Using guest posters and article submissions has become fairly common practice in the blogging sphere. Let’s face it, in the cyber-world where new, fresh content is essential to a successful blog, blog owners simply can’t do it all on their own.
Guest bloggers can lend fresh voice and even spunk to a blog when they’re utilized correctly, but blog owners need to be aware; just as guests bloggers can be a saving grace, they can also be a blogs downfall.
Think before you post
To keep your blog healthy you need to follow fairly simple guidelines. They may seem so obvious you hardly take them into consideration, but they are often at least partially to blame when a blog loses its captive audience.
It’s no secret that fresh and updated content is vital to blogs wellbeing. There’s no faster way to alienate your audience than to allow your blog to become stagnant for weeks or even months. With that being said, however, new articles that aren’t relevant to your blog are the worst scourge to ever face the blogging sphere.
Guest posters are a mixed bunch. Some people are undoubtedly sitting on their couch in their pajamas contributing to a wide variety of blogs, and others are sitting in an office setting working for a link building company. Who the person is working doesn’t need to be your primary concern, the main concern with any guest writer is; how much do they know about the topic they’re writing about and what value are they offering your audience.
Bloggers bible
It can be easy to determine a guest posts value to your audience if you stick with the guidelines I mentioned above.
First-Is it relevant? What does this specific post tell visitors to your blog that hasn’t been said in a previous post? If you have categories on your site, which does it fit into? If you have to force the article to fit in your blog like a puzzle piece that kind of works, but you’re pretty sure it goes to a different part of the puzzle, it’s best to leave it out.
Second-Is it error free? Spelling and grammatical errors alienate readers, pure and simple, but did you know they also are detrimental to your blog site as well? If readers are leaving your site because of errors (and trust me, they will) this will hurt your ranking.
Third-Who are they linking to? Links in general are not a bad thing, but certain links can harmful. Especially if a guest poster is trying to direct traffic back to their own blog, social media or to a client if they’re working for a content creation service, links are essential. What you need to avoid is any linking back to websites with content related to porn, pills or gambling. These sites are akin to a dark alley in a bad neighborhood and will hurt your sites rank.
The links with the most value to your blog will be links to authoritative sites, for example sites ending in edu or information sites, these actually add credibility to your site.
Fourth-How can you get the most out of guest articles? If a guest article is truly relevant to your site, chances are it can very naturally link to other articles in your blog. This is a great way to get readers hooked on your content and keep them engaged on your site.
The titles of blog posts are important for getting eyes on your site as well. As a blog owner you have the right to re-tool a title if it isn’t working for you. Think about the way you use Google search. When you type something into Google, chances are it looks something like this, ‘how to make chocolate chip cookies’ and not like this, ‘how to make perfect gourmet cookies like Betty Crocker.’ Think like your audience and cater to them.
If guest post submissions fit these guidelines chances are you’ve found something worth posting to your blog, but always follow your instincts. Don’t post an article you don’t particularly like just because it’s well written. When you read it, are you engaged or do you want to stop reading halfway through? Often your readers will react the same way.
By Guest Author – Amy Merrill is a writer for Page One Power, a link building company based in Boise, Idaho. Amy lives to write and has contributed to a number of blogs and is currently working on her first novel.