This week at our Thursday Twitter chat we were talking about penguins again. But if last time we were discussing the updated linking guidelines for our authors (using the Articles Gallery), this week we were warning our awesome publishers of why they should be even more selective and careful.
Enjoy!
STEP 1: Define Your Priorities
You need guest bloggers NOT for #free content but for breathing a new life in your blog! #myblogguest
- Example #1: One of the guest posts on seosmarty.com brought me an NYTimes mention
- Example #2: One of the guest posts our user placed turned out to be the HUGEST traffic source ever! Here’s her video
Conclusion: A guest post you host should be awesome – that’s when you start loving guest bloggers!
Step 2: Find Great Authors
- Create a very well-structured list of guest post requirements and stick to them (Tip: Feel free to use our guest post quality assurance checklist we use to moderate gallery. It lists most commonsense essential points).
- Create “Write for us” page on your blog,
- Monitor #MyBlogGuest Articles Gallery within your category
Step 3: Be Safe
Guest blogging is a 100% whitehat marketing tactic. Some guest authors don’t get it. With Google #penguinupdate you should be careful even despite you are doing nothing wrong.
*Being careful doesn’t mean going crazy. If you are selective and pick *awesome* relevant articles, you are safe!*
What to look out for (what makes a guest article less *awesome*):
- Nonsense link dropping (for example, a link in the article about SEO: “Oftentimes the longer search phrases attract more traffic for a niche website than popular keywords, like L shaped shower bath.”)
- Irrelevant links with obviously keyword-optimized anchor text (the above example also applies)
- Too linky articles (with more than 2 self-serving links; I usually encourage authors to link generously elsewhere)
What is a natural link?
- Use your common sense: If a guest articles and links in it look natural to you, human being, a Google bot will be ok with them. If you feel the link doesn’t belong there, ask the author to remove or edit it
- Articles with many links look more natural than articles with only ONE link to the authors site (so encourage your guest author to include references to official sites they mention, social media profiles, apps and tool, etc.)
*So what makes an *awesome* article: interesting and trendy, with style and images, modest in linking!*
Conclusion: Accepting guest posts does grow your traffic and popularity but only when you approach that properly!
>>>Next Thus (3 p.m. GMT / 11 a.m. EDT) we’ll try to structure all link terminology we are using!
Joseph
Latest posts by Joseph (see all)
- Chatting Guest Blogging at #Pitchboxchat - December 19, 2018
- How to Collaborate on Content: Co-Create, Interview and Find Guest Bloggers! #BizapaloozaChat - December 5, 2017
- Ann Smarty Talking Influencer Marketing at #BW_Chat Twitter Chat - February 26, 2016
Ajeet
“Conclusion: Excepting guest posts does grow your traffic and popularity but only when you approach that properly!”
EXCEPTING? 🙂
Ann Smarty
Oops! Sorry! Fixed!
Stacie Walker
Hello Ann,
I have recently joined this amazing community. I have had a wonderful experience here so far. The guest bloggers that contact me have provided quality content. Anyway, I appreciate what you have created for us. Thank you for the suggestions in this post.
To Your Success,
Stacie Walker
Roger Carr
I have received some terrific guest posts via My Blog Guest that have certainly helped by bringing a new perspective to the blog. I have also had to reject many proposed guest posts because of the quality and many times because they didn’t even relate to the subject of the blog. Thanks for these guidelines to follow so guest posts help, not hurt, our blog and readership.
Ann Smarty
Thanks, Roger! Your blogs are awesome!