Guest blogging is a rewarding effort that seeks to get more organic traffic, add to one’s email list and improve website ranking on search engines.
These days, almost everyone seems to have a blog. Therefore, inviting attention from highly relevant audiences has got tougher. But guest blogging on a site, particularly big sites, is an excellent way to make the most of the site’s strategic planning and hard work.
One of the big advantages of blogging is it earns you backlinks – a key player in Google’s ranking algorithm – and it immediately puts you before an existing and exciting audience.
If you have just started guest blogging, posting on some relevant but small sites feels nice. But once you choose to take a leap, you need to get your blogs published on a top site such as The Next Web, Entrepreneur and The Huffington Post. Yes, it’s not easy but it’s not as difficult as you often think if only you know what steps to take.
Guest blogging for top-ranking sites pays off both in short and long run. I have experienced the benefits (still enjoying it) and would like to show you how you can do the same.
Make a Prospect List
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The purpose of guest blogging is to get good returns in terms of traffic. Therefore, you should target the sites where a large volume of relevant audiences exists. Followings are some strategies that you can use to determine from which sites you are likely to get the optimum results:
- Try to assess who your potential audiences are. If you have no idea about who you are targeting, you can never reach out to them.
- You have to figure out which sites your target audiences visit frequently.
- Conduct customer development interviews, search on Google for phrases and words most likely to be used by your target audiences, and use audience intelligence tools (for example, analytics.twitter.com).
- Finally, you should ensure that these relevant sites accept guest posts. Not all sites have a separate page for guest submission. In that case, browse their archives to find out if any guest post has been published there.
Create Awe-Inspiring Content
Any top blog will approve only high-quality content. These days when everyone is a blogger, developing valuable content has become more important than ever.
When creating contents, I follow customer-development strategies and start-up principles. The former helps me learn about the problems that my target audiences face and how I can figure out a solution. I never spend my time and money – both are valuable to me – on something that won’t offer any value to them.
Adopt the following strategies to decide content topics that will deliver value when you will write for us:
- Keep a tab on the contents your close competitors are posting and that are working for them.
- Perform thorough keyword research to find out the mostly searched keywords.
- Check popular platforms such as Amazon to find out the type of content delivering results.
- Write blog posts on given topics and get feedbacks before penning an entire book.
- Pay attention to frequently asked questions. It means people are requesting for information. When there is demand for information, you should immediately understand what the topic of your next blog post should be.
- Browse on Quora to create amazing and informative content. It’s a social Q&A network where people follow or put questions. Their queries drop hintsabout the types of topic they want information for.
- Browse queries within your industry, your topic niche or on the problems you are currently focused on. Address the problems through your blog or give answers on Quora.
Ready, Fail and Repeat until You Succeed
Some people suggest tossing a title or an idea before sending the blog for posting. However, I keep on trying when sending a draft of the post. Here are some key elements to remember:
- Give a brief introduction about yourself and mention some accomplishments to establish social proof, create authority and develop rapport.
- Mention what topic your write-up is based on and explain how it delivers value.
- Set up link to your post in Google Drive.
As soon as your post is published, make sure to share it through your social media networks and respond to each and every comment. Publishing a few blogs on small sites paves a way for you to be recognized by elite names.
Network like a Pro
Sometimes who you know is more important than how well you write. An editor tends to trust someone having a referral from an authentic source and it is a strong motivating factor for the site to publish your content. A long chain of connections, networking events and regular follow-ups plays a vital role in getting your posts published on the top sites.
Regular interactions with people both online and offline will give you more ideas and guest-blogging opportunities. The traffic and backlinks received via your posts on elite guest platforms will make your time spent for networking worthwhile.
Take Small Steps before Making Great Strides
Getting your writing posted on the biggest sites gives you immense pride. Even dreaming it gives you Goosebumps! But believe me smaller and relevant sites can offer some amazing return. In addition, your regular posts on small sites can go a long way to build your credibility and track record.
If the readers like your posts and share these through their social networking channels, other editors may like to publish your write-ups. If your content has generated traffic, it won’t be hard for an editor to realize your potentials.
Follow Instructions
Failing to follow instructions on the sites is the surefire way to get into troubles with the editors. Every site has clear preferences and guidelines for interested guest bloggers and you need to follow these to a T to start off in the right foot.
Show Determination
Business is not only about mission, vision and conversion but also about follow-ups. Sending follow-up emails can help you make a fortune. I admit it is not something I like very much but as long as it brings me result, there is no way to ignore the tactic.
Explore blogging with Business Module Hub and reap the fruits of your time, effort and money spent for the purpose.
