The “Holy Grail” of Guest Blogging Tips
Going off from what I talked about in a previous post, writing guest blog posts can in many ways be more effective in building traffic and gaining readership, sales, etc than paying for reviews or buying advertising slots or links on blogs.
Not only can this free method of advertising be more effective, but it also brings with it many more benefits.
The fact that you don’t have to pay anything to get exposure on a high authority blog, or any blog of your choice, is the most obvious. There are two other main benefits, and they are:
Being seen as an expert in your field – The fact that your post is being published on a high authority blog speaks volumes for your credibility, whether you’re actually credible or not. Common sense says that you are if you managed to get this far, and the readers of the blog are automatically going to trust you just as much as they trust the blog owner. Well, maybe not quite as much, but if the blogger is endorsing you, and they are since they’re publishing you’re article, then that’s going to build trust between you and the readers.
This holds a lot more weight to the blog readers because you’re providing valid and relevant information that they can relate to and use, rather than just paying the blogger to write a review about you. The readers are going to respond much better to a guest post because the blogger isn’t obligated to post your article at all. If they’re being paid to write a review, then they have to talk about you.
Automatic trust among readers – I touched briefly on this in the first point, but I feel I need to elaborate on this further. Don’t underestimate the power of trust. Trust is critical to your online success, no matter what your business.
No matter what activities you’re involved in with your business, you want to make sure that what you do and say is creating and building trust with others. It could be the slightest, littlest thing, but believe me, one miniscule little thing can completely ruin any trust you had. You want to do whatever you can to build and keep the trust you have.
The first thing to do to create trust is build relationships, and keeping in line with the topic of guest blog posts, the blogger has already done the hard part in building a relationship with his/her readers. As a guest author, you get to reap the rewards.
That’s not to say that you can slack off and write a mediocre article. For one, it won’t get published. Second, the readers will take notice and decide they have better things to do than check out another wannabe blogger. A lot of care and time needs to be taken when writing your guest post.
Here are some tips to help you write killer guest blog posts…
This should really be part of your overall marketing strategy for many different reasons, but knowing what to do, and what not to do, can really go a long way. Read each and every post I link to and learn them well. Save them, favorite them, bookmark them… whatever you do… so when you’re ready to do a guest post, you’ll start off on the right foot.
Instead of making this into a VERY long and drawn-out post, I thought I’d keep it somewhat short and give out some link love to other bloggers who have already taken the time to share their guest blogging tips. I call this the “Holy Grail” of guest blogging tips… tips from the A-List bloggers themselves.
The first set of tips comes from none other than “ProBlogger” Darren Rowse. Darren writes about How to be a Good Guest Blogger. Be sure to check out his full Guest Blogging Series at the end of his post for even more great killer content. Also check out his How to Guest Post to Promote Your Blog article.
Our second round of tips comes from Copyblogger, which just happens to be a guest post by Jordan Cooper. Neat how that works, huh? Jordan’s article is 10 Proven Steps to Snag a Guest Post on an A-List Blog. If nothing else, read it for the humor and sarcasm Jordan incorporates into the post… if you like that sort of thing. I think you know which way I lean. 
The third set of tips comes from Chris Garrett about How To Guest Blog Without Disaster. Chris provides some great advice for bloggers who are ready to tackle the challenge guest posting.
As mentioned earlier, check out every single one of these articles. The content is beyond excellent.
Another reason I decided to go this route is because I’ll soon be venturing into this area as well, and linking out to articles I find helpful makes it easier for me to find for future reference. That’s my own personal blogging tip… did you get it?
Know of any other bloggers who’ve shared guest blgging tips that you’ve found helpful that I didn’t link to? Share them below to make my “Holy Grail” list even bigger!
What other benefits are there from guest posting on other blogs? Share your thoughts and personal experiences below…
Tags: blogging, blogs, guest blog post, guest blogging, guest blogging tips, marketing strategy, ProBlogger, writing a guest blog post
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Tagged with: blogging • blogs • guest blog post • guest blogging • guest blogging tips • marketing strategy • ProBlogger • writing a guest blog post
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Twitter: ryanbiddulph
says:
Thanks for sharing your guest post insight Alan. I agree with you that guest posting can garner automatic trust. If a readership loves its blogger than they’ll trust just about any guest poster as long as the article is up to snuff.
