guest blogging - Express Writers

A Case Study in Blogging: 21,600 Keyword Rankings in Google and 90,000 Visitors Per Month

June 18, 2024May 9, 2019 by Adam Oakley

This May, we’re celebrating our 8th full year of business at Express Writers. Looking back, it doesn’t even feel like eight years. More like a century. (Just kidding!) Seriously, though, I’m thankful that we’re here this May. Eight years is nothing to sneeze at. Just look at these statistics from Motley Fool: 80% of new businesses survive past their first year of operation. 50% of businesses make it to five years. And only 33% of businesses make it to ten years. Considering that I started this entire operation back in 2011 with an investment of the crumbs left in my broke-college-student savings account, $75, I’m thrilled that we’ve made it this far. With a 100% chance of failure, I rolled up my sleeves and put in many 60 and even 90-hour work weeks in the beginning. We kept chugging along, growing at incredible speeds every year. As I was digging into ideas to write a blog to celebrate our eighth year here on the Write Blog, it hit me that we didn’t have any fresh case studies on our blogging traffic and analytics, which have recently been the highest they’ve ever been. It also came to my mind the current state of affairs: how many content marketers and blog publishers are still struggling to even see success from their online efforts. So, this case study is needed. If you read one blog from me this year, make it this one. A Case Study in Blogging: 21,600 Keyword Rankings in Google and 90,000 Visitors Per Month Let’s dive into my blogging case study! First, let’s talk about the beginning (strategy), and the end (results). The Power of, and Strategy Involved In, Brand Blogging that Works Fun fact: Blogging used to be just for the people that “journaled their thoughts” on the web. The idea of blogging online itself originated in 1994, when a college student named Justin Hall began a stint of “personal blogging” that lasted eleven years. He was enrolled at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. Originally, the words “escribitionists” and “weblog” were used to describe what is now known as “blog.” Thank goodness that word evolved! Blogging is now far more than just an online diary. It’s a huge opportunity for businesses, brands and marketers to express themselves to their audience, grow and build a real community, and share the authentic real “human side” behind the brand. Blogging is a #1 method for marketers and brands to add consistent new site traffic that may eventually convert and become a buyer. At Express Writers, I’ve managed to write and publish over 1,100 blogs on our site over the past eight years, with the help of my team. The amount of content we publish on our blog, the consistency of it, and the quality and relevancy of our blog posts are the biggest factors behind what is now 90,000+ visitors/month coming to our site: We have 1,188 blogs published to date since 2012, the year I began consistently blogging. That’s an average of 169 blogs published per year. Our traffic went up steadily over the years, increasing when we put an emphasis on quality over quantity of content in late 2016 and ramped up in 2017. Our quality > quantity emphasis that began in 2016 focused on a few things: implementing a real content strategy for the first time and going from publishing four blogs/week to 1-2 high-quality blogs/week. Here’s a timeline tracking our biggest historic growth points, pulled from this blog I wrote on content strategy and my masterclass on how to build a strong content strategy. Right around the time we focused on a content strategy and quality over quantity, our results started to shoot through the roof. The data speaks. Check out how our SEO tracking in SEMrush reflects a spike in growth right around the time we built a content strategy and emphasized quality over quantity: Last week, when I was giving a talk on content creation right here in Austin, Texas, I shared these two slides that sums up our content success story well. The Google Analytics screenshot below was from March of this year, and this April, we had our first 90,000 traffic/month. Smart marketers shouldn’t be too excited by these numbers until they see the conversion rate and the sales. (Mr. Wonderful on Shark Tank, anyone? “Talk numbers!”) On average, we are achieving the benchmark conversion statistic for organic search traffic. 14-16% of our leads are converting. As Mr. Wonderful would say, “To cash flow!” Now, here’s what our traffic numbers look like as of writing this blog over late April 2019. Our Google Analytics: On the right, in the blue box, you can see how 10 out of these 14 visitors are on a blog post the moment this screenshot was taken. This is very common for our traffic. Now, check out our SEO ranking statistics in SEMrush again. We’re at 21,600 keyword rankings in Google. I have the graph set to “all-time”, so this is going back to May 2013, when I first started a SEMrush tracking project for our site. I’m in love with the traffic growth shown in this graph that spiked beginning in 2017, which is the year we got strategic. Learn more about how getting strategic paid off for us, here. Because of the content geeks we are and how consistent our content is, Google loves our site. Plus, everything we do is always organic, audience-first, and ethical. I never pay a dime in PPC ads, and we don’t allow advertisers to ever have access to our site or blog (even though I’m pitched at least once per day). You can see proof of our Domain Authority with expresswriters.com in Alexa, Amazon’s pioneer in the world of analytical website insight. Alexa clocks us at being the 97,000th-most popular website in the world, which is pretty crazy given there are over 1.6 billion websites in the world (InternetLiveStats). As for our content creation itself: everything — everything — we publish and create on our site is focused around several key things: Offering real value, factual and statistical (real) insights, truly useful … Read more

