Blogger Babes Teach You How to Blog for Profit

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Plenty of small businesses use blogging as a way to promote services or build a community around their brand. But blogging can actually be a business in and of itself.

More and more individuals are beginning to take advantage of all the different opportunities out there to monetize blogging.

From gaining paid sponsorship or working with brands on promotional campaigns to developing digital products or e-books, the possibilities for bloggers are plentiful. But in order to build a blog from a hobby into a business, it helps to have a community of like-minded people behind you. Blogger Babes is one of those communities.

Heidi Nazarudin and Ponn Sabra started Blogger Babes in an effort to share resources with other female bloggers.

The network is aimed specifically at female bloggers who focus on lifestyle categories like fashion, beauty, food, travel and DIY. With this niche, the group is able to offer resources that are likely to be actually relevant to members of the community.

Sabra said in an email to Small Business Trends, “While there are hundreds of blogger networks out there, the vast majority of them offer brand-to-blogger paid review campaigns, networking events, and virtual and live conferences. And, they all perform these tasks extremely well.”

“However, no one offers ongoing e-books, kindle e-books, do-it-yourself e-courses, and blogger-specific educational materials written for women bloggers by women bloggers. Heidi and I saw this void in our market and decided to fill it.”

Before starting Blogger Babes, Nazarudin was the CEO of a tech company and Sabra was an author, publisher, and public health official. But both enjoyed running their own blogs and wanted to be able to make a living doing that instead.

“Heidi and I are fortunate to make our own schedules, travel the world, and live our lives on our own terms, because we built our blogs into a business that affords this lifestyle,” Sabra said in her email. “And, we believe if someone is interested enough to start a blog, then she, most likely, is searching for this flexible lifestyle too—which we warmly call the ‘blogger lifestyle’.”

Of course, there are plenty of bloggers that run perfectly acceptable blogs as hobbies. However, as Sabra points out, once bloggers are able to make some money blogging, they’re often able to spend more time improving their blogs. And that often leads to higher quality content.

Sabra said in the email, “Once a blogger consciously and actively decides to explore the opportunities to make money from her efforts blogging, only then will she enter the mindset of a pro blogger. This is the mindset Heidi and I teach, promote and advocate to all our members.”

The platform is free to join. That free membership includes a weekly newsletter full of upcoming events and blogger campaign opportunities, as well as a listing in Blogger Babes’s Member Directory, which brands can browse to find bloggers to work with on their promotional campaigns.

There are also paid subscriptions, which include things like eKits, which offer further information and training related to the site’s monthly blogging topics. And then there’s the Ultimate Blogging Binder, a free digital resource guide for Blogger Babes looking to learn more about building a business around their blogs.

http://smallbiztrends.com/2015/06/blogger-babes-blog-for-profit.html

Neil Patel's A 20-Point Checklist for Your Next Guest Blog Post

Guest blogging is one of the best ways to build your personal brand and create value for your website. It does, however, have risks.

How can you maximize the benefit of guest blogging without falling prey to its dangers? Here is a 20-point checklist. Before sending your next blog post to the blog editor, run through this list to ensure that your article is effective, safe, and as powerful as possible.

