Writing a guest post is relatively straightforward. You find the topic, you research what you need to write, you write it, you format it properly, add images and links and it’s done. Sure, that’s not exactly easy but if you’re already blogging you know that bit. Where it gets difficult is finding a diverse, reputable, contextually relevant set of websites that accept guest posts.
There are, you’ll be pleased to read, thousands upon thousands of websites out there that are more than willing to accept your guest post. The trick is selecting the ones which not only work well for you but offer the owner a great piece of content that works for their readers. Finding these backlink opportunities isn’t easy, but taking the time to get a process that does it right is well worth the effort.
How To Find Websites That Accept Guest Posts
There are, thankfully, a good number of ways that you can find websites that accept guest posts. Each one works in a slightly different way and you might find that one way works better for you than another. It really depends on the style, content, and format of the post that you’re offering. Don’t forget that the better the quality of post that you’re offering the more successful you’re likely to be in your search.
1. Ask Google
Everyone’s answer to everything. Ask Google. And this is no different a scenario. Some websites are so keen to accept guest posts that they’ll openly have pages on their websites that advertise the fact they’re looking for guest authors. Google is a great first step, try a variety of keywords such as “guest column”, “contribute to our site” or “guest post by”. If a site is ranking for terms such as these, you already know that they accept guest posts and they’re worth pitching your work to.
2. Check Out Competitor Backlinks
Guest posting is a popular strategy to garner as many high-quality backlinks as possible. Using SEO tools, such as SEMRush or Ahrefs, you’re able to see exactly who is linking to a competitor site. The most lucrative searches will be on those competitors who are ranking well above you. If you’re already putting effort into SEO and they are still ranking above you, then chances are that they’re using guest posting as a backlink building method.
Start by looking at competitor backlink profiles, then begin to create a list of sites that you think are likely to want content that you can create. Then it’s simply a matter of reaching out to them.
A particularly aggressive SEO strategy would be to offer a better quality article in place of theirs that removes their link altogether or share a resource that could be embedded in their already written article alongside a link to your site. You won’t make any friends with this strategy though…
3. Prolific Guest Bloggers
A Sherlock Holmes-esque tactic where you combine your Google searches with a list of who the author is on each site. Eventually, you’ll spot that certain names will keep coming up. Once you’ve found a recurrent name or a “prolific guest blogger” then you’ll be able to search on their name instead. This will instantly give you a list of websites where their name features. You’ll then be able to filter these down to websites in your niche that accept guest blogging.
4. Tap Into Twitter And Other Online Communities
When people are looking for guest bloggers or are promoting a new guest post, they will usually use Twitter to do so. Simply head over to Twitter (or other online communities with a search function such as LinkedIn or Facebook), search for “guest post” and your niche, and you’ll see tweets including these terms.
Searching through these tweets will allow you to see posts from authors, readers, and, importantly, site owners. From here you’re able to compile a list of guest post accepting sites but also set up notifications for when authors tweet about posting new guest posts or you can follow a reader who is interested in your niche (they may then tweet other sites they frequent).
5. Content Research Tools
A quick way to complete your research is to use third-party tools that facilitate this process. Software such as Buzzsumo allows you to search with keywords and filter additional terms such as “guest post”. These tools then allow you to dive into the backlink profile of each piece, analyze the content, look at social data and also investigate websites that have similar audiences.
6. Find A Reputable Vendor And Buy Them
There’s a fair argument over whether this is a legitimate tactic but it’s a tactic that exists nonetheless. Buying backlinks is certainly frowned on by Google and their algorithm is beginning to wise up to it.
Generally speaking, you find someone offering the service of posting your content onto a high authority site that they own in exchange for money. You just provide the post with the link and they post it. The issue with this is that there are many illegitimate vendors out there who use spam tactics to post. This is a quick-fire way to get penalized by Google, only work with real vendors who care about where posts go.
So, What’s Next?
1. Make A List
Build up a list of all potential blogs within your niche. Even if (at this point) you’re not sure if they accept guest posts, they’ll be useful for competitor research and writing inspiration.
Once you’ve made the list, add a column to it that confirms whether or not they accept guest posts. You can come to a conclusion yourself by investigating their blog authors, looking at their FAQs, or finding a “Work with us” page.
2. Double Check
You’ll want to make sure that the site won’t just accept your content, post it, and then provide no link or the wrong type of link. Have a look at some guest blogs on their site and see if their links are dofollow links. If they’re not, move on. You’ll also want to use a tool such as Moz to check Domain Authority, the higher the better. Too low and it’s a waste of your content. You should also check each post for social signals such as likes, comments, and shares to be sure they’re being publicized properly.
3. Prep Your Pitch
The best pitches are personalized to each individual site. They want to feel like they’re having a conversation with you, not being spammed. A great way to prepare in advance is to arm yourself with information on their guest blogging policies, sometimes these are publicly available. If they are, learn what they have and mention it during your pitch.
The actual pitch email should always: introduce yourself, explain what you’re looking for, and then pitch your article idea. Don’t go in with just one idea, it’s a wasted opportunity if they don’t like it. Instead, come up with 3-5 titles. Even better, be willing to present some completed articles so if they’re keen you can send them over immediately.
Key Takeaways
Guest posting is a hugely profitable and successful SEO strategy and one which most websites serious about ranking should be capitalizing on. Taking the time to curate a list of potential websites, pitching to them, and creating quality content is a great way to guarantee a growing backlink profile.
- Some of the methods work best when used in tandem, try different ones out.
- Building up a bank of guest post sites isn’t just useful for guest posting, use them for writing inspiration too!