You know how blogs about blogging always say that content is king? They tell you that you need to create quality content and that great content will draw readers to your blog.

Often when I see bloggers write that, I feel like screaming the question – what the heck is this content you keep telling us about? What do you mean by quality content? Isn’t it annoying when they don’t tell you what that content is?

Gah!

What does creating quality content mean for beauty bloggers? Beauty blogs are somewhat synonymous to product review websites; it seems that that is what the world thinks it’s all we do. We review beauty products (purchased by us or provided by brands for consideration) on our blogs. Is that it? Is that the only content we can create for our blogs?

Au contraire mon amie!

First of all, that’s not all there is to is to beauty blogs. In fact, I’ve said on more than one occasion that I find perpetual reviews dull and uninspiring. Even I find writing product reviews over and over boring, what more for my readers who have to read them?

Secondly, I’m all for mixing it up. Throw in something different once in a while. You don’t have to just do product reviews to be a good beauty blogger.

Here’s what you can do for your beauty blog other than product reviews:

• Write about what you know. If I can stress just one point of this post, it would be this. It’s very important to write what you know and what you’re familiar with. For example, I’m hardly going to write about applying false eyelashes because I sure as heck don’t know how to (things might change though; perhaps one day I will master the darn thing). You can step out of the box and venture into unfamiliar territory, but be sure to do plenty of research and get your facts right.
• Everyone loves a good DIY. Are you good at beauty DIY? Perhaps you know how to make your own facial masks, lip balms, etc. Share that with your readers.
• Beauty tips. Some may already be general knowledge, but you’d be surprised that there are still a lot of things we do not know. What you know may not be what I know. Found a creative way in using cotton swabs/Q-tips? Share it with your readers.
• Share something about you. We like to know more about the person behind the blog. Sure we know what your skin shade and type is, but what about what you like to do in your free time? Perhaps you enjoy reading or gardening. Let us know.
• Shopping hauls. Now this might be a little sensitive to share, especially on a very regular basis because it can be misconstrued as “damn, this blogger has a lot of money; she’s always buying something new!“. I know of bloggers who have had bad experience with some readers who didn’t like seeing shopping hauls. I would say, try keeping it to maybe once or twice a month. We still like to see what new stuff you’ve bought, maybe not every other day.
• What’s in your bag/makeup bag/travel bag/kitchen cabinets. I’ve Googled this topic (okay, maybe not for kitchen cabinets. Although I would still be interested to know what’s in yours ;)), searched for it on YouTube and Flickr, and hot damn, it’s a highly popular one. So many voyeurs out there (count me one of them) who wants to take a peek in your bag.
• Memes. I know, this isn’t 2005, but what’s wrong with doing memes once in a while? They’re fun, and it’s a break out of the routine.
• Lists. Lists of stuff you like, stuff you hate, what you’re currently doing, what you had for lunch, what you’re currently reading, etc. A lot of us are sucker for lists (okay, I am), and they’re easy to read too.
• Makeup tutorials. If you’re good at applying makeup, show us how! I know that makeup tutorials aren’t easy to do. If you’re not comfortable doing a video about it, then it’s hard work taking step-by-step photos. That is why I highly commend bloggers who create such comprehensive makeup tutorials, written or via videos. So much effort goes into them.
• Questions. Create a topic and ask your readers what their opinions are. This generates discussion amongst your readers. Sometimes you don’t even need to know about the topic at all to ask your readers. For example, you’re stumped on a subject you’re not familiar with. Perhaps you’re racking your brains to remember a certain makeup shade you saw but can’t recall. Ask your readers!
• Surveys. This is a great way to get to know your reader demographic.
• Personal style. This is new to me, but oh how I enjoy reading blogs that also show their personal style and fashion sense. Perhaps you purchased a new scarf and cute accessories. Show us!
• Organisational skills. Like “what’s in your bag” posts, maybe your readers would like to see how your organise your makeup collection. Perhaps you found something (or better yet, made it yourself) that could organise your stuff very well. Share it with your readers.
• News and promotions. It’s good to let your readers know of any good sales or interesting news but beware of regurgitating press releases. Give it your own spin.
• Write about what you’re good at. If you’re great at photography, share some tips and tricks with how we can improve ours.
• If a picture is worth a thousand words, then what is 10? Sometimes you don’t need words to tell the story.

I could go on and on, but see how much you can do on your beauty blog other than product reviews? Quality content does not necessarily just mean write good product reviews. There’s so much more you can do.

You can also check Google AdWords for keywords to know what people are looking for when they land on your blog. This is an interesting subject, which I will leave for another post.

So now you know what creating content means for beauty bloggers when you read about it on blogs about blogging. There are so many ways to go about it. Beauty blogging does not just mean writing product reviews. Inject your personality into your words and pictures in whatever topic you wish to write.

Now that, my friends, is quality content. 🙂