Discover the best way to pitch your guest blog idea and learn how you can use these guest blogging opportunities to build relationships. Successful Guest Blogging & Relationship-Building is Growth Tactic #20, the newest tactic for your 100-Day Digital Growth Plan. We’re offering our favorite tips and insights to keep you learning and growing well into 2017!
Overview — Successful Guest Blogging & Relationship-Building
Stop guessing…and start guest-ing! The benefits of guest blogging on other well-respected and prominent sites are abundant: you’ll have the opportunity to share your thoughts with prospects and industry leaders, you can often secure links back to your website, you’ll be one step closer to becoming a trusted name in your niche area of expertise—and most importantly, you can build new and influential relationships. But how can you make a great first impression, while simultaneously asking to guest blog on someone’s site? Give a little something before you ask for anything in return. Mention your targeted blog (or the blogger/site owner) by name in one of your own posts, share the site’s content frequently via your social media channels, and comment on current posts on the blog. Prove that not only do you know your stuff – but you know their stuff! Now, you’ve got something intriguing to say when you send your pitch email…and your contact might even recognize your name if you’ve played your cards right.
How-to
STEP ONE: Use the first three tools in our Resources and Tools section below to generate your list. What should you look for? High Domain Authority sites in your industry that post regularly (at least a few times per week). Do you already have some sites in mind? Plug them into GroupHigh to find contact information quickly and easily.
STEP TWO: Do your research. Go down your list one by one. Review current posts on each blog and take notes. What types of content are featured (longform articles, list posts, image-heavy blogs)? What topics are written about? Is the writing technical or a little humorous? Decide on a few ideas you think could be fitting for your guest post on this particular site.
STEP THREE: Start giving! As we mentioned above, you can reference the blog or blogger in one of your own posts on your site, share the blog’s content on your social media platforms, comment on other posts on the blog, etc. After your third or fourth good deed, create your pitch email. Make sure to include links to and/or mention of any of the above actions you’ve taken. Keep it short. Introduce yourself, why you’re contacting him/her, share your links, offer a guest post on your topic, thank him/her and leave your contact info. Start again with the next blog on your list and keep track of who responds.
NOTE: When you get to Step Four (creating your content) visit Growth Tactic #7 How to Write a Winning Blog Post for some helpful tips.
Resources and Tools
- BuzzSumo
- GroupHigh
- Twitter (and other social media platforms)
- SharpSpring (for email outreach)
We’re committed to providing a deep source of information and education for our community. Find more resources in our Learn page and visit us here again for the next 100-Day Digital Growth Plan Tactic! Then, contact us for more ideas on digital growth and your website.