1. Eliminate any grammatical errors. Chances are, an editor will give your article a once-over, but don’t bank on it. Perform your own thorough proofreading.
2. Eliminate any factual errors. You don’t want to look stupid. Check your facts, verify your data, and ensure that your arguments are watertight. Blog commenters can be cruel, cold, and analytical. If you don’t check your facts, they will check them for you and call you out on any errors.
3. Eliminate any harmful or insensitive language or style. The last thing you want to do is spark an outrage by being rude. I encourage you to write freely and powerfully, but don’t be unkind, condescending or impolite. Rude articles will damage your reputation.
4. Don’t worry about keywords. Adding “keywords” to a blog post is an outmoded SEO tactic. Don’t concern yourself with keyword density ratio or the right mix of semantic keywords. In today’s SEO climate, keywords will take care of themselves. The only danger surrounding keywords is adding too many.
5. Make sure that you have permission to use all images. Before adding images, I suggest checking with the editors regarding the site’s image policy. Some blogs prohibit the use of any images; some blogs use images from certain providers. Find out what the policy is before you add images.
6. Make sure that the tone of the article is not self-promotional. Guest blogging is not grandstanding. Your article should be for the benefit of the readers, not to elicit the gaze of admirers.
7. Make sure that the article’s subject matches the needs and interests of the blog readers. Different blogs have different audiences. Take some time to find out about the blog. Pay special attention to which articles have been most popular (use Buzzsumo), and the knowledge level of the audience. Keep in mind that B2B blogs and B2C blogs have vastly different styles, lengths, tone, and approach.
8. Create a headline that attracts the attention of the specific readers. The only way your article will be successful is if it engages with the blog’s readership. Find out what the blog’s most popular and engaging articles are, and imitate their headline style.
9. Make sure that the article is unique, and that none of it has been published anywhere else. Duplicate content will hurt your reputation and the quality of the site.
10. Link to your website only if necessary. This is an important point. Guest articles are not for backlinks. Period. The major reason for the penalization of guest blog networks was illicit link building. Such practices violate Google’s policies, as well as the ethical standards of the web. If a link to your website is appropriate or necessary, then by all means, drop in a link. However, use with caution and only do so sparingly.
11. Link to your website once. Do not sprinkle the article with links to your website. The problem is two fold. First, doing so smacks of unsavory self-promotion. Second, it raises the risk that your article will be perceived as unadorned link building. A single link is all you should attempt.
12. Link to other websites. If you link to your website, you should link to other websites as necessary. Overall, linking is a good practice, as long as it is useful for the reader.
13. Do not use keyword-rich anchor text. When creating links, use branded terms or sentence portions.
14. Do not promote your product or company. Readers don’t want to hear about your product or service unless it is absolutely relevant to the article. If your article turns into an advertisement or infomercial, readers will tune out.
15. Make sure that the guest article is written for a high-quality site. You should carefully vet each guest blogging opportunity. A guest blog on a disgraced or penalized blog will do more harm than good.
16. Make sure that the guest article is written for a site that is within your niche. The best place to guest blog is a site that is focused and authoritative. It’s easy to snag a contributor spot on a generic blog — one that has hundreds of articles on dozens of disparate topics. It’s harder but far better to gain a guest post for a blog that is selective and highly-regarded.
17. Make sure to increase the rate of your guest blogging slowly and carefully. An article from Moz explains that “mass guest posting is dangerous because it creates an unnatural looking link quality graph.” What this statement means is that too much guest blogging (with links back to your website) makes your website look concerning to Google. The sudden velocity of high quality links can cause your site to be penalized.
18. Customize your author profile for the publication. Most likely, your guest article will be accompanied by a brief blurb “about the author.” This is a valuable spot to connect with the readers and allow them to follow up with you if desired. For this reason, create a unique sentence or two that will be most suitable for the specific blog and its audience.
19. Add social links to your author profile. Linking out to your social networks allows readers to get in touch with you or to find out more about you. Instead of being self-serving, this is a courteous and expected thing to do, as long as the blog allows it.
20. Respond to any comments. Finally, follow up on your article. In addition to promoting it on your social network, you should personally respond to any comments.

Guest blogging has come a long way since its early days. In spite of its potential risks, it still maintains huge advantages. I encourage the careful and strategic use of guest blogging, making sure to follow these twenty points.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/neilpatel/2015/05/11/a-twenty-point-checklist-for-your-next-guest-blog-post/

FOUR STEPS TO CREATING A SUCCESSFUL LINKEDIN ARTICLE

LinkedIn is a powerful tool for connecting with customers and potential new business. There are now 347 million active users on the social network - a number too large to ignore. 

If you are currently using LinkedIn as a marketing and networking tool, you’ll have seen many people now publishing longer posts, which is LinkedIn’s version of blogging. 

The social network has now rolled out publishing to everyone, so there is a lot more competition when it comes to getting longer articles read. 

While it is tempting to use articles to promote products and events, the ones that are most successful tend to avoid sales pitches and aim to find solutions to specific problems readers may face.

How can your contributions cut through the crowd and be seen?

1. Choose a great title

A great title is the first thing people see and will often determine whether a reader will click through to the main article or not.