#ContentWritingChat Recap: How to Grow and Build Your Own Guest Blogging Platform with Erika Heald

June 19, 2024November 3, 2017 by Rachel Moffett

Have you ever thought about guest blogging as a way to grow your online presence? Whether you’re looking to start guest blogging on other sites or you want to accept guest posts for your own blog, this week’s #ContentWritingChat is a great one! To help you take full advantage of guest blogging, we’re sharing some amazing advice from the chat in this recap! How to Grow and Build Your Own Guest Blogging Platform Happy Halloween, #ContentWritingChat! ? Who is ready to talk about guest blogging with the one and only @SFerika? pic.twitter.com/o9Ld8MnAqT — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 31, 2017 Our guest host this week was Erika Heald. Erika is a marketing consultant and a freelance writer. She’s also the host of a weekly Twitter chat, #ContentChat. Be sure to check it out every Monday at 2 PM Central! Erika has plenty of experience with guest blogging, which is why she joined our chat to talk all about it this week. She had great tips to share with all of us, so let’s dive into the recap! Q1: Why is guest blogging a beneficial way to grow your online presence? You’ve probably heard people rave about the benefits of guest blogging before. However, you may be wondering if it’s really worthwhile. Here’s why guest blogging can do wonders for you: A1a: By contributing content to established websites, you’ll expand your reach and increase your domain authority. #ContentWritingChat — Erika Heald (@SFerika) October 31, 2017 A1b: As a blog editor, accepting guest blog posts increases your talent pool and your distribution channels. #ContentWritingChat — Erika Heald (@SFerika) October 31, 2017 Erika said that guest blogging on established websites will help you expand your reach, while also increasing your domain authority. If you’re a blog editor, accepting guest posts on your site will increase your talent pool and distribution channels. A1: Blogging allows you to SHOW not TELL people about your expertise, perspective and personality. #ContentWritingChat — Maureen Jann (@MaureenOnPoint) October 31, 2017 Maureen said guest blogging allows you to show, not tell, people about your expertise, perspective, and personality. A1 My guest blogging has brought brand exposure and 50-60% of our new leads/revenue for @ExpWriters for 5 years. #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy ? (@JuliaEMcCoy) October 31, 2017 One person who certainly sees the benefits of guest blogging is our very own Julia. She said guest blogging has helped build brand exposure, while also bringing in 50-60% of new leads. A1. You get to share your expertise with an already built audience. #contentwritingchat — Bourbon & Honey (@BrittanyBrander) October 31, 2017 As Brittany said, you get to share your expertise with an audience that has already been built. A1 it allows you to share your expertise and knowledge with a new audience. It’s a great way to grow organically #contentwritingchat https://t.co/zVH2DfijGR — Jade Alberts Consult (@Jade_A_Consult) October 31, 2017 Having the ability to share your expertise and knowledge with a new audience is a powerful way to build your own brand. A1: connecting with other bloggers merges your 2 audiences and gets your name noticed by more people #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/9JmTaO1gM3 — Independent Retailer (@indretailer) October 31, 2017 Guest blogging essentially brings two audiences together and helps you get noticed. A1: It’s a great way to get a different take on subjects, expand your audience, attract new influencers, etc. #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/DAVHVMITpH — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) October 31, 2017 As Sarah said, guest posts allow you to get a different take on subjects, expand your audience, and attract new influencers. Q2: How do you determine which websites are the right fit for you to guest blog on? Now that you’re ready to get started with guest blogging, you need to choose the right websites. How do you go about that? Here’s some helpful advice to keep in mind: A2a: I look for guest blogging opportunities that share my audience but aren’t competing with me for business. #ContentWritingChat — Erika Heald (@SFerika) October 31, 2017 A2b: The ideal guest blogging opportunity is with a higher domain authority site that will do ample promotion. #ContentWritingChat — Erika Heald (@SFerika) October 31, 2017 Erika likes to look for opportunities with websites that share her audience, but aren’t direct competitors. Ideally, she wants to submit a post to a website that has a higher domain authority that she can count on to do promotion once the post is live. A2: Does the blogger have a similar audience as you? You’ll want to make sure your content is reaching the right people. #ContentWritingChat — Netvantage Marketing (@netvantage) October 31, 2017 Lexie shared a great question you should ask yourself when trying to select a website to guest post on. Does that blog have a similar audience to you? It’s important that you’re reaching the right people with the content you share. A2 a) look for platforms that allow ongoing columns. Best ROI b) relevance to you c) they credit/link back to the author #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy ? (@JuliaEMcCoy) October 31, 2017 Julia suggests looking for websites that allow for ongoing columns. This is great because it’ll consistently provide you with new opportunities in the future. She also said that website needs to be relevant to you and they should allow you to link back to your website. A2. Research their audience (who’s following them, commenting) & ask: Are these your people, too? #contentwritingchat — Kristen Dunleavy (@KristenWritesIt) October 31, 2017 As Kristen said, make sure you take time to research their audience. You want to determine if their people are also your people. A2 Always do research when guest blogging. Speaking on the wrong topic to the wrong audience is detrimental! #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/gcKbqsiU4Q — HeyOrca! (@HeyOrca) October 31, 2017 You don’t want to waste your time speaking on the wrong topic to the wrong audience! A2. Are they in the same industry as me? If not, can I help their audience solve a problem? 1/ #contentwritingchat — Bourbon & Honey (@BrittanyBrander) October 31, 2017 If a website isn’t in … Read more

