This guide shows you how to guest post for any niche you can imagine. Every piece of advice you’re going to read has been proven to work, over and over again.
If you’re looking for tips on how to find guest post opportunities, come back soon as I’m currently writing that article. And check out this page if you’re still looking for blog post ideas for your own blog.
For now, let’s assume you’ve already found some blogs and websites that accept guest posts. Your next step is to pitch the blog owner with a few, can’t fail, ideas.
But before you start writing your email, we’re going to examine six powerful and simple tips that will improve you chance of having your guest post pitch accepted. The best part is that they’re easy to implement.
Here’s the list:
Create Amazing Headlines for Your Guest Post
Be Personal and Polite
Get to the Point Fast
Learn About the Blogger You’re Reaching Out To.
Be Grateful
Keep in Touch
Conclusion
Create Amazing Headlines for Your Guest Post
As blog owners you’re probably no stranger to the world of guest posting and I’ll bet that many of you have already received guest post pitches from other bloggers. If you’re like me, you’ll be familiar with the standard request, which looks a little like this:
Hi, do you accept guest posts? If so, then I have some great ideas for you. Here are a few headline ideas:
How to stay warm on a cold day.
How to write boring guest posts nobody will ever read
Why guest posting is good for your rankings
Let me know which one you like most and we can start working together.
Thanks,
A. Nother Webmaster
See the problem? Or should I say, the biggest problem?
It’s the headlines. They’re boring. Sure, each one uses the recommended formula of ‘how’ and ‘why’, but what value do they bring to your readers? And if the headlines are so boring what will the finished guest post look like? Probably this boring:
Image of really boring situation/dead person
To succeed at guest posting, you need to up your game, which can be hard but it will pay off. Let’s take the headline ideas above and make them more exciting.
Horrific Cold Weather Injuries (or, How to stay warm in sub-zero temperatures)
The Whiplash Effect: How to write awesome guest posts
How Guest Posts Funded a Trip to Mars
Okay, so they might not have the exact match keywords you’re after, but the guest post headlines are far more interesting than those we saw in the example email. And when you write content that matches the headline quality the guest post gets links which help boost your website and content.
Takeaways:
- Always take time to write appealing headlines for your guest post pitch.
- Get your keywords in if you can, but don’ to worry if you’re not able to fit them all into the headline as they can be inserted into subheads and the body of content.
- Spend time brainstorming the headlines, a lot of time, and offer several variations in your pitch.
Be Personal and Polite
When you’re ready to make a guest post request, remember to be personal and polite.
Where possible, do your research and find the name of the blogger you’re reaching out to. The easiest way to do this is by looking for an ‘About me’ page on their site. If you can’t find any details there, look for a ‘Contact’ page.
Why? Because for most bloggers their writing is a labour of love and they want to get their name known. This means they’re highly likely to post personal information in a place that’s easy to find.
But, if you’ve looked through their website and still having difficulty finding a name, take a look at their contact details. Many bloggers include their names to form part of the address. For example:
Look at this email address – you can see there’s a high probability that the website owner is called Steven.
Once you have the contact details of the blogger, start crafting your pitch. But be polite and respectful.
Start your email with a friendly and upbeat greeting such as ‘Good Morning Steven…’, or ‘Hello Steven, I hope you’re well…’ For some of you, this tip might seem obvious, but it’s amazing how many people just want to get their message out and move on – which is a guaranteed fast track to having your request declined.
If you’re struggling to find a name, try using a service like https://hunter.io/. Not only will the service show you all the email addresses associated with the blog, but will attempt to show names associated with that email address. The service is free up to 50 searches per month.
What should you do if you can’t find the blog owners name?
Reach out to whatever email address you can find and in your message make an apology like this:
“Hi there, first I’d like to apologise for not addressing you by your first name, but I couldn’t find your details on your blog.”
Takeaways:
- Find the bloggers name where possible.
- If you can’t find their name on their blog mention this in your email as it shows you’ve put some effort into your pitch.
- Be polite: say hello, good morning or whatever other greeting that shows some respect.
- Hunter.io can help you find hidden emails that might include the bloggers name.
Get To The Point Fast: Bloggers Are Busy Too
A blogger has a schedule to work to and there’s little time set aside for reading long emails that tell your life story, the evolution of your blog and the exact settings you used to take the many wonderful photos in your posts!
Like you, many bloggers have a day job, a family as well as the extra demands that come with writing and promoting content.
