This idea may seem complex if you’ve never had to find a guest blogger before or have never been one. However, once you’ve done some research, you’ll see that it’s easy to find guest writers with the ability and expertise to offer value to your readers.
Creating a steady stream of interesting, helpful content for your brand or business is a significant challenge.
If you’ve been publishing content on your website or blog for a while, it may seem like you’ve covered every topic under the sun.
If you don’t change things up, your audience will start to notice – and no one likes reading the same points over and over again. If you cannot refresh your content or cover topics in a new and creative way, you could lose customers.
That’s where guest posting comes in. Instead of sticking to an internal perspective, guest blogging allows your business to work with an external writer or industry expert who can bring a new and fresh approach to your blog.
This offers your readers a unique viewpoint they may not get elsewhere and helps your content resonate with a much wider audience.
What is guest blogging?
Guest blogging also called guest posting, is when someone outside of your company is asked to publish content on your website. Typically, the blogger has subject matter expertise or is a notable figure within your industry.
Is guest blogging worth it?
Guest blogging opportunities are valuable because they benefit both writers and the organization hosting the blog. Here are some of the reasons why most organizations and writers involved in guest posting find it a mutually beneficial arrangement.
The benefits of guest blogging for hosting organizations
- Brings traffic to your blog: Hiring a guest blog writer is an excellent opportunity to bring a broader audience to your content and get more traffic. Most guest bloggers are eager to promote their guest posts on your blog so they can show off their new content, bringing new readers to your website.
- Takes pressure off your internal team: Having to come up with topics, write content, then edit and post it multiple times a week can be exhausting. Instead of taking on that burden every week, hosting guest bloggers periodically can take this work off your staff and give them some time to rest and refresh.
- Boosts brand authority: Bringing in a variety of experts to write exciting and informative content helps set your brand up as an authority in your industry.
- Builds great relationships: Even large brands can always stand to improve their relationships. Companies can establish mutually beneficial relationships that keep their businesses growing by partnering with experts, up-and-coming figures, and other influential leaders in your field to create guest blog posts.
The benefits of guest blogging for guest writers
- Increases their audience: Professional writers with industry experience are always on the lookout for more ways to improve their reach. Writing on a new website and having their byline out there is an excellent opportunity to gain exposure to a much wider audience.
- Increases connections: In addition to expanding the writer’s readership, guest blogging can help guest post writers create connections with a wider network of clients. This helps grow their business and reputation and helps them land new gigs.
- Improves SEO on their website: Any writer with the skills to work in guest blogging should have their own website or portfolio. By linking to your website in your guest blog posts, you send a signal to Google that your website is more authoritative, bringing it up in SERP rankings.
How to develop a great guest blogging strategy
Here are some initial steps your organization can take to develop a great strategy for guest posts.
1. Determine your goals
No business should be publishing content without a goal in mind. Some common goals for blog posts are:
- Increase sales
- Boost brand awareness
- Increase traffic
The same logic applies to guest posts. Every guest post you commission should have a goal in mind that you discuss with the writer beforehand. This will help them tailor the content to ensure it resonates with your audience.
2. Focus on finding talented writers within your industry
There are lots of excellent writers capable of writing great guest posts. However, digital marketers should strive to find writers with relevant industry experience to ensure the highest-performing content possible.
3. Make the terms clear
When you first engage a guest blogger, the hosting organization’s responsibility is to clarify the terms. This includes everything from the details of the writer’s attribution and byline to their fee and whether the content can be reposted by them later.
Content syndication, or sharing your content on another website, is a great way to draw traffic to your site. However, the terms of this should be clear to avoid any confusion at a later date.
4. Evaluate and review
To ensure your strategy is working as expected, take time periodically to review how well your guest posts are performing.
Are they sparking conversations on social media? Has your blog traffic increased? Asking these questions and measuring performance through analytics can help ensure your guest blogging strategy is refined through experience and customized to your site’s needs.
5. Keep promoting
If you’ve gone through the whole process of reaching out to guest bloggers and working with them to craft great content, the last thing you want is for it to go unnoticed.
To help broaden your audience, promote your guest-posted content on your social media pages so more people can see it.
Unlock content growth through effective guest blogging
Need a better guest blogging strategy? Struggling to find the best guest writers for your blog? Here at Clearvoice, we have a community of thousands of expert writers that is ready to help you get started.
We can connect you to the perfect writer in your niche with the expertise you’re looking for. Get in touch with us today!
