What is Guest Posting? And How to Write it?

Mastering the Art of Guest Blogging: A Comprehensive Guide

When it comes to stirring up a room full of marketers, few topics can match the divisive nature of guest blogging. Some dismiss it as a futile endeavor, while others consider it an indispensable component of their marketing strategy. As always, the truth lies somewhere in between. While guest blogging can indeed be a waste of time if executed poorly, it holds immense potential when done right. Not only does it enhance brand awareness, but it also serves as an ethical and sustainable method to cultivate high-quality backlinks and enhance SEO performance.

With that in mind, I present to you this comprehensive guide to guest blogging, designed to be universally applicable across industries. Regardless of your field, you can start leveraging these strategies immediately for optimum results.

Essential Steps for a Successful Guest Blogging Strategy:

1. Establish specific and achievable goals.
2. Select topics aligned with your business objectives.
3. Identify reputable guest blogging sites.
4. Initiate outreach efforts for guest blogging opportunities.
5. Craft compelling guest posts.
6. Continuously track the performance of your posts over time.
7. However, before delving into the nitty-gritty of the strategy, let’s clarify the concept of guest blogging.

What Exactly is Guest Blogging?

Guest blogging, also known as guest posting, involves writing articles for external websites with the aim of promoting your brand. For instance, Semrush’s Marcus Tober contributed a guest post to Adweek, which serves as an excellent example:

By sharing your expertise with relevant audiences, guest blogging can help you:

• Establish yourself as an industry authority and enhance your personal profile.
• Increase brand visibility and awareness.
• Drive traffic to your own website.
• Guest blogging often serves as a means to build backlinks for SEO purposes, as these links act as “votes of confidence” and can positively impact Google rankings. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of guest blogging for SEO remains a subject of debate.
• Defining Your Guest Blogging Goals
• Before diving into the intricacies, your first task is to determine your guest blogging goals. Establishing clear objectives is crucial for identifying the most suitable blogs to submit your guest posts. Generally, there are three primary goals for guest blogging:
• Positioning yourself as an authority and gaining recognition within the industry.
• Generating exposure and driving traffic back to your website.
• Building backlinks to your website (while remembering that this should never be the sole focus, as it contradicts Google’s guidelines).
• You can achieve all three outcomes by tailoring your content to the top blogs that align with your goals.
• If your aim is to achieve either goal #1 or #2, you should focus on blogs with a broad and engaged audience.
• If your primary objective is goal #3, prioritize blogs with strong root domain authority. You can assess this using free tools such as Ubersuggest.
• Having a clear understanding of your objectives from the outset will greatly assist you in identifying the most suitable blogs for guest posting.

Embark on your guest blogging journey armed with these insights, and unlock the tremendous potential it holds for your brand.

Are Guest Posts Beneficial for SEO?

Guest posts are not necessarily detrimental to SEO; in fact, they can be quite advantageous. According to an article on the Google Search Central Blog, Google does not discourage guest posts that inform users, educate another site’s audience, or raise awareness for a cause or company. However, guest articles can potentially have negative consequences for SEO.

One potential issue with guest posts is the risk of incurring a “Google penalty” or “manual action” if a website engages in manipulative linking practices. Such penalties can result in lower search rankings or even exclusion from search results altogether.

Manipulative linking practices encompass a range of activities, including excessive guest posting. This occurs when a brand tries to obtain links on as many websites as possible, resulting in a proliferation of poor-quality content. This not only reflects poorly on the web but also adversely affects Google’s evaluation.

One of the telltale signs of excessive guest posting is the publication of the same or very similar guest posts on multiple sites, particularly if those sites are owned by the same company. Additionally, low-quality content that offers little value, lacks interest or is poorly written can raise red flags. Similarly, if there are numerous unnatural links pointing to the brand’s site, clearly placed for SEO purposes (e.g., multiple links to a gym page with the anchor text “best gym in Austin”), it can also be problematic.

Another factor to consider is the failure to properly nofollow guest post links. Google advises that when linking to your site from a guest post, the link should be set to nofollow. This means instructing Google to ignore the link for SEO purposes. To achieve this, you can add the rel=”nofollow” attribute to the link’s code. Failure to follow this guideline may be detected by Google, potentially resulting in a penalty against your site.