Poor title examples include: 

• “New event launching”

• “New blog up”

• “'Your company name here' launches new service”

These titles won’t work as they offer no value to your reader and are over promotional.

When writing articles for LinkedIn, you should always try and provide readers with specific assistance in your area of expertise as opposed to simply discussing your business. 

Keep your titles educational. If you are an expert in your industry then flaunt your expertise by revealing a new way of approaching a subject or by teaching the audience how to do elements of your job themselves. 

This will demonstrate that you are a leader in your industry and will establish your reputation as a reliable source of information. In doing this, you'll soon see a positive effect in terms of new leads and networking opportunities.

2 - Great cover image

If your cover image is a dull stock photo that everyone else is using people will automatically associate it with other content. The key is to have eye-catching and original artwork that relates to the topic you’ll cover in your post. 

Free tools such as Canva or Pic Monkey will allow you to design your own image that reflects the originality and personality of the article. You can use elements of stock photos from places like Canva or Dollarphoto club.

You should check images are the correct size to make your posts look professional, helping your article stand out and encourage more click throughs.

3 - Great content

Once you have that perfect title and the perfect picture it is important that your content is equally attention grabbing. 

As well as being relevant, your article needs to be unique. Repeating information that can be found elsewhere will not showcase your expertise and will make for an uninspiring read. It will also dissuade readers from engaging with other articles you may write in the future and will have a long-term impact on both your personal and brand reputation. 

Make sure your content will last the test of time. News and reactive articles are good but sharing information that will provide value for weeks or even months to come will ensure you'll increase your views and shares.

By investing in creating a great article now means you’ll eventually save time, and it is preferable to write articles that get a high number of views than to write a number of sub-standard pieces on a weekly basis. 

4 - Share 

If you want those views, likes and comments, then it’s time to start promoting your content. 

You should share your post on sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram to engage with potential readers across all social media platforms.

The same applies if you have a mailing list or send newsletters on a regular basis. Sharing increases content awareness, so promoting your articles will have a significant impact on your engagement levels.  

Don't just share once. Make a schedule as to when you will share your content in the future, this way more of your audience will see your article over time.

http://www.smeweb.com/marketing/features/5230-four-steps-to-creating-a-successful-linkedin-article

5 Guest Blogging Tips That Build Your Brand Successfully

Over the years, it’s become clear that the quickest way to build a brand online is to invest in content marketing, and link up with bloggers and authoritative industry leaders. All you need to support this theory is to look at brands like HubSpot and KISSmetrics, which hit the ground running with massive guest blogging campaigns and impressive visuals.

If you’re looking to experience an equally fast start for your brand – or are looking to give an existing brand a much needed jolt – there are certain strategies you need to pursue.

Benefits of Guest Blogging

The entire blogosphere gasped when Matt Cutts told the world guest blogging was over. But what did he really mean? Was he saying that all guest blogging was bad and should be done away with?

Not quite.

What he said was that guest blogging as a primary source of link building was over. He warned companies to quit relying on guest blogging as a link-building strategy and to instead only use it for brand awareness.

While this statement should have provided more clarity for companies on how to approach guest blogging as a brand play, it instead scared many off from the practice altogether. However, the truth is that guest blogging is still very much alive and is a perfect opportunity for growing a brand. But you must understand the difference between linking up with spammy sites and using credible channels to disseminate your content.  Here are a few of the major benefits of partnering with credible bloggers:

Awareness

The primary benefit of guest blogging is that brands are able to reach entirely new segments of the market. Instead of relying on your own reach, you get to tap into someone else’s group of followers and readers.

Credibility

The more exposure your brand gets on a variety of different blogs and platforms, the more credibility you gain. Each place your name appears – assuming it’s not negative – is a virtual vouch for your brand.

Relationships

While you’re trying to reach a large audience of readers, the fact is that linking up with a guest blogger serves as an effective networking tool that could pay dividends in the future.

Link building

And while guest blogging shouldn’t be your primary form of link building, it’s certainly a form of link building. When used in conjunction with other strategies, it does add value. 

