What is Guest Posting?
Guest posting - aka guest blogging - means writing a blog post or article to be published on someone else's website or blog.
You write an article or blog post about something that fits the website's main topics. Then, you send it to the website's owner or editor. They check it and might publish it.
There are a few main reasons people do guest posts:
Share your knowledge with the audience of another website
Connect with and build relationships with other bloggers in your field
Gain more visitors and links back to your own website or blog
Why does guest posting matter in SEO?
Guest posting matters in SEO in many ways:
Improved search engine rankings
Guest posting can help improve where your website shows up in search engines like Google.
When you write guest posts for popular websites related to your field, you often include links back to your own website. Having more quality sites link back to you makes search engines view your site as more important. This gives your website a boost in search engine rankings.
Increased brand awareness
Guest posting can help more people become aware of your brand and business.
You gain exposure to new readers when you write helpful guest posts for other websites. Some of those readers will click your links to visit your site. This brings new potential customers and clients to your site.
Regular high-quality guest posting also helps establish your expertise. As other website audiences see you contribute informative posts over time, you become viewed as an authority in your field.
Networking opportunities
Guest posting allows you to meet and build relationships with others in your industry.
You interact with other bloggers and website owners when you write guest posts. Getting to know these peers can lead to collaborative opportunities.
Lead generation
Guest posting can help you get more potential new customers for your business. These are called "leads".
When you write guest posts, make sure the content is useful for your ideal type of customer. Also, include clear calls to action in your posts. These are invitations for readers to take the next step, like signing up for a newsletter.
If your guest post content and calls-to-action resonate with readers, some will click on your site's link. Once these visitors reach your site, they may convert to leads by signing up or contacting you.
Improved Domain Authority
Domain authority refers to how important search engines think your website is. Higher authority leads to better search engine rankings so more people find your site.
When you write guest posts on other sites, you typically include links back to your website. Every link to your site helps boost your domain authority slightly.
The more quality sites link to you over time, the more it signals search engines that your content is valuable. This gradually improves your domain authority.
Increased social media engagement
Guest blogging can help grow your social media followers and interaction.
When you publish guest posts on other sites, you can promote those pieces on your social profiles. Some readers who like your guest content may check out and follow you on social media.
Also, the site that publishes your guest post may share it with their own social followers. This exposes you to their audience, leading more people to potentially connect with you.
How do I find guest blogging sites?
Conduct a Google search
A simple way to find websites that accept guest posts is to use Google. Search with words linked to your niche or industry
If you write about food, you might search "food blogs accepting guest posts" or "food websites that accept contributors."
You can also use advanced search techniques like search strings on Google, including:
"write for us" + [your niche or industry]
"guest post" + [your niche or industry]
"contributor guidelines" + [your niche or industry]
"submit a guest post" + [your niche or industry]
Use social media
Social sites like Twitter and LinkedIn let you locate websites accepting posts.
On these platforms, search hashtags related to guest posting, such as:
#guestposting
#guestpost
#contribute
Also, follow leaders and bloggers in your industry. Check what guest-written content they share.
Join online communities
Joining online groups related to your niche is great for networking and finding guest posting opportunities. Look for relevant Facebook groups, Reddit subgroups, forums, etc. centred around bloggers and content creators.
Being active in these communities lets you connect with peers and websites open to contributions.
Use guest post platforms
Various online sites connect bloggers with websites accepting guest posts. Some popular guest posting platforms to check out are:
GuestPost.com
MyBlogGuest
BloggerLinkUp
These platforms allow you to:
Discover blogs and sites looking for guest posts in your niche
Pitch your guest article ideas to site owners and editors
Manage your guest posting outreach in one dashboard
Analyze your competitors
You can use research tools to view where rival websites or bloggers are getting guest posts published. This reveals sites accepting content.
Tools like Ahrefs and Moz show you:
What websites your competitors have posted on
Where they've earned backlinks through guest posts
Then you can target the same sites for your own outreach.
How to write a high-quality guest post?
Here is how to write a high-quality blog post:
Picking a good guest post topic
The first step in writing any post is deciding on a topic.
Start by identifying the site's audience you want to guest post for. Figure out what content would be useful and engaging for them.
Brainstorm a long list of possibilities. Then narrow it down to the single best topic idea for that readership.
Know your post's purpose
Before drafting the content, clearly define what you want to accomplish with it.
Ask yourself:
What do I want readers to get out of this?
How does this help the website I’m guest posting for?
Having a specific purpose will guide your angle and information to share. It also allows you to craft a strong headline that quickly communicates to readers the benefit of spending time on your post.
Organize your thoughts
Start by outlining the key themes, supporting details, examples, etc. Map out how all the pieces fit together.
Also, sketch out sections like:
Subheadings
Numbered lists
Bullet points
Dividing content into bite-sized chunks helps readers digest information.
Writing your blog post
Start your post with an opening hook to capture the reader's curiosity right away. Use conversational language and easy words.
Tell stories to make the content more engaging from start to finish. The introduction should:
Grab attention
Explain what's covered
Note why it matters
Break up sections with subheadings. This segmentation allows readers to skim and digest. It also enables them to jump straight to what interests them most.
Editing and revising
Carefully editing each guest post is crucial for creating high-quality content. Be sure to thoroughly read over your draft to catch:
Grammar and spelling errors
Awkward phrasing
Confusing areas
Also, double-check any facts and data to ensure accuracy. Consider asking others to review your post and provide feedback.