Transparency is crucial when it comes to disclosing guest posts, especially if payment is involved. Host sites must clearly label all sponsored posts to comply with Google’s guidelines and avoid potential violations of advertising regulations or other laws. In the United States, for instance, the FTC requires clear labeling of native advertising, which can attract fines of up to $43,792 per violation for non-compliance.

Despite these potential challenges, a recent Twitter poll revealed that 43.7% of marketers still utilize guest posts for SEO purposes, at least occasionally. Guest posting can be beneficial for SEO and broader marketing strategies because it helps build your brand profile and increases brand awareness. By showcasing your expertise and collaborating with respected sites, you can establish credibility with readers, influencers, and even Google. This can lead to an expansion of social followers, new partnership opportunities, improved rankings, and various other benefits. Additionally, guest post links can generate referral traffic to your site.

Are Guest Post Links Effective for SEO?

According to Google’s John Mueller, guest post links are treated by Google as if they were automatically “nofollowed”, regardless of whether they include the rel=”nofollow” or rel=”sponsored” attribute. This suggests that guest post links have no direct SEO value. However, many marketers remain skeptical about this claim.

To err on the side of caution, it is advisable to “nofollow” your guest post links and avoid raising any red flags with Google. But can guest post links actually contribute to your SEO efforts? Let’s explore the topic further.

Finding Guest Blogging Opportunities

When searching for guest post opportunities, your primary objective should be to locate sites that are relevant to your niche or industry. Here are some criteria to consider:

Relevance: Look for blogs that focus on your niche or industry.

Target audience: Ensure that the blog’s readership would be interested in your industry.

Engagement: Check if the blog has an active and engaged readership with social shares and comments on posts.

Active blog owner: Verify if the blog owner is active on social media, indicating they will promote your work on their site.

For instance, if you sell plant seeds, seek out gardening blogs with an engaged audience interested in gardening. The following methods can help you find suitable guest post opportunities:

Google Searches: Start your search on Google using specific keywords such as “submit a guest post,” “guest post,” “guest post by,” “accepting guest posts,” or “guest post guidelines.” These searches can lead you to a blog’s guest post guidelines page, submission page, or previously published guest posts.

Prolific Guest Bloggers: Identify well-known guest bloggers in your industry by reading blogs relevant to your niche. Notable marketing guest bloggers include Neil Patel, Jeff Bullas, Mark Traphagen, and others. Search for their names on Google, along with the phrase “guest post by,” to discover the sites where they have published. These sites can be excellent opportunities for you to guest post as well. If you personally know a guest blogger, they may even introduce you to blog owners they have collaborated with.

Competitor Backlinks: Conduct a backlink analysis of your competitors using tools like Open Site Explorer. Look for guest posts they have written. If you don’t find any, perform a Google search using the query “link:competitor.com -competitor.com ‘guest post'” to identify sites where your competitors have published.

Social Searches: Many bloggers and guest posters share their latest guest posts on social media platforms like Twitter. Running a Twitter search for the keyword “guest post” can help you discover recent tweets about guest posts in your industry. Follow the links to find blogs that are accepting guest posts.

MyBlogGuest: Consider joining My Blog Guest, a community of guest bloggers. You can sign up for free and search for blogs that accept guest posts. Additionally, you can post your information to let blog owners know that you are looking to write guest posts on specific topics.

Preparing to Pitch a Guest Blog Post

Before reaching out to blogs, it’s crucial to familiarize yourself with their content. Beyond ensuring relevance to your chosen keyword, consider the following:

Target Audience: Determine the level of audience the blog typically caters to (beginners, intermediate, advanced) and whether they are businesses or general consumers. Align your guest post accordingly.

Content Style: Understand the blog’s content style. Do they focus on general concepts or specific, detailed tutorials? Do they prefer listicles or other formats?

Evaluate Guest Post Performance: Assess how well guest posts perform on the site. Are they receiving comments and social shares compared to the blog owner’s posts? If the audience predominantly engages with the blog owner’s content, your guest post may not achieve your desired goals of building authority or driving traffic to your website.

By taking these steps, you can increase your chances of finding suitable guest post opportunities and making a compelling pitch to blog owners. While the direct SEO value of guest post links may be uncertain, guest blogging can still provide benefits such as brand exposure, networking opportunities, and potential referral traffic.