The Key to Successful Guest Blogging

What Matt Cutts warned people against was linking up with low quality blogs and using those connections to create spammy content. So, if you’re going to continue guest blogging, that means you need to find influential bloggers. Furthermore, you need a specific strategy for researching and monitoring which guest blogging opportunities provide the highest return.

Unfortunately, only six percent of B2C marketers claim their organizations are “very successful” at tracking ROI, while an incredible 30 percent either don’t track at all or aren’t successful.

Top Tips for Brand Building with Guest Blogging

If you believe guest blogging could give your brand a boost, here are some of the top tips to propel you in the right direction.

Keep Track of Your Efforts

According to Brand24, a leader in social monitoring and tracking, it’s critical that you keep track of all your guest blogging efforts so you can accurately understand whether you’re getting a valuable return. Using a proven software or online tool can make this process exponentially easier.

Implement a Closing

While many bloggers have very specific rules, some may give you more flexibility. If possible, find a way to implement a strong closing with a call-to-action. This CTA allows you to engage with your audience and may even encourage readers to click on your link or share your post.

Invest in Shelf Life

A well-written blog can realistically hang around for years and still produce results. While there is certainly a time for writing time-sensitive content regarding current issues, it’s a much more valuable long-term strategy to write content that can remain effective for a long period of time.

Find Syndicators

One thing successful brands are good at is finding syndication partners to redistribute existing content to new audiences. The huge benefit here is that you don’t have to write anything fresh. You simply have to contact these sites and make a simple request. In addition to guest blogging, consider syndication for content you own.

Invest in Research

Prior to implementing a guest blogging strategy, you should make sure you’ve done your research. Whenever considering a new blog or channel, check to make sure it’s audience would resonate with you, that the bloggers are invested in quality content, and that Google and the other search engines don’t see the site as spammy.

Guest blogging is still a great brand building strategy and can be used to garner positive traction on the internet. Use these tips to make the most out of your efforts and always remember to track and monitor your influence to ensure you’re getting the maximum return on investment.

http://smallbiztrends.com/2015/03/guest-blogging-tips.html

Best Blogging Tips: How to Write a Top Blog Post in 30 Minutes or Less

I know you'll agree, it's the characteristic of this generation: toxic schedules! Sometimes we can't even have a decent dinner with our significant other. Hell, sometimes we can't even wash our hair! True? I can see you nodding there.

Yes, at times even our most important relationships will have to take the back seat just so we can write a good piece. This is especially true when you're just about to start a blog. If you're a newbie, here's a beginner's guide to help you get started.

For bloggers who are experienced, you're even more likely to be on the roll and will have to skip lunch, more frequently (at least, this is my reality). To maintain my momentum, from the moment I start and through the whole morning session, I'll just munch on a slider and grab a heavy snack at around 16:00 just to finish self-imposed tasks. Then I'd tell myself — the things I have to do to run an online business! And let out a big sigh!

Here's the thing. When you run schedules like the ones above, you have to write fast; the blogging industry now demands it. Indeed, it's undeniable; it's an ability we have to possess to be more efficient, to be more productive.

As I ponder upon these thoughts, it hit me — I'm not the only blogger who can benefit from this skill. All of us can take home something from this piece.

How to Write a Good Blog Post in 30 Minutes

1. List points and concepts: When you have an idea, scribble it into a notebook, pronto. Don't delay doing this. You have to capture the moment right when the idea hits you; that way, you won't lose any of your good ideas. When you're ready, pick one topic and write. Convenient, right? Efficient, too.

2. Open your first paragraph based on points you've saved: This is the best way to introduce your topic. By doing this, your audience will be properly guided on what you will tackle in the particular post they are reading. Most bloggers who are considered authorities in the blogosphere all agree on this specific principle: the way you introduce your post has a heavy bearing on the overall impact of your blog post. So do it with utmost care.

3. Write using key points: Bullet points make your writing easy to organise. I'll let you in a little revelation. Carol Tice, one of the most respected bloggers today admitted that she prefers reading blog posts formatted with bullet points. And the reason why? She likes scanning through the post. It helps her to read in an easier manner. If seasoned bloggers like her fancy doing this, how much more ordinary readers who, like you, always have to skim through articles because they want to move on to other tasks.