#HowToWrite Guest Blogging Content: 10 Keys

September 5, 2022June 12, 2017 by Tara Clapper

Here’s the scoop on guest blogging: Google doesn’t appreciate paid links or content published just so you can “win” a link. However, if your guest post is informative, genuine, and helpful, including a relevant link back to your website is a great way to improve your exposure and relevance. Is guest blogging a worthy investment? It no longer results in the skyrocketing SEO as it did before Google started evaluating placed links more thoroughly. However, guest blogging still affords some pretty sweet rewards: Exposure to the blog and brand’s audience (hopefully including promotion on their social media and email list). Increased authority and reputation. Opportunity to expand or blog just outside your niche. Possibility of capturing secondary or tertiary audiences where they live. 10 Keys to Writing Great Guest Blogs If you’ve determined the blog presents a good opportunity for you, it’s time to create your guest blog. Let’s cover the basics of how to get it done. Guest Blog Writing Key #1: Read the Guidelines Quite simply, your guest post has the best chance of being accepted if it conforms to all the guidelines set forth by the editor(s). Ideally, you should read the guidelines before you even pitch. Guidelines usually include rules about: Images (including acceptable sources). Author biography and headshot. How many links you are permitted to include in the post. Word count. Tone, style, and level of formality. The editor should also be able to provide you with stellar examples of content published on the blog. Surprisingly, guidelines are often vague – even when editors are picky. In this case, don’t hesitate to ask questions. Guest Blog Writing Key #2: Let Your Expertise Shine Expertise isn’t just about what you know – it’s about what you do with it. Through successes (and failures) in webinar presentations, I’ve learned that audiences respond most sincerely to application and innovation. Anyone can look up how to do something, but knowing how to apply it to a particular problem is especially important. The best content connects the dots and enlightens processes for readers. You don’t have to give away every detail behind your process or way of thinking, but provide a window into your world. I speak often about merging the personal and professional brand – something you can do carefully and successfully if you decide it’s the right fit for your business and your life. When I decided to merge my personal and professional Twitter accounts in a “Twitter wedding,” I documented the process and received positive feedback about the transparency of the post. Depending on your audience, you’ll need to display expertise through a combination of: Story (how you did it). Data (proof that you did it). Example (the final product). Each guest posting opportunity presents a challenge to find the right balance of story, data, and example, so make sure to communicate with your editor or point of contact to ensure clear expectations. Guest Blog Writing Key #3: Let It Flow When it comes to keeping the reader engaged, flow is what makes your post stick. Your entire post should read as though it was written by one person in one sitting (even if took you days to put it together). Each tip or idea should connect to the next, and if it’s a how-to post (like this one), the order of steps should make sense. [clickToTweet tweet=”Learn the 10 key steps to writing an awesome guest blog post over on @ExpWriters!” quote=”Learn the 10 key steps to writing an awesome guest blog post over on @ExpWriters!”] Guest Blog Writing Key #4: Apply Search Engine Friendly Structure Google prefers a certain structure for blog posts. Best practices are as follows: Do not use H1 header tags except for the post title – use H2, H3s, and so on to neatly organize your post. Use short, clear paragraphs. Bullet point for clarity when applicable. Number your how-to instructions or recipe steps when appropriate. This also saves your editor time. If they can copy and paste your formatting, it makes their job much easier. Guest Blog Writing Key #5: Focus! While many copywriters are accustomed to writing for “keyword density,” you’ll find a more natural inclusion of a desired keyword occurs if you strive to use a focus keyword. Use your focus keyword in your: Post title. First paragraph. Body copy (a couple of times). Meta description. (Note: As a guest blogger, you may not be required to submit a meta description, but it’s a kind gesture and only takes a few minutes.) If you’re writing for a general keyword, consider using a more specific long-tail keyword as well. For example, this post focuses on “guest blogging” (a very general, high-competition keyword) and “how to write a guest blog” (a specific question or search phrase). Guest Blog Writing Key #6: Add Appropriate Backlinks While you want to put a link back to your own site in the piece, don’t forget to link to other authoritative sites, especially those with a high domain authority or Alexa ranking. Chances are you know some reliable resources on your choice topic, and including credited statistics and other citations with links back to those sites will help. It’s also best practice (and kind) to include an internal link – that is, a link to another blog post or page on the website for which you’re creating the post. Guest Blog Writing Key #7: Include Images Editors are used to receiving walls of text. Even properly formatted copy can start to blur together when it’s the tenth piece an editor has seen in a day. When guest bloggers provide visuals, however, it helps their copy stand out and shows they put some extra time into the presentation. Furthermore, it creates less work for the editor (as long as the images work in their approved format or layout, and come with all necessary permissions). Ideally, you should have some sort of visual break every 300 words or less. That can mean a custom image, a stock … Read more

