I used to complain that there are no enough free materials for bloggers on the Web.
Well, turns out I was wrong— there are tons of research and learning materials online, many more than I could ever use in a life span!
The most casual web search brought up a wealth of free resources that is definitely only a tiny portion of all the available content still hidden to my eyes.
Wanna bet?
Where can we get ideas for our blog posts or keep up to date with the new findings in our niches?
Here I compiled a list of 22 free resources (articles, e-books, print magazines, e-zines, newsletters, etc.) that you can use at no charge.
The list breaks down to 6 main categories:
- Books & E-Books
- E-Courses
- Guides & Reports
- Magazines
- Newsletter Subscriptions
- Niche Blogs
- Social Communities
Use them all or just pick a few, they will make writing authoritative blog posts easier than ever– and build more trust and credibility among your readers.
Happy blogging!
Books & E-Books
1. European Bookshop
Tons and tons of free books about the EU government, projects and initiatives.
EU residents can also request FREE copies of each book or magazine available. International users can download free PDF copies where available.
All you have to do is register for a free account. If you order paper material in the EU, it will arrive within 3 weeks from shipment day. If you live outside of the EU or choose a PDF version of the material, the download is immediate.
2. Hubspot’s Marketing Library
Looking for tons of marketing and SEO related books? Hubspot gives out some every week for free and then collect them in their Marketing Library.
I’ve found it incredibly helpful (a life saver!) whenever I’m looking for authoritative guides to cite in my work or to study from, and while I may miss a few emails because of server downtimes or other issues, I’ll never lose a chance to pick any guides I need if I go directly to the Library.
Plus, skim through their blog posts and you’ll find more food for thought. To get the free e-books and reports directly to your email, you need to join their free newsletter.
3. WorldScientific.com
Materials on this site come with a fee, but when you subscribe to their newsletter(s) you will often receive FREE complimentary access to many of their scientific journals and book chapters.
Goodness, this is a wonderful opportunity for all academics to grab on the fly, especially if you blog in a specific industry that relies heavily on knowledge and new discoveries.
Bonus points if you can get to interview one of the authors for your blog or your client’s!
4. Free e-book on American English Idioms
Published by the US government, “In The Loop” is a great companion if you want to be a successful English writer, especially if you are not a native speaker (like me).
I keep this resource handy whenever I need to brush up on known idioms or to learn some new expressions.
E-Courses
5. MIT OpenCourseware
Whether you need a quick brush up on a subject or just to learn the basics of a specific topic for your blog articles, MIT OpenCourseware shares its best courses with the public, and has been doing so since 2005.
If you are a webinar-addicted or highly visual blogger, you may find useful to follow courses with free lecture videos instead of text-only course notes.
(Besides, we bloggers and freelancers are lifelong learners, aren’t we?)
URL: http://ocw.mit.edu
6. InternetBasedMoms.com
A wonderful list of newsletters and e-courses directly in your email with this website. The site is intended for moms who work at home and want to earn money blogging or through their websites.
I have subscribed to the “Blogging for Profit” and “Freelance Success” in 2012 and the tips I received by email are still saved in a folder in my email client. The quality of the e-courses made them a keeper for later reference.
7. Poynter’s News University
Free to join, Poynter’s is an e-university for journalists and writers. Some of the materials require you to pay a fee, but most e-courses and webinars are available at no charge.
Good materials I have used personally include the Advertising Revenue Booster and 100 Ideas to Make Your Journalism Better webinars and the API-Poynter Digital Storytelling Summit course.
URL: http://www.newsu.org
Guides & Reports
8. TechRepublic.com
Downlodable freebies include white papers, newsletters, case studies, news pieces and an entire Resource Library, so this is the place to go when you want to write about anything techy, either for your own blog or for an assignment.
Webcasts are helpful if you prefer visual and interactive content, and you can join or create discussions in the Forums.
Personally, I chose to subscribe to more than one TechRepublic newsletter, so I get email updates every time a new case study or white paper or other downloadable content comes up. I seldom write technical blog posts, so this resource comes handy— and it has for almost 4 years, now.
9. MarketingSherpa.com
The marketing research institute doesn’t just help marketers do their job, it seems. Bloggers in the marketing and SEO niche can get hundreds of free reports to base their research from on this website.
For example, I found Special Report: A Tactical Approach to Content Marketing – How to create content that accelerates inbound lead quality and conversions very useful to develop my own blogs and to research for my freelance blogging articles.
Other great resources Marketing Sherpa offers are its marketing videos and the articles library. The blog is a must-read for bloggers in the marketing niche.
10. TradePub.com
Who doesn’t love TradePub? Freelance writers can get trade magazines to study for free, bloggers and marketers can download white papers, case studies, free PDF magazines and much more at no charge.
As an Italy-based writer, I can’t order free samples to get in the mail, but so far TradePub has never disappointed me with the quality of their downloadable material.
My favorite categories? Marketing and Information Technology. I find tons of new materials every week and I can’t write fast enough to use them all in blog posts, it seems.
Magazines
11. Magcloud.com
You can get a free digital magazine with every magazine you buy, here, or download magazines for free or less-than-$3. There are less free mags in comparison to two years ago, but most magazines are coffee-priced so you can still afford them.
If you write for magazines in addition to blogging, Magcloud makes a good library to explore– and pitch.
Newsletter Subscriptions
12. About.com Newsletters
About.com can be a wonderful source of new ideas and knowledge about your favorite topics. The newsletters provide exceptional food for thought and ideas to craft good blog posts with the essentials of your niche.
I used to be skeptic about this website and the information provided, but as I took more time to read it over the last four years, I realized I’d be a fool not to take advantage of this free content blessing.
I’m still a subscriber to the Blogging, Web Hosting and Freelance Writing newsletters. :)
13. PRNewswire.com
The newsletter for bloggers comes with hundreds of new fresh topics to write about every day, so if you are a news-oriented blogger, this is a must-have resource to subscribe to and keep handy.
14. SmartBrief.com Newsletters
SmartBrief newsletters are more technical and industry specific than About.com, and often they’re run in partnership with big names in the industry— you’ll find a newsletter about Franchising published in partnership with IFA (International Franchise Association), or a newsletter about Leadership run in partnership with MAPI (Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation).
One of my favorite daily newsletters is Insights and advice to help sales leaders that covers Sales Strategies, data and sales-related talks.
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