4. Pre-edit before you start: You have loads of ideas. At least, that's fast becoming the standard scene in my work area. If that's the same in yours, be brutal. Edit out all ideas that don't fit the main topic. Remember, we're talking about how to craft a post in 30 minutes, not a comprehensive report.

5. Keep it short: If you want to complete an article in 30 minutes, keep it under 600 words. Don't skimp on quality, though, and aim to be informative even with a short post. If it's at all possible, pack everything in a small package. Need I say more?

6. Knock it out fast and return later: Here's my strategy, and you can emulate it if it fits your style. Just bleed pen to paper. In case you're stuck, don't force the words. Save your piece and focus on other tasks. When you're ready, go back to the blog post.

Be guided accordingly. Follow these steps and you'll be on your way to becoming a blitzkrieg blog post writer; ready to produce posts to spice up your blog or other people's blogs.

How Blogging for Your Small Business Drives Traffic to Your Website?

What entrepreneur doesn't scratch their head in bewilderment trying to figure out how to drive more traffic to their website! When properly satisfied, we know the volume of website traffic influences lead generation and, if done right, the number of new clients. And, aren't new clients what you're ultimately after in your business?

After 18 years in business, I've seen it all -- and done it all. Our lead generation tactics have ranged from delivering presentations, participating in networking organizations, and serving on a Board of Directors. You name it; we've likely done it. After all, isn't that what entrepreneurs do to grow their business? Of course!

Nothing -- and I do mean NOTHING -- has been more successful than blogging for our business to achieve our goals.

Blogging Fits Today's Buyer

Today's consumer has developed some intriguing buying behaviors.

70% of buyers prefer to get to know a business through (blogs) articles rather than ads and, 57% of a typical purchase decision is made before a client ever speaks to a business. (Corporate Executive Board)

With 329 million people reading blogs, it's a given -- blogging rules!

Small businesses with 1-10 employees see the biggest gains in traffic when posting more blogs. (Hip! Hip! Hooray!) In fact, companies that increase blogging from 3-5 times per month to 6-8 times per month double their leads.

Looking to double your web traffic? Bump your total number of blog articles from a total of 11 to 50 posts and enjoy the ride!

Astounding - and a bit unbelievable - isn't it.

Bringing Blogging Home

In January of 2014, Hubspot challenged its clients to blog for 30 consecutive days. I thought they were crazy...until I accepted the task. (You can read about the results inA Funny Thing Happened During the 30-Day Blogging Challenge...and Other Delightful Results.)

After netting such great results, we dared ourselves -- and our colleagues -- for a repeat performance of the 30-day blogging challenge.

It wasn't without its annoyances (i.e., blogging on weekends) however the pay off was worth every irritation. Check out these outcomes:

• Website sessions increased 41%
• Unique users increased 29%
• Page views increase 43%
• Average Session duration increased 42%
• Bounce rate dropped 3%

And, wait for it...

• Number of leads increased by 92.5%

2015 will be an influential year for content and blogs are the most valuable content type for marketing. Are you ready? 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jackie-nagel/how-blogging-for-your-sma_b_6893698.html

Content Marketing Strategy Tips by Jo Sabin

© Image: Shutterstock / patpitchaya

EDITORIAL

CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY TIPS

Editor’s Note: The following is a guest post from Jo Sabin, marketing communications manager of DesignCrowd, a logo, web and graphic design marketplace. Sabin discusses the ways individuals can make the best use of content marketing — for which brands are increasingly turning to crowdsourcing platforms. As always, guest contributors’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Crowdsourcing.org.

Small and medium-sized businesses need a profitable content marketing strategy if they are to remain competitive. If you have never done so before, though, knowing where to start can be very overwhelming and intimidating, especially in light of Google’s recent, crushing updates.

However, a strong plan will help you overcome the obstacles of digital marketing. The following are tips to get you started with a strong content marketing strategy so you can more easily keep up with (and even surpass) your competitors.

Related:
- DesignCrowd Acquires Creative Contest Platform Worth1000

Create Buyer Personas
Most businesses already know their general target audience, but narrowing down to an ideal customer gives you a base from which tocreate a buyer persona, an audience segmentation model of sorts, around which you can shape your marketing strategy.

