Guest Blogging: How to find and maximise guest blogging opportunities

Guest blogging is a great way to build your reputation as a thought-leader and boost your visibility. It is also a great way to improve your SEO.

However, it is important to pick the right places to guest blog and this basically comes down to choosing high-quality websites and industry blogs and publications.

Start by writing your own content

Before you start thinking about guest blogging. You should already be blogging (writing) on a regular basis. This might be on your own blog or on your company website. It might even be long-form LinkedIn Articles / Posts.

Wherever you are writing it is important to stick to your niche/area of expertise, to write under your own name (or company/brand) and write publicly accessible content that can easily be found/accessed by others.

This is so you can practise and develop your writing and help you build a portfolio of existing examples of your content for the benefit of editors and blog owners to help them say yes to your request for a guest blogging opportunity.

Have a presence on Social Media

As part of your Visibility Strategy generally you should already have a presence on Social Media, but it is also a factor in finding and securing guest blogging opportunities. So make sure you can be found on social media and come across as legitimate.

Also, the bigger your presence on social media is, and the more loyal your following is, the better your chances of securing the guest blogging opportunity that you are after.

Create a list of influential people and websites in your niche or industry

Next up is identifying a list of influential people and websites/blogs in your niche or industry.

Start by writing a list of people who immediately come to mind. If they are in your niche or industry you are probably already reading (or listening to) them. Write down the key players and the ones you enjoy reading.

Once you have done a list of the ones that automatically spring to mind next you need to do some research of potentially lesser-known websites but that have a good reputation and high ranking on google or an engaged following on social media. It might be a website or blog, or it might be a named individual.

When reviewing and writing your list of individual influencers, also look at where they are creating content and guest blogging as this will give you a list of sources that you might also want to consider for your own list of places to guest blog.

Create a list of Potential Guest Blogging Opportunities

Once you have created a list of websites, influencers and potential websites it is then time to write a target list of those you would like to approach for guest-blogging opportunities.

A lot of websites openly look for contributors and are open to guest post submissions. Start with these sites as these should be easy wins. Check their submission guidelines for some guidance on what you need to include.

Send a pitch or submission enquiry

Finally, prepare to send a pitch or submission enquiry and do some research on the target blogs and websites so that you have an excellent submission that they can’t say no to.