How to Use Guest Blogging as Part of Your Content Strategy

If you have been developing content, you might have considered using guest blogging as part of your strategy. For those who are not familiar with it – guest blogging is when you write a post for a blog that is not your own or when you feature another writer’s content on your blog. Let us look at how you can make the most out of guest blogging.

#1: Define Your Guest Blogging Goals

Before you get started, be clear about what you want to reach with your guest blogging. Generally, there are three main goals for guest blogging, including:

• Exposing your brand to a new audience
• Establishing yourself as an authority within your industry
• Building meaningful relationships with other bloggers

With the right blog posts, it is possible to achieve all of these goals. If you are aiming for either the first or second goal, you will want to reach out to blogs who have a lot of engaged subscribers. Or, choose a guest post that will complement your expertise.

If you are looking to accomplish the third goal, you need to create content that follows all the guidelines set by the blog owner. On the other hand, pick guest posts that stick to your own guidelines.

Remember that guest blogging is a two-way street. Whatever goal you create, it should work both ways. Make sure you understand what you want to get out of the guest blogging experience.

#2: Spend Time on Research

Research is vital in guest blogging. On that note, seek writers within your niche and market but not exactly direct competitors. You will want to dig into their background and check whether they come from a reputable business. It is also essential that your values and personal interests match their tone of voice and style of writing.

A few questions you might need to ask yourself are:

• Does the blog have engaged readership? Are subscribers commenting and sharing the posts on other channels?
• Is the blog owner active on social media? How often do they share posts?
• Have they published content in my industry? And if they have, then find out whether their audience has shown interest.

So if, for example, you are selling gardening tools, you will want to connect with gardening or landscaping services blogs with a solid number of actively engaged readers, or gardeners to be specific.

#3: Produce the Right Content

To be a successful guest blogger you must craft content that is not only relevant but also targets your niche. Consider these criteria for measuring the quality of your content:

• It should highlight your expertise
• It should be free of grammatical errors and typos.
• It should include an optimized link that points back to your own site and to other credible sources.
• It should follow the blog owner’s guidelines for submissions.

At the end of your post (if the site allows it), provide a brief and attention-grabbing bio and a link to your blog.

Quick Guest Blogging Tips

Whether you are writing guest posts or accepting them, it’s important to keep the following things in mind:

Tip 1: Go for Quality

During the research stage, take advantage of tools like the Moz Bar. This is so you could easily find blogs you want to target. When you are accepting submissions, take time to read through the content and examine the author’s links. You will not want to accept a post that contains errors and spammy links. What you will want is a carefully crafted content that is relevant to your readers and fits your blog’s purpose.

Tip 2: Take it Slow

Building relationships with reputable bloggers takes time and effort. Not to mention the process you have to undergo to find the most credible bloggers within your market. Once your post has gone live, leave thoughtful comments in the comments section or respond to questions. This way you demonstrate your knowledge of the subject matter and show your support. 

Tip 3: Keep Your Standards High

As much as possible, don’t associate your brand or your blog with another site that is below your standards. Never connect with a blog just for the sake of building links. For your own reputation, don’t put your work on unreliable sites and don’t publish posts that will damage your credibility. Take note, guest blogging should make you look good and improve your brand, not cause harm to it.

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About Jeff Pulvino

JEFF is a digital marketing strategist, a business consultant and a serial entrepreneur who has built, managed and consulted with numerous corporations in various industries for 20+ years.

He is the co-founder and CEO of Boost Media Group, a full-service digital marketing agency based in Sacramento, CA. He also co-founded CoSource, a co-sourcing company that helps business owners build a high-quality, reliable virtual team for lower costs.

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