Millions of internet users read billions of blog pages each month. With numbers as high as these, blogging remains a crucial part of content marketing. But, to take a brand’s reach beyond its own website, guest-blogging becomes equally essential.
What is Guest-Blogging?
In a nutshell, guest-blogging is writing a blog post for another website. It is often included in content marketing strategies and SEO practices for promoting personal or corporate brands.
Guest-blogging benefits both the host and the contributor. The host site receives fresh content, while the contributor gets more exposure. Thus, guest posts serve as mutually beneficial and collaborative content for both parties.
Reasons for Guest-Blogging
It may seem counter-intuitive to produce content for other blogs when you can publish it on your own platform. However, guest-blogging brings plenty of benefits. Here's why you should consider guest-blogging for different blogs:
- It generates awareness for your brand.
When you guest-post, you gain additional exposure to a relevant audience. You’re able to reach and, more importantly, connect to this audience, which gives you the opportunity to win over new readers, followers, or customers. This will also expand your social media presence and gain you valuable connections to reputable sites.
- It helps you build authority in your niche.
When you write content for established blogs, you position yourself as an authority in your niche. You're able to grow credibility and establish your name or your brand as an expert in the industry. This also enhances your reputation.
- It drives traffic to your website.
Aside from gaining more exposure, guest posts are also helpful in building backlinks to your website. These backlinks help drive traffic to your site and improve its SEO and domain authority.
- It increases your owned audience.
If your guest post captures the interest of readers, they’re more likely to become readers of your own blog too. This increases your readership and builds clout.
Steps to Effective Guest-Blogging
1. Identify prospective sites
The first step to effective guest-blogging is finding opportunities to guest-post. Look for sites relevant to your niche that have engaged readership. Their audience should belong to the demographic that would be interested in your blog or brand as well.
Target high-quality sites that have impeccable reputation in the industry. Check how they rank on Google search and what their domain authority (DA) is. Choose sites that have DAs of 40 and above to maximize the value of your guest post.
2. Prepare a personalized pitch
Instead of a standardized pitch meant for multiple blog sites, personalize every pitch you send. Familiarize yourself with the type of audience and content each blog is known for. Prepare a pitch that shows you can provide quality content that’s suited for the blog. Start with a few title suggestions and write a concise summary for each. Keep your pitch short and straight to the point.
3. Write unique and informative content
Never provide duplicate content. Every guest post you write must be well-written and provide something new to the readers, be it new information, a unique perspective, or a memorable experience. The post has to offer insight of value; it can’t function as just another ad for your brand. More importantly, it has to be written according to the standards of the site you’re submitting it to.
Check the type of content published on the blog. Are they mostly listicles, DIY tutorials, or long-form articles? Do they feature images and infographics? Format your post similar to existing posts by using similar elements and style. Include internal and source links to create backlinks of value. Make sure to insert these links as naturally as possible to the content, so they don’t sound too promotional.
4. Include a personal bio
If your objective for guest-blogging is to build authority in your niche, write a unique, engaging personal bio that can be inserted after your guest post. This should help readers get to know you more personally, and help you list your accomplishments and define yourself as another expert blogger or a brand worth checking out in your industry.
Your bio is also the best place to include links to your own blog or website. Make sure to link to your social media accounts as well, so that interested readers can follow you on different platforms.