ContentWritingChat April 19 2016 Recap: Strategies for Successful Guest Blogging From an Editor

August 4, 2022April 22, 2016 by Rachel Moffett

Did you miss this week’s #ContentWritingChat? Well, there’s no need to worry because you can catch up with our full recap of the chat. Tuesday’s chat was all about guest blogging. If you’re looking to introduce guest blogging into your growth strategy or want to take your guest posts to the next level, you’ll want to read through these amazing tweets! #ContentWritingChat April 19 2016 Recap: Strategies for Successful Guest Blogging From an Editor Join us next week on #ContentWritingChat as we discuss #guestblogging with @itskgarvin! ? Tues, 10 AM CST! pic.twitter.com/tTaHwXAhkD — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) April 12, 2016 Our guest host for the week was Kathleen Garvin. Kathleen is the Editor over at The Penny Hoarder and previously worked at SEMrush. She’s experienced in SEO, blogging and digital marketing, as well as guest blogging. We enjoyed having her expertise over on our Twitter chat at #ContentWritingChat. Q1: Why is guest blogging essential to brands and writers with a presence online? Why is guest blogging a must and how can help build your online presence? Check out what some of the participants from Tuesday’s chat had to say: A1: It gives you a voice + exposes/expands your brand #ContentWritingChat — Kathleen Garvin (@itskgarvin) April 19, 2016 As Kathleen said, guest blogging helps to give you a voice and also gets you more exposure for your brand. When you guest post on another site, your content gets featured in front of a whole new audience. It doesn’t get much better than that! A1: #GuestBlogging establishes authority, esp. within a niche; also credibility as other publications accept your work. #ContentWritingChat — Tara M. Clapper (@irishtara) April 19, 2016 A1: Builds credibility across “venues,” shows versatility in subject matter, greater reach, etc #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/bJE7HPOCtT — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) April 19, 2016 Tara mentioned that guest blogging could establish you as an authority figure within your niche. She and Sarah from Think SEM both agreed that you also gain credibility when other publications feature your work. That’s huge! A1: Guest blogging provides a platform with new readers exposed to your brand. A chance to build new relationships. #ContentWritingChat. — Ryan Clutter (@Ryan1SEO) April 19, 2016 A1: Guest blogging helps expand my audience & helps cultivate relationships w fellow bloggers. #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/wa4CPy8qPh — Eliza David, Author (@elizadwrites) April 19, 2016 As Ryan said, guest blogging exposes your brand to a new audience who hasn’t heard of you before. Both he and Eliza agreed it’s also a great way to build relationships. When you guest post, you not only start forming a relationship with the website, but also their readers. A1 HUGE. It’s massive content exposure potential online for free – the cost of your time writing & making the connection #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy (@JuliaEMcCoy) April 19, 2016 Our CEO, Julia, said guest blogging could gain you a ton of exposure for your brand without having to spend a dime. A1. Guest blogging gives your brand some exposure, strengthens your voice and can be used as an extension of your story. #ContentWritingChat — Brittany Brander (@BrittanyBrander) April 19, 2016 As Brittany said, guest blogging gives you exposure, strengthens your voice, and can be an extension of your brand story. Q2: How do you pinpoint great sites to pitch guest posts to? Now that you know why guest blogging is beneficial, you need to think about which sites you should be pitching. Here’s what you need to know: A2: Look to high-quality blogs in your field, including professional frenemies #ContentWritingChat — Kathleen Garvin (@itskgarvin) April 19, 2016 A2: Figure out YOUR goals (brand awareness, sales, blog growth). Are you OK writing for free? Want paid opps only? #ContentWritingChat — Kathleen Garvin (@itskgarvin) April 19, 2016 Kathleen said to look to the high-quality blogs in your field. Don’t forget to consider your goals. What are you trying to achieve with your guest post? Are you trying to grow your traffic, generate awareness for your brand, gain more sales? This could play a factor in choosing which sites to guest post on. A2: Relevance and audience engagement (you can look at the comments section) are big factors to consider #contentwritingchat — Andrew Dennis (@AndrewDennis33) April 19, 2016 As Andrew said, make sure you’re choosing sites that are relevant to your brand. Also, does the site receive a lot of engagement from their audience? That’s key! A2 Add value and match their #Content standard, pitch via networks or proper channel #ContentWritingChat https://t.co/nTwKLoWrYE — Varun Kumar (@varunkr842) April 19, 2016 Varun said to make sure you can add value to the sites you’re pitching to. Your focus should always be on providing great content for their audience. A2: Look for high traffic and authoritative sources. Exposes your work to reach new plateaus. Also follow your audience. #ContentWritingChat — Ryan Clutter (@Ryan1SEO) April 19, 2016 Ryan recommends looking to high-traffic and authoritative sources. This can help maximize your reach. A2 a TOOLS: I use @buzzsumo to find top blogs in my industry (ie “content marketing” search). But you can also Google! #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy (@JuliaEMcCoy) April 19, 2016 Julia likes to use BuzzSumo to find the top blogs in specific industries. Very helpful! A2. Reach out to blogs in your space. It never hurts to ask. #contentwritingchat — Kristen Dunleavy (@KristenWritesIt) April 19, 2016 Like Kristen said, never be afraid to reach out. The worst you could hear is no. If there’s a site you want to post on, send over a pitch. You never know how it could work out! Q3: How do pick topics guest bloggers can’t resist? The next step in guest blogging is coming up with an amazing topic. No matter what site you’re writing for or what topic you’re writing on, providing value is always a must. Here are some more tips for choosing topics: A3: If you’re pitching, do your homework + read the publication/blog. See what’s been covered, bring value. #ContentWritingChat — Kathleen Garvin (@itskgarvin) April 19, 2016 A great tip from Kathleen: … Read more

