I’ve seriously been considering using guest bloggers on a few of my sites lately. I’ve been considering it for a number of reasons. Here’s just a few of my thoughts on the subject:
- 1. I have a number of sites and I can’t keep up.
- 2. I’ve been off work on medical leave for a while (which is why I have so many websites) but I’m going back to work soon and I’d like to keep my sites going
- 3. I injured one of my hands almost three months ago and it’s still not quite healed so it makes typing quite difficult.
- 4. I’m being approached almost daily lately with requests to guest blog on my sites
I think having some dependable Guest Bloggers for some of my blogs would be a great idea. Certainly I’m not the only one who’s thought of this. Some blogs have a number of regular guest bloggers and do quite well.
Of course it’s generally the more successful blogs that have a lot of Guest bloggers. There are many reasons why large busy blogs might also need guest bloggers such as the owner being away for a vacation, and not wanting to leave the blog without regular updates.
I’m still working out whether I will go forward with using guest bloggers on some of my sites, but I can tell you right now that emailing me or just filling out a contact form and asking without telling me what kind of topic you might be interested in writing or giving me an example of your work such as your current blog is not a way to gain my interest. If you’re serious tell the blog owner about yourself or what and why you want to write for them.
Here are some thoughts about using guest bloggers and how to go about selecting, advertising for and perhaps even compensating guest bloggers.
Advertising for Guest Bloggers
There are quite a number of ways to go about attracting guest bloggers to your site. You can create an ad and list it on Job boards for freelance writers and bloggers. Some of these sites are free and some are not. If you are planning on paying your guest blogger definitely advertising on a job board is a good way to go as these job boards are often checked regularly by professional and experienced writers and bloggers who are looking for new writing jobs. You’ll find writers and bloggers at these sites that are adept at writing about particular subjects or topics or who can be creative and write about topics that you suggest on the fly.
A good thing to do when you post your ad is to request writing samples from those applying for you guest blogging position. Be sure to list whether your guest blogging position is temporary, trial or permanent as well. Also specify the type of work required, the type of articles and subjects you expect your writers to write and so on. That way you won’t be disappointed with the applications you receive.
You can also post in forums or message boards requesting guest bloggers for your site. It could be hit and miss as to the experience of the people who respond but if you do as above, post a detailed description of what you are looking for and what’s expected and ask for writing samples you’ll hopefully meet some interesting bloggers that might be suitable for guest blogging.
Selecting Guest Bloggers
Selecting a guess blogger might be the difficult part. This is where those writing samples that you asked for in your initial request and perhaps viewing the prospects past guest posts on other sites or their own blog will come in handy so you can get an idea of their writing style and even their work ethic. You want to pick a guest blogger that will be reliable, and capable of writing articulate, interesting and informative articles for your blog.
You should also request that any articles that an individual writes for your site will be exclusive to your site so that there are no other copies floating around on the internet. You can get into trouble with search engines if your writer posts the same article on 25 sites and you’re not checking!
If the potential guest blogger has guest blogged in the past or written articles else where it wouldn’t hurt to ask for reference. If the person does give you reference – check them! It’s in your own interest to do so. This person will be representing your website, your brand. Plus, you might also be paying them!
Compensating Guest Bloggers
So, now that you’ve chosen one or two guest bloggers have you decided how you are going to compensate them? Well there are a couple of ways you can do this. The most important thing is that the two of you mutually agree on this before any work is done for your site. A written contract which states the explicit terms of the agreement and compensation would be a good idea in order to avoid any future disputes.
You can financially compensate the blogger, paying them either per character, per word or per article or some other way.
Another form of compensation that is often used considering that many guest bloggers often have their own sites is to allow a link or two to the bloggers website within the guest post or in the author bio at the end of the article. This way the guest blogger gets links back to their site with every post and this will eventually help their website become more popular. Of course they are also gaining readership from the site they are writing on.
Do you guest blog or do you use guest bloggers? I’d love to hear your experiences no matter which side you are on.