Discover the Guest Bloggers

Some blog owners have a preference for accepting guest posts from specific individuals. Take a look at the bios of a few guest bloggers on the blog to determine if they are fellow bloggers, freelancers, consultants, business owners, or other relevant types. This information will be valuable when you introduce yourself to the blog owner and make your pitch. You can find more insights on the success rates of guest posting outreach in a study conducted by SEOmoz.

Identify the Most Successful Posts

To increase your chances of getting your guest post accepted, it’s important to propose topics that will resonate with the blog’s audience. To gather ideas for topics that have performed well on social media within the blog’s niche, you can use the following resources:

Oktopus: Oktopus tracks and provides reports on your social media performance.

Digg: This platform showcases blog posts that have received the highest number of Digg votes.

Buzzer: Buzzer allows you to schedule your social media posts and provides valuable data and analytics.

Become a Recognizable Presence in the Blogging Community

Establishing a connection with the blog owner before pitching your guest post significantly increases your chances of acceptance. One effective approach is to spend a week or two engaging with the blogging community by commenting on their latest posts. You can earn extra points by sharing those posts on Twitter, making sure to include the blog owner’s @username in your tweets. By doing so, when you eventually pitch your guest post, you won’t be a complete stranger.

How to Begin Guest Posting in the Right Way

In 2023, guest posting for SEO is primarily about building your brand profile rather than acquiring links. Quality outweighs quantity in this approach. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to start guest blogging the right way:

Step 1: Identify Suitable Guest Post Opportunities

For successful guest blogging, it’s crucial to target high-quality websites. Begin by identifying prospects—sites where you’d like to contribute as a guest blogger. Before proceeding, it’s important to understand what to look for:

Authority: Focus on guest blogging only on authoritative sites that have a strong reputation for providing high-quality content. These sites maintain high editorial standards, publish relevant and error-free articles, and have an engaged readership that actively comments on posts and interacts on social media. Avoid publishing on spammy sites, as they can negatively impact your guest blogging SEO. To assess site quality, you can use Semrush’s Authority Score. Generally, the higher the score out of 100, the better the guest posting opportunity. You can check a site’s Authority Score using the Backlink Analytics tool in Semrush by entering the domain of the prospect site and clicking “Analyze.”

Niche Relevance: Ensure that the guest post opportunities align with your niche or are directly related to it. Guest posts deliver value when they showcase your expertise and resonate with the host site’s readership. For example, if you own a gym, writing for an automotive site would appear forced and irrelevant. Instead, focus on health, fitness, or lifestyle blogs where your expertise would be appreciated.

Examine each prospect site to understand the type of content they publish and their target audience. Ensure it’s a suitable match for your goals and expertise.

“3. Discovering Guest Post Opportunities: How to Find and Pitch Your Ideas

If you’re looking to contribute a guest post to a website, it’s important to identify sites that are open to receiving contributions. While some sites may have a strict “no guest posting” policy, there are effective strategies you can employ to find suitable prospects.

One way to determine if a site accepts guest posts is by examining the author bios on articles. Additionally, you can look for a dedicated “Write for us” page or a similar section on the website.

Here are some methods you can use to find potential guest post opportunities:

Utilize Google Search Operators: Google search operators are special characters and phrases that allow you to conduct more targeted queries. By using the following query and replacing “keyword” with a relevant term in your niche, you can find sites that have mentioned common guest posting terms like “guest post,” “guest column,” “guest author,” “become a contributor,” or “write for us.” For example, searching for “fitness” along with these guest posting terms would yield results related to guest post opportunities in the fitness niche.

Seek Ideas from Influencers: Influencers in your industry often have experience contributing guest posts to high-quality sites. By researching relevant influencers, you can discover the sites they have written for. Check their social profiles for any shared links and perform a reverse image search on their headshots. Additionally, you can use tools like Semrush’s Backlink Analytics to explore their domain’s backlinks from blogs, which could include guest posts.

Leverage Semrush’s Link Building Tool: Semrush’s Link Building Tool is a powerful resource for finding potential link-building prospects based on your competitors and target keywords. By entering your domain and starting the tool, you can access a list of prospects. To narrow down the results to potential guest blog prospects, use the “Advanced filters” option and select “Blog” under “URL Type.” The tool will provide prospects ranked by their Authority Score (AS), allowing you to assess their credibility and relevance. You can then proceed by selecting the most promising prospects and choosing “Guest post” as your outreach strategy.