How to Utilize Your Content Distribution Channels Correctly

December 31, 2020April 24, 2015 by Josh McCoy

Annie is a Content Manager at Express Writers. Content distribution channels provide a means of connecting with your audience on a number of different levels. These channels can include (but are not limited to) blogs, web page content, eBooks, whitepapers, infographics and email newsletters. They provide a method of communicating with your audience and engaging them with your message. In order for your content distribution strategy to work properly, you need to utilize your channels at maximum efficiency. But how exactly do you manage content distribution channels (correctly—without over-spamming anyone, or using one channel the wrong way)? Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket This old adage works well when evaluating your content distribution channels. Because of the number of available channels that you have, you should utilize at least a handful of them to get your message out to your audience. Channels such as social media networks and guest blogging opportunities are great resources since they allow you to direct your content to focus on your target audience. This ensures that you have the maximum exposure possible for your content and raises the possibility of engagement from your audience. By delivering your content in multiple channels you allow your company to build a loyal following of customers on a number of different platforms. This gives you leverage when it comes to influencing customer decisions in the long run. Multiple channels increase the overall amount of people who are aware of your brand name and image. Once you product high-quality content consistently, you’ll be able to draw and keep an audience that agrees with your point of view and enjoys the content you create. Too Much of a Good Thing There is always the lurking problem of overreaching. Whilst trying to cover as many content channels as you possibly can is a good idea, you should be aware that when you cover more content channels the content quality you produce may drop. The happy balance you’re trying to seek is to produce enough good, high-quality content pieces to fit a measured amount of content channels so that you don’t sacrifice quality in the name of coverage. It’s much better to focus on a handful of channels and deliver high quality content than to try to cover the spectrum and fill all your channels with mediocre or low-quality content. How Can I Utilize Content Channels to Boost Blog Traffic? 5 Methods The crux of the matter is that you want to leverage your content production in order to drive traffic to your blog. Content distribution channels provide the most ideal method of directing customers to your blog through measured content that is designed to do this. When you create compelling content that makes a user want to know more, including a handy link to your blog in a call-to-action can encourage the user to visit your blog. But how does it work? Here are a handful of ways you can utilize your content channels in order to distribute content to drive your blog traffic. Guest Blogging: Guest blogging opportunities may come to you in the form of invitations to write on a topic or you can simply address the owner of the blog and ask them for a chance to guest blog for them. Guest blogging gives you a powerful method to drive traffic to your blog. It gives you ready access to an audience that is already within your niche. With the right type of compelling content and well-placed links you can direct users to read some of your own blog entries, possibly gaining new followers in the process.As a content distribution channel, guest blogging should never be discounted. It gets your message out to the people who would benefit from it the most: people within your target audience. By giving you a focused group that is already interested in your niche, it creates a simple way to distribute content efficiently and effectively to the people who would appreciate and benefit from it the most. Email Marketing: A number of marketing professionals consider email marketing to be on its last legs as a content distribution channel. I tend to disagree. Email marketing is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for someone who isn’t skilled in the area or dedicated to becoming so. Email marketing contacts your audience directly and gives them the feeling of having a direct connection to you.Email marketing is based around sharing your content through personal email addresses, inclusive of clickable links back to your blog. For many users, emails are the best way for them to keep connected to a blog that they are interested in. Many people don’t have the time to go check a blog every single day to see when updates come around. Strategic email updates to your subscribers gives them the ability to see when you’ve updated and to judge whether the content interests them enough to go read it. It’s a very efficient methodology, but requires compelling copy and high-quality content to succeed. Utilize Influencers: In any social media setting, there will obviously be a handful of individuals that are more influential than other people in the same niche. What you should be aiming to do is to get in contact with these influencers. But how do you find out which people are the ones worth contacting? Simple tools such as Followerwonk allow you to see the extent of a person’s social media outreach and allows you to target the influencers within your demographic of interest for the highest return.Utilizing influencers can be direct (emailing them or messaging them and asking them to share your content) or indirect (sharing content with them and asking their and their followers’ opinions). Both of these methods are useful in their own ways, but instead of simply leveraging the influencers, you should try to engage them. It’s much easier to get an influencer to share your content if you actually pique their interest. It’s unlikely that they’ll share content of … Read more

