content you produce.
This could potentially tear down any obstacles you face when trying to come up with ideas, as you allow yourself to think outside the box. This will automatically give you more things to write about, even though these things might not be new in that sense.
In my previous post, I talked about wasting time and how many articles I have deleted instead of posting them. I also said that the reason for me to delete them were because I wasn't satisfied. I struggle to be truly satisfied with my articles, so many of them are written for no reason, as I eventually just deletes them anyway.
It's terrifying, at times, pushing fresh content out into the world. It can be unnerving wondering how your peers are going to judge your words. Is what you've written good? Will it be received well, or will it create a negative response? Or worse... no response at all?
This thinking often forces us to repress ideas and throw them into the "not worth publishing" bucket. It's a shame, because it stifles creativity. This is why we're often left staring at computer screens knowing that we should publish something, but unable to decide on exactly what.
There are a bunch of different things you can do though, to come up with ideas, and I'll name just a few. It's easy enough to just google-search for "blog ideas" or whatever. But to give you something, here's a handful of ideas:
- Steal from others.
- Ask the audience.
- Piggyback on trends.
- Write a guide.
- Borrow a brain.
Stealing from others
I obviously don't mean that you should copy someone else's work, but you can easily come up with ideas if you follow other authors or blogs that you find interesting. Steal the idea not the work.
Ask the audience
Don't be afraid to ask your audience what they want to read. You could even decline rewards on such a post, in case you are afraid of the lack of content or the lack of quality.
Piggyback on trends
HF21 and #newsteem are great examples of this. How many HF21-articles have you seen so far? - Probably hundreds.
Write a guide
A long time ago, I wrote tutorials or guides. I then compiled all of them and wrote a new post with all of these "mini-guides" included. I saved a bunch of time, but I also re-used my previous work to make something even better.
Borrow a brain
How about an interview with someone? Your only challenge is to come up with some interesting questions which will get your subject talking.
I Am NOT A Blogger
I have never considered myself to be a blogger. I write stuff and I have even sold some e-books, so I am basically an author, but I don't like to call myself a blogger. That's not me. I am a marketer.
When I worked as a freelancer, my main business were brand building. I launched marketing campaigns to increase sales and traffic to my customers. I put them on the map. I took them from nowhere to somewhere due to my marketing skills.
Since I joined Steem, I've tried to convince myself that I am a blogger over and over, or that I am a content creator, but it doesn't feel right... I am a marketer, and I market myself and Steem. I want to build my profile and presence. I want to grow an audience and I want to become a truly established Steemian... But I also want Steem to flourish and eventually have millions of active users.
For me personally, that feels almost impossible if I continue to look at myself as a blogger. I am more than that. I am a content creator, but I prefer to look at myself as a marketer because I know that I need to market Steem, as well as myself, for these things to ever become a reality.