In essence guest posting is a joint venture. It is supposed to be a win-win-win situation. A win for you because you get fresh quality content. A win for the guest blogger because he gets a backlink, exposure and traffic. A win for the readers because they are exposed to new writing perspectives.
Approaching Your Guest Authors
One way of reaching guest bloggers is the old fashioned way – email. Email is casual, it implies serious intent and most important – the vast majority of bloggers check their email couple of times a day so it might as well be the fastest way to connect.
In addition, with the intense growth of social media networks, Twitter and Facebook are also great ways of reaching other bloggers. According to recent polls, 31% of internet users are spending more than 2 hours on Twitter and Facebook a day! But then again, 95% of all statistics are made up…
It might even mean that you are better off trying to reach someone via Tweeting than calling them on the phone. Amazing huh?
Guest Blogging Benefits
The major benefit of guest blogging for the guest author is traffic. Aspiring authors want and need exposure and that’s what you need to take into consideration when approaching one.
It is best to approach only bloggers whose blog is smaller than yours both in audience and authority. That way you won’t be taking a “win” out of the equation.
I also recommend including a small author box right after the guest post which includes author’s biography and a backlink to his blog. You might want to insert a picture there as well, if the guest author is a hotty!
Leveraging Your Audience
The amount of blogs created in 2008 doubled in size in comparison to the previous year. Judging by this phenomenal growth, it is safe to say that a large part of your audience consists of bloggers.
It makes perfect sense to leverage this naked truth. Let your readers know that you’re accepting guest posts. Just include a link to “Write For Us” page in the sidebar or announce it in one of your posts. You can even offer a special bonus for your guest bloggers if your blog lacks authority. Try offering dedicated author profile pages or sidebar links along with placing affiliate banner ad placements.
Let Your Imagination Run Wild, But Make Sure To Keep Your Eyes Open So It Doesn’t Byte Your Ass!
P.S: If You Are Interested In Guest Posting For Us, Please Let Us Know By Leaving A Comment.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
interesting article and thanks for the tip. now I get more exposure how to encourage visiting blogger to put something on my blog.
etomyam´s last blog ..Rahsia Solat Di Awal Waktu : Sekiranya Ku Ingin Mengetahui
Thanks for the great article, Igor! Actually, the author of Zen Habits (one of the top blogs on the Internet I think) virtually built his whole business by constantly guest blogging (and getting lucky a few times with social news sites like digg, but most of his exposure came from guest blogging).
I recently contacted 9 different bloggers via Email two days ago, and so far two have responded, which to me, is a great response rate considering the popularity of some of the blogs I contacted.
The basic format I followed in my email was this:
- Started off by telling them that I enjoy their blog, and outlined some of my favorite posts on their blog and gave them a comment about them (to let them know that I am a reader).
- Then I tell them I would be honored if they would let me guest post, and I remind them the benefits such as exposure for both of our blogs, etc. Valuable content for their blog, etc.
- I then direct them to some of my best posts on my own blog.
- Then I construct 3 potential article titles for example posts I would write for their blog, if they accepted my offer.
- After that I thank them for their time and ask them to reply to let me know if they accept my offer or not.
That’s basically the format I followed and actually achieve some pretty good results with it. The key is making them feel good about their blog, remind them that the benefits go both ways, show them you are a competent writer (with your blog posts), then take the initiative to construct some potential article titles for them.
I know it was kind of long, but there’s my two cents!
And speaking of guest-blogging, I’ve got an article in the works for you, Igor!
Jonathan Beebe´s last blog ..Overcoming Worry
Thanks Jonathan.
Great Input. I am looking forward
for another contribution.
~Igor
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Sara
http://smallbusinessgrant.info
Hey Sara,
Great to hear that!
~Igor