A Guide To Guest Blogging: A Big Boost For Your Business

December 31, 2020March 5, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Guest blogging is one of the best ways to increase traffic, generate leads, and build brand awareness. From a business perspective, well-chosen guest blogging opportunities can result in a massive amount of positive impact on a site. Guest blogging gets you noticed by the people who need to notice you. As a brand, guest blogging opportunities allow your company to get their name out there, while at the same time allowing the readers to then experience your content production skills firsthand. When you do guest blogging right, you’ll start to realize the massive return this form of organic content can afford. 3 Ways to Determine Your Guest Content Goals Before you embark upon the twists and turns of the guest blogging road, you’re going to need to determine what you want to get out of your guest blogging opportunities. Just like every other structured marketing campaign, you need to have an end-game in mind to properly utilize your guesting posts. Ideally, as a guest blogger, you will be seeking to do one or more of the following: Position yourself as a go-to person in the industry. Guest blogging allows you to share your experience and knowledge, which helps others perceive you as an expert. Gain exposure for your brand, products, or services. This also helps to generate backlinks that help your SEO campaign immensely. Drawing an audience. When done correctly, guest blogging can help you gain new readers that can become sales for your site. For these goals to come to fruition, you need to have a unique mix of skills and execution. Just having an idea isn’t enough to get the most out of your guest posting. You need to become an expert in your field, reading every bit of information you can get your hands on. Once you’ve done that, you need to develop a real and actionable plan for gaining the attention you deserve from your guest blogging efforts. How to Figure Out What’s a Good Guest Blogging Opportunity and What Isn’t Most of the major players in the content creation field are open to the idea of having a guest blogger on their site. The tough part can sometimes be being chosen from the crowd. After all, experienced guest bloggers are more likely to get first preference than inexperienced bloggers. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to get your foot in the door, though. After all – everyone starts somewhere! When you’re just starting out, you may have to settle for less prestigious guest blogging opportunities. Although these aren’t as glamorous or far-reaching as the larger blogs, they are no less important in your quest to build a name as a well-known blogger. That said, it’s well worth your time and energy to learn to differentiate good guest blogging opportunities from bad ones. Here’s how: What Good Blogging Opportunities Look Like Good guest blogging opportunities are those that give you a decent amount of coverage for your time investment. Remember, your guest blog should be as well researched (or better!) than your personal or in-house blogging efforts. For professional guest blogging situations you are going to need to pitch your topic to the owner of the blog to see if it meshes with what they’re trying to achieve. Generally, you and the host can sit down and discuss what they expect and what you can deliver. From there, you may be able to develop a working topic and title before you get writing. Keep in mind that some guest blogging options will offer less support than others, and this is largely a function of traffic. The most in-demand guest blogging platforms get thousands of submissions each month, and it’s impossible to keep up with them all manually. That said, these platforms tend to use electronic forms and a team of editors and content managers to get guest blogs up on their sites. This shouldn’t rule a guest blogging platform out for you. Instead, pay attention to things like the professionalism of the staff, the Alexa Rank of the site, and the expedience with which staffers get back to you. What Bad Guest Blogging Opportunities Look Like To put it simply: bad guest blogging opportunities are those that don’t give you a lot of coverage or that abuse your work without giving you enough in return. Beware of sites that make it excessively easy to guest blog for them, since they’re among the worst offenders. While you shouldn’t have to jump through flaming hoops to get your post featured, you should expect there to be a review and quality assurance process. If this doesn’t exist, it’s a likely bet that, not only will your guest post not count for much, but that it will quickly be lost in the sea of low-quality blogs out there. Keep this in mind: If all you have to do is sign up and post then it’s probably not a very high-quality opportunity. Avoiding these sites is important since they don’t help you attain your guest blogging goals. These are usually the sites that take anything you give to them as a blog post without an actual discussion with the owner or content manager. Again: if you don’t have to talk to a real person or team, it’s probably not a good idea to guest post for them. Guest Blogging Doesn’t Mean the End of Direct Content Production Just because you’re getting into guest blogging doesn’t mean that you can stop producing your own original content. If anything, it’s an encouragement to continue with your own direct content. When you finally start to earn customers from a guest blog, you’ll still need to show them that you can back that content up with your own work. That’s why maintaining your own blog and content creation efforts is so important throughout. Setting up an internal content production schedule helps you to balance your private posting with whatever guest opportunities arise. Guest blogging allows you to create relationships with the audience of the host blog and this can translate into growing your own … Read more

