Last Updated on March 1, 2024
Guest blogging has become a powerful tool in SEO. It will enable you to build quality links and network with blog owners whose sites you will be able to use time and time again, whilst building your reputation as a writer. Not only is your rep increasing, but you are also being introduced to a whole new audience of readers, which you can attract to become regular readers and subscribers of your blog.
Effective guest blogging requires more skill than just emailing the desired blog owners and asking to post. Today we will take a look on this issues and provide you with the best outcomes probable to succeed!
Where Do I Start?
The hardest part of writing is knowing where to start, and staring blankly at the computer screen hoping for an idea to jump out is unlikely to prove successful. So, the first thing to do is to think of a subject to write about:
• Write about something that matters to you- the worst blogs are those written about topics that the author doesn’t understand and hasn’t grasped. These posts will often turn into mindless dribble.
• Do your research- if you are unfamiliar with the topic make sure you get your head around it before putting pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard.
• Gain some inspiration- you might find it in the strangest of places. Perhaps when you’re brushing your teeth in the morning, for others a gentle walk does the trick. Find out where your place of inspiration is and utilise this to get your ideas flowing.
Before you start contacting blog owners, be sure that you have some quality posts ready to pitch. Simply saying “I would like to guest post for your blog”, and waiting for an idea, may not land you a writing opportunity. People often feel bad about their content being rejected. You have got to keep in mind that blog owners have thousands of worries about everything. While reading your email they need some options, to automatically plan out the future.
This form of thinking is quite common for website owners. Treat each point of contact as an opportunity to sell yourself and your blog. Be sure that you include information about your blog, your writing experience, your areas of expertise and some topics for potential guest articles. Explain to the blog owner how they would benefit from having you as a guest.
Think Snappy
You want to ensure your blog is read, and when people are looking through numerous posts on the same topic you need to make sure yours stands out from the crowd. The best way to do this is by drawing people in with a snappy title that will get people reading, and follow this up with good quality writing which will keep them interested. Your guest post is an opportunity to connect with new readers. If your article is poor quality, readers will likely think that your blog is of poor quality as well. Maybe that is not the case and you truly have a wonderful blog, but people are always quick to jump to assumptions.
Who is Your Audience?
Whilst writing your blog post always have in the back of your mind the audience you are writing for. A trick that many writers use is to think of one person and write for them. For example, imagine your favourite college tutor or a member of your family. By utilising this technique you can ensure that every word you write will resonate with the person reading your blog, as you will have an idea of their personality and what they like.
Your post is a way to highlight your expertise and the quality of content. Talk to the reader as you would to a single person. Use words like you your and yourself. Leveraging this technique allows you to build a relationship with the reader in, and outside your article. Throw in a couple of jokes, puns, sarcasm, and anything else that would be appropriate. Use Alexa.com to figure out the demographics.
Quality over Quantity
It’s an age old phrase but it’s something that really matters when writing your guest blog. As you write each sentence think to yourself, “What does this add to the post as whole?” And if the answer is nothing, then take it out! It’s much better to have 500 words of quality writing than 1000 words that don’t mean anything.
It can be difficult when writing about a topic you are passionate about to stop yourself ranting, but remember a guest blog is supposed to be enlightening, so make the most of this opportunity to capture your audience.
Whilst thinking about quality it’s also worth noting that your guest blog isn’t simply about gaining links. A guest post is designed to be an informative and enjoyable piece for your audience to read. So don’t fill your post with lots of links, instead stick to just one or two, and leave them in your author byline. Follow these handy tips and you can ensure that writing your guest blog will prove worthwhile, and the hours that you have spent writing it aren’t wasted time.
Also fulfill your duty to explain everything you possible can regarding that topic. Many guest bloggers purposely write vague articles, so they can come back later and post the stuff they left out. Now they have two articles linking back to their website. This is the wrong way of thinking. Create the best work possible. Half-assing won’t get you anywhere, you will be just like the other guy.
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