Once you have identified suitable guest post prospects, the next step is pitching your ideas to the site owners or decision-makers. While many blogs have a dedicated email address for article pitches, it is often more effective to contact the relevant person directly. Semrush’s Link Building Tool can assist you in finding contacts or email addresses associated with the site.

When crafting your email pitch, make sure to include the following elements: your idea for the guest post, a compelling hook that explains why their readers would be interested, and your credentials that establish your suitability as the author. Keep your email concise and use an attention-grabbing subject line to pique the recipient’s interest.

After sending your pitch, it’s crucial to track your guest post pitches and take appropriate actions based on the responses:

1. If your email delivery fails, consider using an alternative email address.
2. If you receive an out-of-office response, allow the recipient more time to respond or try contacting another person.
3. If the recipient doesn’t open your email within a few working days, follow up with a subject line that grabs their attention.
4. If the recipient opens your email but doesn’t reply within a working day, send a polite reminder.
5. If the recipient responds, reply promptly and thoughtfully to maintain the conversation.
6. Remember to exercise discretion and judgment before contacting someone, as not all recipients will find your emails relevant. It’s important to respect their preferences and avoid being reported as spam.

Once you receive the green light, you can proceed with writing your guest post.

Track the progress of your guest post pitches with Semrush’s Link Building Tool, which allows you to monitor your outreach efforts effectively.

Start exploring guest post opportunities today and showcase your expertise to a wider audience.

Illustration: ADS image featuring human interaction.”

Step 4: Crafting Your Guest Post for Success

When it comes to writing your guest post, it’s important to adapt to the guidelines and style of the site you’re partnering with. Take the time to read their guest post guidelines and browse through their recent articles. This will give you valuable insights into their preferred word count, image usage, headings, and overall tone of voice. By understanding these elements, you can create a unique article that will resonate with your readers.

Here are some top tips to make your guest blog writing experience effective:

Polish your writing: Use tools like Hemingway App to ensure your writing is error-free and flows smoothly.

Enhance readability: Break up your text with images, paragraphs, and subheadings. This helps to improve the visual appeal and readability of your article.

Visual content: Incorporate relevant images to enrich your post. You can find royalty-free photos on sites like Unsplash or create custom graphics using tools like Canva.

Internal linking: Help the host site by including links to other pages on their website when relevant. This not only adds value to your content but also boosts your site’s authority.

Minimal self-promotion: Only mention your brand if it’s necessary, such as when referring to research you’ve conducted. If you do include a link to your brand, request the host site to add a nofollow attribute, ensuring compliance with Google’s guidelines.

Author bio: Supply an author bio that highlights your credentials and mentions your brand. Include social links and a headshot if required.

Consistent branding: Use the same headshot across your author and social media profiles to help readers recognize you.

To optimize your guest post for search engines, consider using Semrush’s SEO Content Template tool. Enter up to three keywords you want to rank for, choose your country and device, and let the tool create a content template for you. It provides content and SEO suggestions based on your top competitors.

Once you’ve drafted your article, utilize the SEO Writing Assistant to assess its readability, SEO quality, originality, and tone of voice.

After completing your writing, send the guest post draft to the host site and promptly address any feedback to minimize the risk of losing the opportunity.

Here are a few additional tips to enhance your guest blogging strategy:

Clear author bio: Craft a concise author bio that serves as a permanent link back to your website. Many sites prohibit or alter in-body links over time.

Include relevant internal links: Within your guest post, incorporate at least one internal link to the host site’s previous blog posts. This demonstrates your research efforts and helps boost their authority and traffic.

Encourage engagement: Conclude each post with a call to action, inviting readers to leave comments. Increased comments and shares contribute to the post’s popularity in SEO searches.

Promote on social media: Share your guest blog post across your social media networks as a gesture of gratitude and to drive traffic back to the host site and their business. Consider actively marketing and driving links to your guest posts, as done by the team behind Solitaire, a classic gaming site.

Track traffic with Google Analytics: Monitor the amount of traffic generated by your guest post. This will provide valuable insights into reader preferences and help refine your content strategy.

Conclusion

By following these tips, you’ll steer clear of spammy content and fully leverage the benefits of guest blogging. Boost your SEO rankings, enhance brand credibility, and reach new audiences within your industry by associating your business blog and posts with reputable marketers. And remember, consistency and remarkable content are key to long-term success!