How to get new customers by guest blogging

Wondering how to expose your business to a bunch of potential new clients?

If so, this article is for you. But before we dive too deep, let’s cover the basics first…

What exactly is a guest post?

A guest post (also known as a guest blog) is a published article that’s written by a guest author.

For example:

• A healthy food website might publish a recipe written by a celebrity chef
• A law firm might publish an end-of-year tax guide created by a local accountancy firm

Why you should consider guest blogging

Guest blogging is worthwhile because it exposes your business (and expertise) to an entirely new audience – an audience that’s outside of your existing circle of influence.

And the best part is that once published, guest posts are timeless. Each article serves as a 365 days-a-year sales person for your business – not like an article in the newspaper which simply gets thrown in the bin.

Benefits for the guest (the author of the article)

• Exposure to a new audience
• Links directing readers to their website

Benefits for the host website

• Content without effort (a quality blog article without expense)
• Sharing knowledge on a subject matter which isn’t core expertise

I know it’s a cliche, but guest posting really is win-win (*sigh)

How to find guest blogging opportunities

Let’s face it, NZ is a pretty small place – so you probably know the websites you could approach to request a guest blogging opportunity.

But with that said, there are a couple of things that can help:

• Website that have accepted guest posts in the past are a good start
• Think about the fit between your business and the business you’d like to guest post for. The better the synergy, the more chance of your guest post being accepted and published.

Found the perfect website? Now you need to make your approach (use the template below if you like)

Guest post email template:

Hi NAME,

I’ve followed your blog for some time, and I’d like to know if you’d consider having me contribute an article on one of the following topics:

Topic idea #
Topic idea #2
Topic idea #3

If you think one of the topics above would be a good fit for your audience, then I’d like to write a draft article for your review.

Look forward to hearing if you’re interested NAME.

ps – here’s a link to my blog, so you can get a feel for my writing style:

Guest posting guidelines:

• Focus on delivering value/expertise
• Don’t push product (help first, sell second)
• Avoid the curse of knowledge (assume readers have no prior knowledge)
• Write in the style of the website you’re submitting your guest post to
• Be prepared for your article to be tweaked/changed
• Make sure you provide a bio with a link to your website (example bio below)

Guest post bio example:

Dan Necklen is a content marketing expert who writes about social media, blogging and email marketing every Friday. See www.likeable.co.nz/blog for more info.

Questions about guest posting?

Place a comment below or contact us.