Guest blogging, while it normally doesn't pay cash, gives you great returns in terms of SEO benefits and reputation as an author. You get a larger audience than you would from your own blog alone, and you get backlinks from high authority blogs (where you posted) to boost your own ranking. As with most everything else, you've got to know the tricks of the trade to make guest blogging work for you.
Here are 7 tips that you could begin with:
1. The Google gossip
Word is, Google is going to devalue links in the author bio. Since you can't argue with the Big G, it makes sense to somehow insert your link in the article body instead. This is easier said than done because blogs that accept guest posts have their own rules. Create a good portfolio (even if you have never published before) and write a great pitch. Comment on other posts on the blog and, in short, make yourself a known figure. Then, and only then, ask for favors like link in the article body, and you could be pleasantly surprised.
2. Where does the link lead to?
This is weird: very few guest bloggers think of leading visitors to a landing page let alone one that is specialized to suit visitors from the parent site where the guest article was posted. Linking to your home page may guarantee a certain percentage of visitors, but it normally does nothing to convert them to subscribers as well.
Consider this: you are writing Article A on Site B. Create a landing page that says something like "Hi there! You just read A on B, didn't ya? Well, welcome to my site..." and put in the subscription form along with a freebie to "thank" your visitors for reading your article. Regarding the freebie (gift, actually), say something like "Tell us where to send it" and you'll have quite a few emails already.
3. How do you link?
Anchor texts are fine; ones with keywords are great; catchy ones with keywords that entice visitors to follow the link to your site are even better. However, there is something called "co-occurrence". This would be the keywords found around, not in, your anchor text. This is something like LSI (latent semantic indexing) keywords; only the keywords that you use here are going to be top-class main keyword types and are best utilized when you can use them to tell the search engines what your site is all about.
4. Focus on the page, not the site
Reputation of the site is not immaterial, but you gain as much authority as the page you are going to be on. Make yourself familiar with the site and its audience, and the kind of post that gets most comments and write accordingly to figure on a high authority/PR page.
Check out also the site owner's social media profiles. See if they have enough followers or subscribers. You want to reach a wider audience; unless the person is well connected, that may not happen.
5. Cross linking
Create profiles on different social media sites (several of the same, real profile, not creepy ones that change your mugshot or distort your name). Link your guest article to other guest posts of yours and your profiles and vice versa - leave no stone unturned to create a mesh of links around your web-presence. Since you are not creating the mesh with dime a dozen autoblogs or article directories, your links will count.
6. Sometimes, promote your guest posts, not your site
This is not missing the point at all. What you are aiming at here is author reputation. Google +1, Facebook likes, etc, actually lead to social endorsement that Google values. So, what actually happens is that when you are promoting your post, the parent site being high authority (why else would you guest post there?) lends credence to your reputation as an author. And when people try to find out more about you, voila! - they get to know of your site! This is actually as simple as it sounds. When it begins to work for you, remember we told you first.
7. Get organized
You will be able to make use of the earlier points only when you know where you guest-posted, what your subjects were, if you are going to post again, if you got a better idea over one you had last year on a given topic and so on. Have all the data regarding your activities in a spread sheet so that you don't end up sending duplicate posts to a number of blog owners. It will also put things in perspective for you; show you your progress or the lack of it.
Apart from these 7 tips, it helps to find a niche along your own to guest post. However, this is not absolutely necessary, since you can be naturally interested in and expert in several different topics and since the reputation factor is viewed separately by Google even though it is ultimately going to give you SEO benefits.
About The Author: Jason Smith is an online consultant for ABWE. Jason likes blogging about online strategies that are related to SEO, Content, PPC and Lead generation. In his free time he likes to study about web designing and practice Jiu Jitsu.
Did you find this article helpful? Please let Jason and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.
Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).
Related articles:
How To Use Guest Blogging To Build Your Online Reputation
Strategies For Finding Guest Posting Opportunities
How You Can Get Started With Accepting Guest Posts On Your Website
A Guide To Guest Blogging For SEO In 2012
If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.