To find your ideal customer, start with your general target market, then choose one segmentation, and pick the best customer to build a persona from. For each persona, describe his or her income, goals, problems, home life, education, possibly region, and also why your company would appeal to this persona. Personas work best, too, if you give them a name and image. This helps you and your sales team ‘see’ personas as real people to whom you are trying to relate.

Define Conversion Goals
Before a buyer makes a purchase, he or she goes through several stages and at each point reaches a conversion point before moving to the final conversion of an actual purchase. Most businesses define the conversion process as first awareness of a product, next evaluation and research, and third the purchase. Your goal with content is to figure out how the buyer will move through the purchase process, and this starts with knowing their questions.

Ask Questions for Target Audience
When creating questions your buyer persona may have, start at the very beginning. For instance, let’s say a property management company’s list of personas includes a retired male who owns five or fewer rental properties. What questions may lead him to be aware of the need for property management in the first place? Then, when he is intent in searching for a property manager, what questions may he research?

A newbie rental owner may have no clue about what you offer. So, he may first research how to turn rental properties into passive income. From this search, he may read about property managers. Now he will want to know what services a property manager provides. He will want to know the cost of a property manager, and if the company offers more than one package of services. You can now create content that answers these questions for your target market.

Determine Placement and Promotion
Be sure to consider the best placement for content in each step of the conversion, and how you will promote this content. Placement of content could be on social channels like Facebook and Twitter, third party blogs, your company blog, landing pages, etc. Just make sure to fine tune each placement with the stage of conversion the buyer is at and take advantage of the free targeting tools social media sites offer to ensure your content is posted in the news feeds of the target audience. For instance, emails for those who have voluntarily signed up for your newsletter directly on your blog probably will already be past the awareness stage.

Also, while an audience could just stumble upon your content in a search, this probably won’t be enough. Come up with a plan to direct them to your content with promotional emails, social media, texts, ads, etc. You’ve invested time creating the content and building a business asset, so make sure to invest in distributing the content through relevant channels.

Compile Content List and Timeline
Your entire content marketing strategy will fall apart without cohesiveness and a timeline. Create a list of content for the stage of awareness, for the stage of research, and for the final stage of purchase. You may also have separate content for different personas in each stage. Then create a timeline so that you can keep up momentum and keep track of results. The next level would be to tailor trigger emails to leads you capture via content so they start their journey towards purchase.

Think Scalable and Repackaging
If you are worried about keeping up with the amount of content your target market may require of you, then consider creating scalable content that you can repackage. For instance, a series on a certain topic or even simply a group of articles on a topic could be repurposed in an ebook. Weekly email tips could be made into an article or, vice versa, an ebook could be made into short email tips. In 2015, video’s dominance will solidify as more brands use video to connect with their audiences. Facebook has invested in its video platform so expect to see it compete heavily with YouTube this year. There are lots of video making apps to help you turn your static content into short, low cost, engaging slideshows to drive engagement.

Include Keywords and a Call to Action
Every piece of content you produce should include a keyword related to that specific set of questions you are answering. Make sure you test your visual design content as well as text. When Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer was at Google she was famous for testing every design element, including 40 shades of blue to see what shade made users click the most. This decision generated the company anadditional $200M in revenue. Just be sure to write to the buyer persona, not the keyword, and only insert the keyword a few times when it sounds natural. And don’t forget to end with a clear call to action. Ask yourself what you want a reader to do once he or she encounters your content and then make this action clear to the reader.

Once you have your plan in place, you are ready to start writing. Just be sure to use the above tips so that your content marketing strategy effectively turns curious prospects into buyers.

http://www.crowdsourcing.org/editorial/content-marketing-strategy-tips/36069

Guest blogging can be a big boost to your website

If you're looking for a new way to share your industry knowledge, network with others in your line of business, create backlinks and establish yourself as a source of information in your filed, then guest blogging might be for you. Hopefully, you have already added a blog to your website (if you haven't, you really should consider it). If you have, you may want to consider sharing content with other blogs and websites in your industry. Writing guest blog articles can be a great way to get your name 'out there' and build some momentum in the industry as well.

Regardless of your business field, there are no doubt many blogs which are constantly posting articles related to your industry. This is a great opportunity to contribute to your filed.

