Homeowners constantly search the internet for home-improvement answers, and these searches can attract visitors to your website where they can become potential leads. Blogging is a valuable tool that allows you to capture those visitors with greater frequency.

While most business owners today understand the value of blogging, they often face the dilemma of not knowing what to write. To start, here are a few general blogging tips:

• Blog article length: 500–700 words is long enough for a post to have substance.
• Frequency: 3–4 blogs a month is ideal, but consistency is most important; start slow and pick a frequency you can stick with, then build from there.
• Content ideas bucket: Pick one place to store all of your content ideas (videos, blog articles, graphics, etc.). Then, when it’s time to create, ideas will be readily available.

Now that you have the basics, here are some tips to help you find the right blog topics.

Find ‘evergreen’ topics

Sustainable, evergreen topics are not tied to an event or time frame and won’t quickly become dated. While ‘trend’ articles (ex. Paint Color Trends for 2020) are fun, this content doesn’t have a long shelf life—maybe six months. Evergreen topics also establish you as a credible expert and a professional in your field. Ideas include:

• How to choose a painting contractor in your local area
• Compare DIY to professional painting
• Common myths in the painting industry

Turn FAQs into content

Customers often ask the same questions, so turn those 10–15 questions into blogs. Think:

• How often should I repaint my home?
• What are VOCs and why should I care?
• Can my kitchen cabinets be painted?

Extra tip: Type questions into Google, then scroll down to the bottom of the page. Google will show ‘related searches,’ which can also help you identify more topics.

Feature ideas to inspire

Homeowners spend hours scrolling through online resources like Houzz and Pinterest for inspiration. Your blog can inspire, too. Some ideas include:

• Tips for increasing curb appeal
• Kitchen painting
• Highlight a charity project

Project Stories

Project success stories are one of the best ways to showcase your skills and expertise. They not only walk the reader through your problem-challenge-solution process, but they also add the story behind the before-and-after photos. Because the content is relatable, storytelling creates a deeper human connection between your business and potential customers.

Bonus idea: Create ‘How to’ tutorials on various painting processes. For this idea, upload videos to your blog and then write a summary of them, which is important for SEO purposes. Contractors often worry that if they share how to do something, the consumer will do it themselves. Some do, but most will look at the process and think, “That is way too [complex, time consuming, hard on my body]” and call the expert to get it done.

Tess Wittler is a content marketing consultant for the building industry: TessWittler.com