More and more businesses have become involved with guest blogging.
The main reason to create a guest posts promote you and your site, though the exact nature of the promotion varies from business to business. We at Dreamgrow get a fair share of guest post requests.
Only a few of them include information we need to make a decision.
These 10 tips will help you get more posts accepted and most out of the blog posts you compose.
1. Communicate with Your Host
When drafting your post, it’s easy to get so caught up in what you’re doing that you lose sight of the fact that this isn't a solo effort. What you write directly impacts the blog’s host. Good communication helps ensure that the theme and tone of your post will match up with what the readers of the blog have come to expect. Good communication also decreases the chances of the deadline coming and going without a post.
Keep in mind that websites that have any domain authority get bombarded with guest post requests. 95% of those requests offer low-quality posts to get their links to the site's content.
Write emails that show value!
Here’s an example:
Hi!
I’m want to write an article for your site. There will be a follow link or 2 in the article or bio back to my site. The topics that match your site’s content are: [List 3 topics here]
After publishing, I will link back to the new post to increase its visibility. We will also promote it on our social channels: [Link from this page] and promoting [channel 1] and [channel 2]
You can check out my previous writing: [list 3 links to your articles]
2. Examine the Blog
It doesn’t matter if you’re a guest poster on your best friend’s blog, or if you’re posting to a professional niche site, you need to set aside some time and examine the blog. Make sure the topic you plan on writing about isn't something that’s already been posted several times. Learn the writing style that readers appreciate. Make sure you know the rules how to submit a guest post.
If you take time to analyze the site you can find old posts that need an update. Offer to write a better version of an old piece of content. Find out if there's a guest posts wanted page.
What to avoid? Please don’t write that you are an avid reader of the blog. When the site owner reads this, the only thought is “Liar!” Don’t automatically include a random link to a page that is 3 years old and outdated saying that it's an awesome post. If the site has guest post guidelines then make sure you follow them.
3. Track Your Post
Don’t make the mistake of creating a guest post and promptly forgetting about it. Frequently check back and gauge the success of your work. Determine how successful the guest posts you've created have been, and whether you should continue to use guest posts post as part of your article marketing. You can also respond to comments left on the post which increases the personal relationship with members of your niche.
If there are any comments, make sure that you follow up and answer the questions that readers leave. Active participation will make the readers and the owner of the site happy.
4. Be Flexible
Writing services have learned that what works for one niche market and one blog doesn't always work when creating a guest post for another blog. Be flexible and learn to modify your writing style for every single blog you guest post on.
Some of the timeless techniques that work across all posts are:
- Writing about your experience
- Using data and statistics to back up what you are talking about
- Examples, examples, examples – ALWAYS use examples to make your points come across. If you don’t have good examples, use other people’s data and reflect on that.
5. Have a Plan
When you decide to incorporate blog post into your marketing program, you need to create a plan. Sit down and decide which niche blogs appeal to your target market, and create a list of topics you want to write about. Once you have your lists, you’ll be ready to start writing.
Use the list of topics when communication with the site. Find out what their best-performing articles are and offer content on similar topics. Understanding their needs improves your guest post opportunities.
6. Don’t Stress About Rejections
Just because you've created a post for a niche blog, it doesn't mean the post will automatically be accepted. Every writer knows that rejections are a regular part of life. Instead of scrapping the post, look for a different home for it. Even if it’s not a good match for any niche blogs, you might be able to incorporate it into your website as part of the content.
You will get rejected even if your content is a perfect match for your target website. The site gets hundreds of guest post requests, and your perfect post just slips through the cracks.
7. Use Your Social Media
Thanks to social media outlets like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook it’s easy to share the guests’ posts you've created with your fans. You need to do this. Not only does this promote your post, but it also promotes the blog. By creating an increase in the amount of traffic the blog receives, you increase the chances of them accepting your next guest post.
As I mentioned in the first point, use all your channels to promote the post after the post goes live. Let the site owner know what channels you have.
8. Create Great Titles for Your Guest Post
Titles create a foundation for your post. They need to be compelling, and they need to alert readers to the blog’s theme. The best titles combine the keywords and subject matter.
Use all the tricks in the headline writer’s bag to create catchy headlines. Use tools like headline analyzer to make sure your titles work.
9. Work Your Way Up
Blogs with a huge following mean that lots of people will see your post. Your goal should be to have your posts appear on these blogs, but you can’t expect the hosts to accept your work instantly. Creating a portfolio and gaining some credibility as an expert in your field will increase the odds of your work getting accepted. Guest posting on smaller blogs will be a great way to build a portfolio and gather some followers of your own.
Smaller sites have less guest post requests. Fewer requests means that your emails get more attention.
10. Don’t Expect Miracles
Just because you've created a guest post, you shouldn't assume you’ll see an instant upswing in your sales. If you've done your homework and followed these steps, your blog post writing will be successful, but it’s going to take several high-quality posts and time before you notice tangible results.
The main benefits of guest blogging is the link value is guest post. You will not see a huge influx of traffic from 99% of your guest posts.
If your post is really good, then you might see steady growth in readership over the years. For example here’s a post published on Dreamgrow in 2016.
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Image: Perfect stranger by Daniel Sandoval