I’ve been thinking a lot about blog promotion in the last couple of days and one strategy that I’ve always seen being under-used is guest blogging.
There’s no downside to it – unless your blog is #1 in its niche, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t take time out from fussing over your own blog and write a killer article for another blog.
What guest blogging can do for you (and your blog):
- You get several deep links (if you link back to your own articles) back to your blog which from a high-ranking blog can pay off in the long run).
- A good article will inevitably gain your blog new readers and increase your RSS subs (so be prepared to follow up with more good articles on your own blog.
- If you’re looking for consulting work / paid blogging gigs, guest blogging is an excellent way to position yourself as an authority.
- Builds a good relationship with fellow bloggers, something you’re going to need if you want them to notice you and link to you.
- Reaching new audiences keeps us on our toes to keep our blogging at a high level of quality, and guest blogging itself pushes us to write better than our comfort zone would allow us to.
Ultimately it all boils down to quality writing and giving people what they want, but if you’re looking for ways to improve your blog’s profile guest blogging (like having an article published in an offline publication) is a reliable, effective method to apply.
Usually we hold back from guest blogging either because we’re lazy (Ryan) or because we’re hung up on our own egos to go anywhere else and write. In some cases the later can be a good thing in a person who is talented and motivated enough to build a #1 blog, but usually it’s a case of limiting your blog promotion options and being too pig-headed to take advantage of what’s on offer.
Deb, Chris and Liz are just 3 excellent examples of using guest blogging to build their own profile – and it’s not a surprise that these 3 are some of the more successful bloggers that I know.
So… where are you guest blogging next?
Also read: Matt’s thoughts on guest blogging.
This article was originally written on 9 Sep 2007 for Performacing.com.