I feel that the #1 guest posting benefit is expanding your presence. You reach a whole new network when guest posting. You’ve also built a potentially valuable relationship with a fellow blogger. You can never put a price tag on a solid relationship because who knows how many doors a fellow blogger can open for you? I’ve noticed a spike in readership as well as opt-in’s to my squeeze page after most guest postings.
.-= Ryan´s last blog ..6 Cash Gifting Red Flags =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Ryan, Thanks for your contribution, Ryan. It’s always appreciated.
Congratulations on your guest blogging success. Do you have any additional tips you’d like to share other than the ones already covered?
[Reply]
You’re right Alan.Guest posting is very effective especially if your topic is interesting and insightful. You also gain new audience and possibly more visitors to your own blog besides the exposure you are getting.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Peter@ How To Make Money Blogging,
I believe I’ve seen you guest post a few times, Peter, am I right? Did you achieve the results you were aiming for? Got any tips to share?
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Twitter: DennisEdell
says:
OK whether you meant to or not, you raised an extremely important flip side point.
“…if the blogger is endorsing you, and they are since they’re publishing you’re article…”
The hosts also need to be careful who they let guest; whether they know it or not, they ARE then endorsing said guest.
Btw, I call dibs on turning this comment into a free standing article first. lol…no worries, a linkback will be placed.
.-= Dennis Edell @ Direct Sales Marketing´s last blog ..Do You USE Aweber? I Want Your Affiliate Link. Part 2 =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Dennis Edell @ Direct Sales Marketing,
I meant to, but purposefully didn’t address it.
I thought I’d leave the comments open for further discussion in the hopes that some would bring up other points, just as you did.
I do agree that a host should be careful regarding who they let guest post on their blog. If the guest poster turns out to be schmuck, or the article is less than desirable, then that will most definitely look bad for the blog owner and may have irreversible consequences.
Thanks for bringing it up, as I hoped someone would… LOL.
Hey, do what you will. I’d be honored.
[Reply]
Twitter: clickonportal
says:
I do think the keyword there is to make a “killer” guest post, not just any old post. When you guest post it has to be one of your best works as you are winning over a fans of a high authority blog which may have pretty high standards.
.-= Mici @ Click On Portal´s last blog ..Time Blogging You Can’t Get Back =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Mici @ Click On Portal,
Exactly… write the best “killer” post you can that’s targeted for that blog’s audience.
[Reply]
I hope many people who plan on guest posting will read your article and your links. From my experience with having guest bloggers on my site I can say that you will have some who will put out their best content and some that will submit less than quality articles. I just want to advice site owners not to get discouraged by the low quality postings but to focus on the good. For people serving as guest bloggers my recommendation is put your best foot forward if you want reader trust.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Karla Campos Lopez,
Thanks for your input on the subject, Karla, and I completely agree. We shouldn’t accept just any articles for our blogs as guest writers should go above and beyond what they would normally write for their own blogs.
Thanks again and hope to see you soon.
[Reply]
Real great blog. I have never had a guest blogger or been a guest blogger. It’s time to go to the next level and give this a try.
Thanks again
Candi
.-= candi@blog tips´s last blog ..Link of the Day – Tips and Tricks =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@candi@blog tips,
I agree, Candi, you should definitely give it a try. Guest blogging has been responsible for my increased traffic and readers. It’s definitely beneficial and shouldn’t be overlooked.
Thanks for visiting my blog and hope you’ll stick around.
[Reply]
Twitter: gjmarketer
says:
I agree wholeheartedly with guest blogging as a fast means to get traffic to your site.
I sometimes feel, though, that blogs that allow guest posts should publish some stats about their site. Sometimes I’ll google sites accepting guest posts only to find 1 or 2 comments on them. That doesn’t sound like a lot of readership to me.
Granted we’re all working our way up to receiving more traffic, but it would be wise to submit a guest post to an active site versus a dead one.
.-= Gina Jennings´s last blog ..An Ingenius Way to Get Instant High-Quality Backlinks =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Gina Jennings,
So true, Gina! You don’t want all your hard work going unnoticed. That’s for sure.
I recently created a Write for Us page which has helped those looking to write for my blog. On it I provide some stats, including traffic and the number of RSS subscribers. Of course, another benefit is the backlinks one can get from their guest post.
Thanks for your input.