As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog
You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776
Until my next post on Wednesday on how to survive your first two years as a start-up, have a great and productive week ahead! See you back here on Wednesday!
© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.
Here are 7 tips that you could begin with:
1. The Google gossip
Word is, Google is going to devalue links in the author bio. Since you can't argue with the Big G, it makes sense to somehow insert your link in the article body instead. This is easier said than done because blogs that accept guest posts have their own rules. Create a good portfolio (even if you have never published before) and write a great pitch. Comment on other posts on the blog and, in short, make yourself a known figure. Then, and only then, ask for favors like link in the article body, and you could be pleasantly surprised.
2. Where does the link lead to?
This is weird: very few guest bloggers think of leading visitors to a landing page let alone one that is specialized to suit visitors from the parent site where the guest article was posted. Linking to your home page may guarantee a certain percentage of visitors, but it normally does nothing to convert them to subscribers as well.
Consider this: you are writing Article A on Site B. Create a landing page that says something like "Hi there! You just read A on B, didn't ya? Well, welcome to my site..." and put in the subscription form along with a freebie to "thank" your visitors for reading your article. Regarding the freebie (gift, actually), say something like "Tell us where to send it" and you'll have quite a few emails already.
3. How do you link?
Anchor texts are fine; ones with keywords are great; catchy ones with keywords that entice visitors to follow the link to your site are even better. However, there is something called "co-occurrence". This would be the keywords found around, not in, your anchor text. This is something like LSI (latent semantic indexing) keywords; only the keywords that you use here are going to be top-class main keyword types and are best utilized when you can use them to tell the search engines what your site is all about.
4. Focus on the page, not the site
Reputation of the site is not immaterial, but you gain as much authority as the page you are going to be on. Make yourself familiar with the site and its audience, and the kind of post that gets most comments and write accordingly to figure on a high authority/PR page.
Check out also the site owner's social media profiles. See if they have enough followers or subscribers. You want to reach a wider audience; unless the person is well connected, that may not happen.
5. Cross linking
Create profiles on different social media sites (several of the same, real profile, not creepy ones that change your mugshot or distort your name). Link your guest article to other guest posts of yours and your profiles and vice versa - leave no stone unturned to create a mesh of links around your web-presence. Since you are not creating the mesh with dime a dozen autoblogs or article directories, your links will count.
6. Sometimes, promote your guest posts, not your site
This is not missing the point at all. What you are aiming at here is author reputation. Google +1, Facebook likes, etc, actually lead to social endorsement that Google values. So, what actually happens is that when you are promoting your post, the parent site being high authority (why else would you guest post there?) lends credence to your reputation as an author. And when people try to find out more about you, voila! - they get to know of your site! This is actually as simple as it sounds. When it begins to work for you, remember we told you first.
7. Get organized
You will be able to make use of the earlier points only when you know where you guest-posted, what your subjects were, if you are going to post again, if you got a better idea over one you had last year on a given topic and so on. Have all the data regarding your activities in a spread sheet so that you don't end up sending duplicate posts to a number of blog owners. It will also put things in perspective for you; show you your progress or the lack of it.
Apart from these 7 tips, it helps to find a niche along your own to guest post. However, this is not absolutely necessary, since you can be naturally interested in and expert in several different topics and since the reputation factor is viewed separately by Google even though it is ultimately going to give you SEO benefits.
About The Author: Jason Smith is an online consultant for ABWE. Jason likes blogging about online strategies that are related to SEO, Content, PPC and Lead generation. In his free time he likes to study about web designing and practice Jiu Jitsu.
Did you find this article helpful? Please let Jason and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.
Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).
Related articles:
How To Use Guest Blogging To Build Your Online Reputation
Strategies For Finding Guest Posting Opportunities
How You Can Get Started With Accepting Guest Posts On Your Website
A Guide To Guest Blogging For SEO In 2012
If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.
As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog
You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776
Until my next post on Wednesday on how to survive your first two years as a start-up, have a great and productive week ahead! See you back here on Wednesday!
© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.
Awesome tips on guest blogging. This has been very helpful to my start-up blog.
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