So, bear this in mind when you write your pitch email. The aim is to keep the conversation short and simple as you both know why you’re talking (I assume you’ve mentioned guest posting in your title, or first line of the email…?)
The basic outline of your email pitch should look like this:
Title: Guest Post Request (or one of the attention demanding headline we discussed earlier)
Email Body:
Intro: Two line introduction that repeats the request for a guest post, including a brief amount of info about you and your blog (including the URL).
The Pitch: offer three headline ideas along with a high-level description of what your guest post will cover.
Links: show the pages your blog post will link to on you site. This will save you the hassle of having to rewrite part of your guest post if the links are rejected after submission.
Takeaways:
- Don’t write War and Peace, because bloggers don’t have time to wade through huge emails.
- Unless there is no mention of the blogger accepting guest posts, keep your pitch to a minimum as you both know why you’re talking.
- Show the pages you will link to from within the body of your guest post.
- Pitch three mouth-watering headlines.
Get To Know The Person Behind The Blog
If you’re looking for a link from a blog then you need to show that you’re actively interested in their content. Nothing will get your guest post request deleted faster than the fact that you have no idea about the blog or the content.
Here’s an example: in the early days of writing guest post requests I did little more than skim over a few pages, find the bloggers name before sending my pitch.
Many of my requests were never answered.
Now I spend time reading posts, sometimes making comments, and always digging for personal information about the site owner.
One of my most recent link acquisitions was gained because I took time to understand more about the blogger (a 70-something backpacker). We got to talking about GPS systems and it turned out he was looking for a recommendation for a new receiver. I pointed him to a post on my site. The next day my guest post went up and the link helped push to me the middle of page one for a medium-volume, high payout phrase.
And I still keep in touch with the guy as he is pretty awesome!
Takeaways:
- If one exists, read the bloggers bio.
- Read a few of the posts, top to bottom, and get an idea of their views and needs.
- Start a conversation – a small question, or comment, about content on their site.
Be Grateful For Every Guest Blogging Opportunity
In the blogging world, politeness goes a long way. A very long way.
Every time you have a guest post accepted, the first action you need to take before celebrating is to thank the blogger who has chosen to place your content on their site.
Being thankful has many forms and includes a simple thank you, an email of gratitude or sharing of the content and the blog where you post now lives and breathes.
My personal preference is to connect to the blogger on social media before I even pitch the guest post. Once the content is up and live, I share like crazy and make a deliberate effort to let people know about not only the guest post, but also give some something back to the blogger.
An example of a social media push might look like this:
I’d like to thank Steve for letting me post this on his site: https://stevesbigblog.com/my-guest-post. It’s been great working with him and I recommend you check out more of the amazing posts on his blog.
Show gratitude for all that you receive.
Takeaways:
- Send a thank you message to the blogger who has accepted your post.
- Share the post on social media and point your friends to the blog.
- As a final thank you, build a few links ot the guest post – you’ll both benefit from a little more link juice.
Final Tip: Keep In Touch
This whole process is a journey and, if you’ve done it right, has taken you time. So why waste all the effort you’ve put in? More often than not, you’ll find that you’ve actually built a relationship with a like-minded webmaster and that’s something you want to maintain.
So why not keep in touch?
Having any kind of relationship with a fellow blogger is bound to beneficial to both of you. Providing you create high quality content, you’ll now have a place where you can post in future. And vice versa.
You see, from time to time you’re going to need some amazing blog posts that you simply don’t have the time or expertise to write and the perfect source is just an email away.
Takeaways:
- Once you’ve built a relationship with a fellow blogger you should always strive to maintain it.
- Providing you follow the steps, you’ll have a willing home for more of your guest posts at some point in the future.
- Feel free to offer your new blogging friend the opportunity to guest blog on your site when you’ve in need of content.
Conclusion: Learning How to Guest Post Right Is Important
Writing a guest post is easy, but the process of finding a suitable site and building a relationship with a fellow blogger can take time and effort.
The more you put into creating great quality content, with headlines that wow and draw in readers, the more benefits you’ll reap.
And that’s part of the tune we all dance to.
You see, the true heart of SEO is not link building (although this is important). It’s about creating relationships and paying it forward. It’s about giving your best and having no expectations about what you’ll receive in return.
If you want to know how to write a guest post and find a home for your content, then follow this guide.
If you want to know how to really make a difference to your rankings, then go make some friends in the blogging community.