By Melody McKinnon
Publishing guest posts on blogs is a cost-effective way to reach your target market and build brand awareness. Bloggers can gain an impressive, loyal following with their excellent content, communication, and trust built through fellowship and familiarity. Their value to brands is in their influence over consumer purchasing, often in a very specific niche.
The benefits of appearing on a blog include:
- Actual or perceived endorsement
- Traffic directly from the blog post
- Social media promotion of the post to the blogger’s audience
How to Get Your Guest Post Published on Top Blogs
I’ve been on both the submitting and publishing side of guest blogging for many years. Both perspectives have contributed to this list of do’s and don’ts for a successful guest posting campaign.
1. DO choose blogs that are somehow related or complimentary to the website you’re promoting.
2. DO read the blog’s guest post guidelines. Follow them to the letter if you want the blogger to even consider your guest post submission. The vast majority of marketers/writers don’t read the guidelines, in my experience. You can set yourself apart by doing so.
3. DON’T submit content that isn’t directly related and relevant to the blog’s niche and target market. If the blog focuses on a specific market within a niche, so should you. For example, we wouldn’t publish a post about choosing the best pesticide-powered flea collar on our NATURAL pet care blog, even though it’s a pet topic.
4. DO read through the blog to get a feel for the quality and tone of its posts, and to determine if a similar post has already been published.
5. DO remember that a guest post is not a press release or an opportunity to directly promote your products. It must provide value to the blog and its readers. For example, ‘evergreen’ content that will be of interest to readers over the long term, such as related tips, listicles, research, case studies, statistics, product reviews and comparisons.
6. DON’T submit AI or other software-generated content. They can do that themselves if they want to, but the best writers only use AI for research.
7. DON’T run around the internet stealing content for your guest post, even if you reword it. Write within your area of expertise and share your qualifications in the author bio.
8. DO include high-quality visuals or multi-media whenever possible, such as slides, infographics, charts or videos.
9. DO include reference links, data sources, and image copyrights.
10. DO proof read the post before submitting. If it will take too much time and effort to clean it up, the blogger won’t bother publishing it. Also, be prepared for the blogger to edit for style, internal links, and so on.
11. DON’T demand ‘do follow’ links, undisclosed sponsorship status, or anything else intended to deceive search engines or the public. The majority of bloggers allow a ‘no follow’ link in the author bio and that’s where the value for you is. If you want to feature a link within the article itself you may have to pay a nominal fee, but the same rules apply.
12. DON’T try to sneak your link into the content as a reference or try to fool the blogger in other ways. Most bloggers have seen all the tricks.
13. DON’T send a generic pitch to a zillion bloggers. Your submission or pitch should include pertinent information for that specific blog. For example, tell them (briefly) why you think their readers will appreciate the information and what you’ve done to make it perfect for their blog. Spare them the empty flattery, they’ve heard it all before.
14. DO specify if you’re submitting original, exclusive content or if the post will be submitted/published elsewhere.
15. DO include your first and last name with your submission, as well as your author bio.
16. DON’T be a pain. Repeated emails, asking for edits after the post is live or making other demands, is shooting yourself in the foot. Bloggers know what their audience responds to, so leave them to it.
How to Find Niche Bloggers
Finding suitable bloggers in your niche can be tedious and time-consuming, but the right outreach tool will make the task much easier. Ninja Outreach is our favourite outreach tool for a number of reasons. It offers the most options to help you find bloggers, content influencers and social media influencers. To my knowledge, none of the other top tools offer social media outreach.
Ninja Outreach also boasts location search filters, outreach templates, prospecting browser plugin, outreach scheduling, auto follow up, and basic reporting data. They have a number of affordable options to suit any company size and you can try it free to ensure it’s the best option for you.
Build a Relationship
If your guest post is published and the response is promising, approach the blogger with other opportunities. You can offer additional guest posts or expert quotes, ask for a review, and so on. The response to your guest post is a solid foundation to build your mutually-beneficial relationship on, while being reasonably certain of a healthy return-on-investment (ROI).
Once you’ve been published or mentioned on a blog, promote the post with pride via social media or on your website. A note of thanks to the blogger with a tag on social media is also the kind of gesture that promotes good will and keeps the door open. Watch the post so you can respond to any comments that are left on the site.
Guest blogging for ‘link building’ is on life support, but the marketing and branding benefits that come from a well-targeted placement remain very much alive.
Do you use guest posting as part of your content marketing campaigns? Please share your experience or questions.
Author Bio:
Melody McKinnon is a Canadian digital entrepreneur with 25 years of experience in a wide range of online business models, backed by a formal business education and enhanced by training and mentorship. She owns CA Digital Media Group and is the author of 7 Recession Proof Online Businesses to Start From Home. Melody covers online business and digital marketing on CanadiansInternet.com.
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A previous version of this article was published by Melody McKinnon on Online Business Canada. Republishing permitted as is, with byline, author bio, and this notation (including links). Image provided by Deposit Photos for editorial use only.
