How to Develop Content Ideas for Small Businesses
Coming up with compelling content ideas for your small business can sometimes feel like trying to assemble IKEA furniture without the manual—confusing, time-consuming, and occasionally leading to a few extra screws. But fear not!
We’ve been helping small businesses in Denver and beyond cook up smarter, more strategic content for over a decade. No cookie-cutter BS—just genuine value and real results. Whether you’re a one-person operation or a growing team, solid content ideas are how you get noticed, build trust, and ultimately grow. So, let’s crack some eggs and get to it, shall we?
Why Is Developing Content Ideas for Small Businesses So Important?
In this day and age, content marketing isn’t just a “want”. It’s a “need”. For small businesses, it’s a cost-effective way to build brand awareness, engage with customers, and drive sales.
Consider these compelling statistics:
- Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates about 3 times as many leads.
- Businesses with blogs get 55% more website visitors than those who don’t.
- 83% of marketers from a recent survey consider content marketing the most effective method for demand generation.
If these numbers don’t highlight the immense potential of well-crafted content in driving growth and establishing authority in your niche, we don’t know what does.
Types of Content Ideas for Small Businesses
Diverse content types can cater to different audience preferences and platforms. Here’s how you can diversify your content strategy:
Blog Content
Yes, blogs are still a thing—and no, they’re not just dusty digital journals. Done right, a blog can be a goldmine of SEO value and a way to assert your voice in your industry.
Write about things your customers are already asking. Educate them. Entertain them. Show them that you know your stuff and that you’re not some faceless entity trying to sell them something. Talk about trends, answer FAQs, share stories about your work, and highlight how you’re helping real people solve real problems.
Data-Driven Content
No one wants to take business or marketing advice from a novice. Using internal data or industry statistics can position your business as a thought leader. Think along the lines of content like case studies, survey results, or performance metrics –all these content ideas will do wonders to help build your brand’s reputation and credibility.
For example, if your fitness studio noticed a 30% increase in client retention after introducing a new class, sharing this insight can highlight your commitment to results-driven services.
Social Media Content
With 96% of small businesses using social media to promote their business, it’s essential to create engaging content for these platforms. Short-form videos, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and user-generated content are awesome ways to humanize your brand and stimulate community engagement.
User-Generated Content
Let your customers help you tell your story. Encourage reviews, ask for testimonials, run hashtag campaigns, or share their photos and experiences (with permission, of course).
UGC is authentic, relatable, and a great way to build community—and it can also inspire your next piece of content. What are people loving? Confused about? Asking for?
Listen, and you’ll never run out of content ideas again.
Our Biggest Tips for Coming Up With Content Ideas for Your Small Business
There’s so much information out there – it can feel confusing to know where to start, what to write, or even know what resources to use when it comes to content generation. At Red Egg, we’re big fans of slowing down and taking it one step at a time. Low and slow makes the best scrambled eggs, right? So—here are the best tips we’ve found in our experience that will really help your small business achieve its content goals:
1. Listen to Your Customers
As we’ve said before, listening is the key to everything. Every support email, social media comment, and in-person question is a potential blog post or video. Keep a running list of real things your customers ask, and start answering them publicly. Blog posts, an updated FAQ page, or even a tutorial video that answers these questions are a really good way to show your customers that you care about their needs and that you’re the best company to help meet them.
2. Calendar It Out
Don’t fly by the seat of your pants. Plan a month or two of content at a time, leaving some room for timely stuff. Knowing what’s coming makes execution way easier—and helps you stay consistent.
3. Use a Content Pillar Approach
Pick 3–5 core topics you want to be known for—say, “sustainable landscaping” or “Denver pet grooming.” Build out content from those pillars. Think how-to’s, customer stories, tool recommendations, trend breakdowns, etc.
4. Leverage Keyword Research Tools
Utilize tools like Google Trends or Answer the Public to discover what your audience is searching for. This can help you create search engine optimized (SEO) content for your website, ads, and social media accounts that aligns with current interests and queries, which can help pull in qualified leads and skyrocket your business’ listing to the top of SERP results.
Pro Tip
5. Collaborate with Industry Influencers
Look, whether you like it or not, industry influencers are here to stay—and with their help, your content marketing efforts will pack a serious punch, especially if your target audience is on the younger side. 83% of Gen Z and 80% of Millennials trust influencer recommendations. Bottom line? Partnering with influencers or industry experts can bring fresh perspectives and expand your reach. They can even help you with writing blog posts, interviews, or joint webinars to provide more valuable content and tap into new audiences.
6. Monitor Competitors
No, not to copy—just to spark ideas. What’s working for them? What’s missing? What could you do better or from a different angle? Identify gaps in their content strategy and find opportunities to offer unique insights or solutions for your own business.
Small Business, Big Content
If it hasn’t been said enough: you don’t need an outlandish budget to create impactful content. What you do need is intention, relevance, and a little bit of personality.
Start small. Get strategic. Listen to what your audience actually wants. Do your research. Reuse what you’ve got. Listen again. Build up your content library piece by piece, and don’t forget to have a little fun with it.
Still stuck on where to begin? Don’t sweat it – you’ve got a whole flock that’s got your back. At Red Egg Marketing, we specialize in helping small businesses hatch smarter content strategies that actually drive growth. Whether you need help brainstorming, writing, designing, or just getting the dang thing published—we’ve got you covered.
Let’s create something egg-straordinary together. Contact us today to get started.
