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Join in this session with me as we brainstorm for content for a site that sells fishing equipment. Understand that I am not a fisherwoman! So some of my ideas may be a little crazy. Does that matter? No. Remember that no ideas are wrong. This is room #1. Write down any ideas you have. All ideas are good. We’re brainstorming for as many ideas as we can come up with. Get as creative as you can.
Don’t stop to analyze the ideas. That’s when the left brain steps in and tries to take control. We’re not allowing the left brain to enter this room.
I’ll even challenge you a little further: if an idea sounds crazy, be SURE to write it down. Those can often be the best ones.
Here are some of my ideas. I want to hear your ideas too. I’ll keep adding more of my ideas AFTER you start brainstorming with me. I want this to be an interactive experience, because that’s how you’ll learn to do it yourself.
Brainstorm with me on content for a site that sells fishing supplies and equipment:
Create a series of “how to” videos on fishing for different types of fish. Syndicate the videos to other Web sites.
Write “how to” articles about fishing, use expert articles, write articles aimed toward teens, or write informational articles. Post those articles on your site. For articles posted on your own site, if you mention certain lure, link to the lure on your site. Link to the fishing pole you used. Then, allow your content to be syndicated on other Web sites. You won’t be able to syndicate the expert articles, but you’ll be able to syndicate your own content. Use Creative Commons for syndication.
Invite celebrity fishermen to come to chat sessions to meet with your visitors and answer questions. Be sure to have specific topics for the chats, and come up with exciting and captivating titles of the chats. Promote the chats in an online calendar.
Ask the celebrities to autograph their books, if they have books, and auction them off on your site. Give the proceeds away to a nonprofit association.
Ask readers to submit their funniest fishing stories. Have a contest for the funniest fishing story of the month. Post the winners’ stories on your site. (What do you think the winners are going to do? Don’t you imagine they’ll link to your site if you’re posting their stories?)
Ask readers to submit their fishing pictures. Ideally, you want fishing pictures of all types of fishing from all states. Post them on your site. Again, people will link to their own pictures. Have contests for the largest of particular types of fish, unique fish, whatever.
Have readers submit the funniest things kids have said while fishing. Have contests. Post these quotes on your site.
Create a “find the perfect pole for you” Web-based program so that your visitors can plug in the type of fish, left hand or right hand, size, power, whatever. (Remember that I’m not a fisherwoman — so I don’t know anything about fishing poles.) The idea is to create a viral marketing tool that people will visit to determine exactly what pole will work for them, for their child, their wife, as a gift, etc.
What can you provide on a fishing site to get wives involved in fishing? After all, if a fisherman could get the wife involved, she wouldn’t gripe when her husband wanted to go fishing every weekend. 
Make it a family thing. We could get into a creative discussion just on this topic.
What would you need to bring on a fishing trip? Create check lists for what to bring on a trout fishing trip, a marlin fishing trip, etc.
Fishing recipes. Then, join Amazon’s affiliate program and link to some recipe books. Ask readers to submit their recipes. (Don’t you imagine they would link to their recipes?) You could even create a PDF of all recipes for a free download.
Review fishing boats. Allow readers to submit their comments.
Do you have a funny fishing video? Submit it to YouTube with a link back to your site.
Send out a newsletter with fishing tips, reviews, this month’s funniest fishing story, kids’ quotes, etc. Post past issues on your site. Include a discount coupon off their next purchase. Build your e-mail marketing list.
Have an online calendar and post fishing events, fishing rodeos, tournaments, etc., as readers send them to you. Get readers to send in pictures from the events afterward and have an events page.
Have an expert Q&A on the main page of the site where readers could send in questions. Archive the questions on your site and make it searchable.
Offer a tips page with short tips about different lures, poles, etc.
Have a safety page with safety tips.
Create a special section for kids. Have a matching game where kids can match the fish with the name of the fish. Add coloring pages and post the pages online. Have “how to” articles for fishing with kids. Syndicate those articles. Consider other games for kids.
Add fishing quotes throughout the site. For example: “When I was a small boy growing up in Kansas, a friend of mine and I went fishing and as we sat there in the warmth of a summer afternoon on a riverbank we talked about what we wanted to do when we grew up. I told him that I wanted to be a real major-league baseball player, a genuine professional like Honus Wagner. My friend said that he’d like to be President of the United States. Neither of us got our wish.” by Dwight D. Eisenhower
Fishing trivia — have a fishing trivia game for adults.
Have free fishing greeting cards, with a discount to the receiver for their visit to your online store.
Provide a map of the best fishing areas across the country, based on what type of fishing you do.
Get local experts to discuss regional fishing and write articles and content.
Partner with local fishing tours to cross promote services and provide content.
Okay, I’ve come up with 25 ideas, but I have a lot more to add. I want YOU to come up with ideas too.
Write your ideas down, and let’s watch as creativity explodes into content and link popularity.
Robin