Marketing

3 Big Reasons You Will Love Guest Blogging

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I love writing guest blog posts, and when you understand the following 3 reasons, I know you will to. In today’s post Panda world there are very few things that will get you more benefits quicker than guest blogging.

It might seem counter intuitive at first, that putting content on another person's site can help you. And a lot of people I talk to don't do guest blogging for that very reason. But guest blogging is actually one of the best content creation strategies you will ever find. And here are 3 big benefits to get you started.

Guest Blogging Forces You to Stretch

Maybe it is just me, but something about writing a post on another blog gets me of my comfort zone. It also forces me to think about my topic and writing style. Once you start writing for others, you will understand.

When you are creating a guest blog for a friend, industry leader or social contact, you always want to put out your very best. And you want it to fit your writing to their audience. This forces you to move past what you already know about your own readers. This is an entirely new set of people, and writing guest posts gives you the opportunity to move outside of what you already write about, use your imagination and grow as a writer.

Guest Blogging Introduces You to an Entire New Set of Readers

Speaking of writing for an entirely new audience, it also means you are expanding your reach. If you can really engage with this new audience, they are going to follow you back to your own blog … And begin following you there.

Guest blogging is a great way to expand your readership to a large group at one shot. These readers already respect the blog that you are writing on, so guest blogging becomes a great referral. And nay of these readers are very likely to stick with, and follow you as well.

Guest Blogging Builds Some of the Most Powerful Backlinks You Will Ever Get

If you are reading this post, and you have any interest in blogging or online marketing, you have no doubt heard about Google Panda … And its attacks on blog networks and other “spammy” links.

The type of link that points back to your site matters more now than ever. Backlinks created through your guest blogging are some of the most powerful you can ever get. That’s because they make sense and are relevant. Presumably, if you are posting on another site, the site is somewhat related to you. This relevance is extremely important to Google. Guest blogging will never be considered spam, as long as you are writing on authority type sites.

These are only 3 of the many reasons that you are going to love guest blogging. Besides forcing you to stretch, and exposing your writing to a completely new audience, creating guest blog posts is a Google friendly Search engine optimization tactic that will always work.

Just like with other content creation strategies however, be warned. Guest blogging, just like any other content creation is a long term strategy. Don't expect to write a single blog post and suddenly be flooded with responses back to your money site and first page rankings. But, keep it up, produce lots of quality content and the visitors will come. What starts as a trickle, will turn into a roar.

Getting started with guest blog posting can seem scary at first, and it can be tough to get started. Remember, it’s all about relationships.

If you are fortunate enough to already have friends or contacts in a related industry, or whose readers could benefit from your unique perspective, approach them with an offer to blog for them. This is a win-win situation since they get free content for their blog, and you get the exposure and a backlink.

Just remember, if you ever want to be asked to guest blog in the future, you need to give your very best work. And make it unique, no cut and paste please.

Another way to find opportunities for guest blogging, it is to get engaged in the online community. This includes social media, commenting on other blogs, etc. If you engage consistently and add value, chances are very good you will either be invited to guest post, or they will accept you when you offer.

Trust me, as part of a long term content creation strategy, you are going to love guest blogging. Get out there and start engaging today.

What? You haven't started a blog for your small business yet? Or you aren't getting the results you want? Download our FREE Power Blogging e-book today.