One piece of advice: don't start at the top. As much as you would like to have your work published on Huffington Post, so do thousands of others. Instead, try to focus on a few key blogs in your industry that have a following but maybe aren't 'too big' just as of yet. 

Regardless of the industry, blogs and websites are always hungry for new content. If you can provide an article that provides value to those in the industry, you'll be very likely to find a blog willing to post your work. 

One advantage to guest posting is that other blogs and websites may already have an established audience made up of hundreds or thousands of readers. By posting to their site, you would be tapping in to this audience and getting your name in front of them. 

Most blogs allow guest posters to include a link at the bottom of their article which points back to your website. This can be a great way to not only generate traffic to your site, but also to build valuable backlinks in the process (an important SEO tool).

Start by doing an online search for some existing blogs and websites that are prevalent in your industry or business field. Then reach out to them and ask if they are looking for guest posts. Some may not be interested in outside content but many are willing to post guest blog articles. 

If you are not quite sure about contacting them right away, then spend some time reading and commenting on their existing posts. This will allow you to become a part of their 'community' and you will then be in a much better position to approach them for the opportunity to guest post. Who knows? If you provide value to their community in the form of comments, they may even approach you!

When it comes to writing content for the web, it pays to think outside the box. Or at least outside your website.

http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/2015/02/06/guest-blogging-can-be-a-big-boost-to-your-website

Tips for Successful Guest Blogging

How to Become an Effective Guest Blogging

Website owner's today are considering guest blogging as part of their marketing technique in the online market.

Guest blogging or guest posting is the art of creating high quality of content to be published on another niche blogs or website. It is a useful tool used to enhance the blogger's reputation and exposure. Building authority in the online industry is one of the most important aspects for effective blogging.

If you want to be an influential blogger, this article will guide you on how to maximize your writing potential as guest blogger.  It's time to take advantage with today’s trend in the business world for you to earn extra income without leaving your couch.

Identify Your Goals

Set your goal for guest blogging to determine the kind of blogs you want to write. Generally, there are things that you should consider ahead of time.

1. Building an authority in the industry

2. Generating traffic into your own web page

3. Creating back links to your web page

Find Online Opportunities

When searching for niche blogs find websites with same niche as yours and consider the four important criteria.

1. same niche blogs

2. target audience of the blog

3. readership of the blog

4. social media activity  of the blog owner

It is really advisable to write guest blog for relevant niches with high authority blogs. Stick to your unique style in blogging to stand out from other bloggers. Impressing the blog owners whom you submitted your guest post means repeat business.      

Where to Find Guest Post Opportunities

1. Google Searches

Using Google Searches, you can instantly find guest posting opportunities by simply replacing keyword with keywords from your niche like keyword “guest post” and keyword “accepting guest posts”. These Google searches will lead you to guest posts by other writers.

2. Social Searches

Lots of guest posters or bloggers share their guest posts on social media networks.  Search and follow the links because some of these blogs are owned by bloggers who accept guest bloggers.

3. MyBlogGuest

Sign up at My Blog Guest to search for bloggers who are accepting guest posts. You can also post your own information so that blog owners can find you. Nothing to worry, signing up at My Blog Guest is free.

4.. Backlinks of Competitors

Look for the backlinks of your competitors to find blogs writer by other guest bloggers. Check if you have access to Open Site Explorer to find the backlinks of your competitors.

How to become the most influential guest blogger?

ü  Make your blogging skills clean, simple, and precise. No need to show off your high vocabulary skills which makes people consult the dictionary or check other references.

ü  Never plagiarized other web content, blogs or, posts to avoid disgrace to your business. Always write fresh ideas to catch the attention of your readers. Do not worry too much about the quality of your content since you will improve over time.

ü  Bear in mind that readers always expect for useful information. Again be unique and creative in presenting information.

ü  Try to write on major blog sites like  Engadget, TechCrunch, and Mashable. These are famous sites where you can establish a great portfolio as a blogger. Make sure you earned the reputation of being a good blogger to get your posts on these sites.

ü  Follow your readers to check their comments for your own improvement. Reply to their comments as it builds trust between you and your readers.