What Will Blog Writing Be Like In 100 Years?

January 1, 2021March 17, 2014 by Adam Oakley

Have you ever wondered…what will blog writing be like 100 years from now? Will we see space aliens eating blogs, bring new meaning to “digesting” what one reads? Will writers be telepathically transmitting stories to paper? Will paper even exist—it’s on the way out the door right now, isn’t it? What the heck WILL we see; lots of green and UFO activity? Let’s go BACK in time to think about the future. Dial the clock back 100 years from today and it would be the year 1914. What was writing like back then? It certainly wasn’t as we know it today. In 1914, World War I began. A lot of writers were reporters and journalists who put themselves in the heat of the action as one of the greatest wars to engulf the world revved up. 1914 was also a year of significant events in literature. Writing 100 years ago didn’t involve handy word processing programs like Microsoft Word and WordPerfect. Spelling and grammar check wasn’t computer automated, it was left up to writers and editors to sort out. The rules of grammar were much more stringently held to, and reading literary works published between 1900 and 1920 reveal an astonishing evolution of style and the interpretation of the so called rules. Blog writing, social media and online content marketing didn’t even exist yet. Oh yeah, and personal computers and handheld mobile devices, they were pure fiction! If things have changed this much in 100 years, what can the next 100 years hold? Speculating About the Future of Blog Writing We’re not exactly talking about a scientific topic, now are we? But speculating can be fun nonetheless. In the past 25 years alone we have seen an unprecedented improvement in technology, all of which has contributed to blog writing as we know it today. For example: Microsoft Word is arguably one of the most popular and used word processing programs in the industry. According to a Wikipedia history of Microsoft Word, the first version of the program was developed by Richard Brodie and Charles Simonyi in 1981. However, it wasn’t until the release of Windows 3.0 in 1990 that Word became a sizeable commercial success and started being used by the masses. Later, Word began to receive labels per Windows OS to match each OS. Today, we can purchase Microsoft Office 365 for home or business. The new suite includes Word and is integrated with the latest advancements in cloud technology, providing an interface, work station and even files that can be accessed from any device in any location so long as you have a log-in and an active Internet connection. Before we had personal computers with word processing programs, we had something called a word processor. When I first started writing, I used a Brother Word Processor WP-230B—talk about a dinosaur! It could switch between a typewriter and word processing mode. It was pretty limited in capabilities compared to today’s computers, but it got the job done with better efficiency than handwriting or a traditional typewriter. Enough reminiscing. Let’s talk about the future of blog writing, a huge topic as of late, particularly in the area of guest blogging. Guest Blogging to See De-Evolution In January of 2014, the blogging community held its collective breath as Google’s Matt Cutts declared the “decay and fall” of guest blogging while staples in the industry said guest blogging is not dead. There is truth in both opinions. Cutts’ is correct that spammy, bad quality guest blogging is dying. And as it should! The writing industry has always stood for quality, which is why bad quality writing on the Internet is ever so surely being replaced by high, editorial quality content. It’s likely that in the following years we will see an increase in the quality of guest blogging as it returns to its roots. It will become more finely tuned, relevant, educational and engaging. Blogging & SEO In just the past 5 years we’ve seen amazing changes in the realm of search engine optimization. Keywords are going, going, gone as a hardcore staple, which opens up blogging and other types of online writing to better flow, higher quality and just plain good writing. In essence, online writing is returning to the true roots of literature: telling a story and telling it well. The Future of Blogging Is Bright Let’s talk about the origin of the blog. Back in the day, blog posts were something anyone could whip up. They were opinion tools, a means for anyone who had an opinion of any kind to blurt it out to whoever took an interest and decided to read. Today, the landscape of blogging has radically morphed. Blog platforms offer a myriad of tools and social channels all designed to help you create and communicate something. Blogs now support audio and video and the comment areas of can contain anything from intellectual discussions to bunkering down in the trenches in an attempt to defend a particular thought or idea. Blog writing is, and has always been, about self-expression. Today, the blog is a content marketing tool leveraged by the freelancer, small to medium sized business owner, and the big corporations. In the business world, blogs are used to communicate informative, relevant information. They’re a means of sharing thoughts and ideas via social media and stirring up conversation. However, it’s still a powerful tool for the would-be writers who write for the sake of writing and self-expression. Once you step into the world of content marketing, you can easily lose sight of these almost pure forms of blogging. They’re still out there. They’ve been there since the inception of blogging, and it’s my bet that 100 years from now they’ll still be here. The would-be writers and folks who blog for the pure self-expression of it are often the pioneers who push the technology right along, but without the recognition companies and businesses receive. According to ViperChill.com, over 181 million people actively use … Read more