Enhancing your blog post
You can make your guest posts more engaging by adding:
Images
Videos
Infographics
Statistics charts
Adding links to social media and other websites can help grow your presence online. Also, making your post search engine-friendly can bring more visitors to your site.
Promoting your blog post
To get your blog post seen by your intended audience, promoting it is essential. Some key ways to promote your guest posts include:
Sharing on social media like Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. to start conversations around the content
Building backlinks from other relevant websites
Use email lists and newsletters to spread the post to subscribers
Interact with your readers via comments. This helps create a dedicated group of followers gradually.
How to avoid low-quality websites?
Avoiding low-quality websites is crucial for effective guest posting. Here are some tips to help you spot these websites:
Poor design and navigation
A website that looks bad or is hard to use can be a warning. If it's tough to move around the site, looks old, or shows too many ads, it can negatively impact user experience.
This might make people less likely to read what's on your website.
Low traffic
A website with few visitors might not be worth your time. Writing a guest blog on a small website can still help you get noticed online and reach specific people. But, make sure this website has enough active readers.
Low engagement
A website with low engagement metrics, such as low social media shares, comments, or backlinks, may not have an active and engaged audience.
This can make it less likely that your guest post will be seen and shared by readers, and can limit the potential impact of your guest blogging efforts.
Poor reputation
A website known for bad reasons in your field might not be good to be linked with. Look into the website and read what it has posted before. This helps to check if it matches your values and goals.
Dropped domains and private blog networks
Dropped domains are domain names that someone once owned but didn't renew. Now, they become available for registration again.
People or businesses might buy these names to start a new website or to send visitors to an existing site.
Private blog networks, or PBNs, are groups of websites made to trick search engines into ranking a website higher. These sites usually don't have much value and don't get many visitors.
Dropped domains and PBNs might have been used for spam or irrelevant stuff. Search engines might have also punished them.
Be careful with websites that just got their domain name back or get many links from PBNs.
Check domain name and history
A website's domain name and history can reveal much about its quality. Check if the domain name is relevant to the website's content and audience.
Also, check the domain's history for any red flags. Watch out for any warnings like past penalties or low-quality content.
Check backlink profile
The quality and trustworthiness of a website can often be judged by its backlink profile. Check the website's backlinks to see if they are from reputable and relevant websites.
If a website has many backlinks from low-quality or unrelated sites, it might mean the website isn't very good.
Best practices
Here are some best practices for guest blogging:
Look for relevant websites
When guest blogging, it's important to pitch relevant websites that align with your niche and target audience.
Look for websites that share similar interests or topics to your own, as this can help increase the chances of your guest post being accepted and well-received by readers.
Keep traffic in mind
When pitching guest posts, it's important to consider the website's traffic and reach. Look for websites with high traffic and engagement, as this can help increase the exposure of your guest post and bring in more readers to your own website or blog.
Pitch multiple sites
To increase your chances of getting accepted for guest blogging, pitching multiple sites at once is a good practice.
This helps to maximize your outreach and increase your chances of getting accepted by at least one website.
However, make sure that each pitch is tailored to the specific website and its audience, rather than sending a generic pitch to multiple sites.
Monitor results
After your guest post has been published, it's important to monitor the results and track the performance of your post.
Use tools such as Google Analytics or social media analytics to track metrics such as traffic, engagement, and social shares. This can help you understand what worked well and what could be improved in future guest posts.
Make it shareable
To increase the visibility and reach of your guest post, ensure it's easily shareable on social media platforms.
Include social sharing buttons on your post and encourage readers to share your content with their followers.
This can help increase the exposure of your guest post and bring in more readers to your website or blog.
Bad practices in guest blogging
You need to avoid some bad practices in guest posting.
Spamming
Sending the same guest post pitch to multiple websites without personalizing or tailoring it to the website can come across as spammy and unprofessional.
Instead, take the time to research and understand its content and audience before pitching your guest post.
Low-quality content
Publishing low-quality or irrelevant content on a website can damage your online reputation and harm the website's reputation as well.
Make sure that your guest post is well-written, informative, and relevant to the website's audience and niche.
Moreover, inserting irrelevant or low-quality backlinks can also be a spam practice that should be avoided. In an article published in 2014, Matt Cutts wrote:
“In general I wouldn’t recommend accepting a guest blog post unless you are willing to vouch for someone personally or know them well. Likewise, I wouldn’t recommend relying on guest posting, guest blogging sites, or guest blogging SEO as a linkbuilding strategy.
In that article, he referred to spammy guest posting and not one with high-quality content.
Over-promotion
It's easy to only view guest posts as a way to advertise what you sell. But using it to promote will turn off readers. It can also upset website owners.
Instead, concentrate your post on sharing useful information. Provide real value to their audience rather than just pitching your company.
Ignoring guidelines
It's important to follow guest posting guidelines from each website.
If you ignore these guidelines, a few bad things might happen:
Your post could get rejected, so all your work is wasted
The website editors may change your post in ways you don't like
It could fail to achieve your goals for guest posting
So be sure to read the directions each site provides to contributors carefully.
Conclusion
Guest blogging can help bloggers and creators grow their brand and authority online.
By consistently getting your content on relevant sites through guest posting, you can:
Reach more potential fans and followers for your work
Build your reputation as an expert people can trust
Expand your readership and credibility in your field