[Reply]
Twitter: webmasterformat
says:
This post has some great observations about benefits of guest blogging. I experienced them myself since I had opportunity to get my guest posts published on several great sites recently. Besides that I also published some guest posts by great bloggers on my site and would like to use this opportunity to invite you, Alan, to guest post at WebmasterFormat.
.-= Roko Nastic´s last blog ..How to Boost Your Neglected Websites Profile through Guest Blogging =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Roko Nastic,
That’s awesome! Great to hear you’re doing well with guest blogging. And thank you, Roko, for the invite. I’ll try to get something together for ya.
[Reply]
Nice post. Thanks for the wonderful tips about guest posting. I think its nice when you have a interesting article. The guest will have interest to your article if they found out the topic is interseting. Then they start to comment.
.-= ebusinessmom´s last blog ..WordPress Blog & SEO Example =-.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@ebusinessmom,
Exactly. Thanks for the comment… glad you liked the article.
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Twitter: rfcamat
says:
Guest blogging is also very effective in achieving brand awareness especially when the blog has a high traffic.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@raymund@fuser kits,
Absolutely. Thanks for the comments.
[Reply]
Twitter: jakewidmer
says:
I LOVE the information found on those sources. It is so important to not only just ad a comment but to make it worthwhile for the community who is reading. You touch on some great points early in the post, why pay for reviews when you can actually go on to great blogs like yours and ad value and then receive a good link or traffic. Very nice!
Jake@Rapid Cash Tornado´s last [type] ..Rapid Cash Tornado Bonus
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Jake@Rapid Cash Tornado,
Exactly. Guest blogging provides so much more value, for both the guest author and the blog owner. Thanks for the comment.
[Reply]
Guest blogging is a very important part of getting new links, building a reputation and brand and getting a few new visitors from the guest posts. Its also important to welcome others to your blog as I do. Providing more quality content to your visitors with different perspectives is captivating and insightful. I have had clients run contests in the past that I noticed help them gain more content. Also, the way they had run their contest was by giving prizes to the guest bloggers that had the highest recommendations on their articles. Think about it… Even if that blogger is sending some of their visitors, friends, family and coworkers to your blog to up the recommendations, your still getting more visitors. I suggest you try to offer this on your site. Also, I’m always welcoming guest bloggers
Brian Bordenkircher´s last [type] ..Choosing The Right Logo For Your New Business
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Brian Bordenkircher,
Thanks for the insight, Brian. I welcome guest bloggers with open arms and have for quite some time. You’re more than welcome to guest post anytime if you’d like. You can check out the write for us page for more details.
I like your contest tips. I eventually want to run some sort of contest on here. Just not sure what kind yet.
Thanks again, and don’t be a stranger.
[Reply]
This is a great post! These seem to be the never ending issue that arises when bloggers go to sites to comment. Leave a worthwhile comment for everyone to be able to read and understand and your fine. It’s the people who comment about something completely different that gets me boiling!
Dave@AutoXTen´s last [type] ..No Posts Were Found!
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Dave@AutoXTen,
Oh, me too! I can’t stand reading comments that have nothing to do with the post. Those kinds of comments get deleted on this blog.
Thanks for the input, Dave!
[Reply]
In the “10 Proven Steps to Snag a Guest Post on an A-List Blog” post, Jordan offers a lot of good advice, but one piece in particular that stood out to me. You should write the post and submit it to them without going through the extra step of asking for a guest post and risking getting lost in the pile of requests for them that already exist. Thanks for the solid resources, I think guest blogging is only going to get bigger as traditional sites that are commonly used for content submission and backlinks are given less power.
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Anthony@acne diets,
Yes indeed. I believe that guest blogging is going to be the new face of article marketing. It may not fully replace it, but you’re going to see it being used more and more.
[Reply]
Twitter: FinanceService2
says:
Nice post! But i would like to say that guest blogging wont work for every one. It depends on niche. If you blog about blogging then guest post helps since everyone who reads it is either a blogger or learning about blogging.
But if you run a finance blog then there no one cares who is posting the articles they just interested in the post. In this care article posting on ezine would be better option.
Marks@Blogger Network´s last [type] ..Article Marketing SEO Strategies
[Reply]
Alan Mater
Twitter: AMater
@Marks@Blogger Network,
I mostly agree. I feel that, regardless of the niche, there are going to be other interested people, including writers/authors who may want to contribute to an authority “finance blog” to reach out to a new audience. You might just be pleasantly surprised.
[Reply]