Re: Matt Cutts, Is Guest Blogging Dead?

December 31, 2020January 21, 2014 by Adam Oakley

This is a direct reply written by Julia McCoy in response to The decay and fall of guest blogging for SEO. If you’re up on the game in SEO, you know a big name in it is Matt Cutts. The leader of the “webspam” team at Google, he’s a proclaimed “voice” in SEO and all things rankings. When he talks, people often listen; retweet; share; and reply. The latest buzz from Matt Cutts was posted on January 20, 2014—just three days ago. And already it’s been viral in the Internet world. The reason for the intense, instant feedback was the topic he wrote about. Matt’s blog was entitled “The decay and fall of guest blogging for SEO” and posed the statement, guest blogging is dead. “Google Will Take a Dim View” …The Worst The Blog Got The blog basically stated that all who were guest blogging should stop, and that guest blogging has gone from respectable to totally spammy. He said to stick a fork in the whole opportunity and don’t rely on it for SEO. Note, he never said it was entirely dead, not once in his whole blog; his most distinct ending words were that “Google will take a dim view of guest blogging going forward.” Matt Takes It Back? Matt actually added an “add-on” within 24 hours of writing his blog (possibly affected by the huge amounts of noted blogger voices on Twitter and other platforms denouncing his view) saying that he didn’t mean to “throw the baby out with the bathwater.” He stated very plainly that he did not mean to discount high quality and multi-author blogs, that he stated are “compelling, wonderful, and useful.” He Actually Has A Point About The Spam OK, so just like everything good, anyone—and on the Internet, seriously, anyone—can take it and turn it into something bad. Dirty, grimy hands have touched things like articles, blogs, press releases, web pages, and of course—guest blogging. I recently received a LinkedIN invitation to join a guest blog. I’ll put their name out there: SEO Libra. The invitation read, “Regarding For Free SEO Guest Blogging. Add Guest Posting for Free. Regards.” Ugh, it makes me shudder again. Grimy fingers like these turn content into spam, spin and trash it, try to recycle it, and overall give content a bad name in various avenues. But does that mean content in general stops working for everyone? Of course not. It only stops working in the wrong hands. In the right hands, content becomes well-written. It is original. Creative. Powerful. It has the possibility to go viral and make a positive impact on the web. Case Study Express Writers started blogging on SocialMediaToday about 5 days ago. We’ve had over 300 social shares on each post that was a featured guest blog on SocialMediaToday; new followers on all our social media platforms; connections from other writers and peers; and more than 10 new client inquiries. Guest blogging, my friends, is powerful. It works. What Did You Say, Cutts? Don’t forget, Cutts has said other things in the past that were discounted. A couple years ago, Cutts said a statement in a Google forum stating that press releases no longer held value for SEO. He was since proven wrong by SearchEngineLand experts, who did an actual case study with screenshot results that showed exactly the opposite of Cutts’ statement—that in fact, PR links were being counted by Google. Copyblogger’s CEO Weighs In The CEO of Copyblogger, Brian Clark, said it best on Twitter: Why change because Matt Cutts said something? Build quality, no matter what. (For more, read Copyblogger’s blog on why guest blogging isn’t done yet.) Excellent advice. Don’t change what’s working because one person said something. Keep it up, and always maintain quality—and you’ll always see results.