How to Build Links Through Guest Blogging: The Ultimate Guide

Every internet marketing forum and SEO hub seems to be perennially filled with newbies asking a single question, over and over again: "how do I build backlinks?"

There are more than a handful of ways to build backlinks - legitimate, white hat and otherwise. I'm not going to discuss the hundreds of ways you can attract links to your site here, but focus on one method that has worked wonders for me over the years: guest blogging.

I'm always surprised how little attention guest-blogging gets given the kind of power it has to boost your site up the rankings. It is, in my own humble opinion, the most under-rated link-building technique. While almost every SEO expert worth his money is promoting the life out of article marketing, blog commenting, and other inefficient, lazy link-building techniques, a few top marketers are raiding the banks through the power of guest blogging.

I love guest blogging as a link-building technique for two reasons:

1. You get a high quality backlink from an authority site.

2. You get to develop a relationship with other bloggers, and site owners in your niche.

While the backlink itself is worth the trouble of writing a high quality post for another blog, what really interests me are the relationships guest blogging can help you build. I'm a big believer in the power of networking (after all, doesn't the old adage go: "It's not important what you know, but who you know"?). The more bloggers and webmasters you know in your niche, the greater your chances of landing a massive amount of traffic at will.

I maintain a big spreadsheet of all the blogs I've guest posted at and make it a point to stay on the site owners' radar by emailing/blog commenting regularly. This means that if I'm running a new promotion or crafted a piece of link bait, I can just shoot them an email and get automatic backlinks and traffic. Once you reach scale with your guest blogging, you'll be overawed by the power a few strategic backlinks and mentions on popular sites can do to help your link bait climb the pages to internet stardom.

There are two simple tactics I use to find relevant blogs that'll accept guest posts:

1. Do a Google search for "[Your Niche Keyword]" + "Write for Us/Guest Blog"

Example: "video games" + "write for us"

2. Analyze your competition's backlinks. Use a tool like the Open Site Explorer to see the sites linking to your competition. Check out each link, one by one. More often than not, you'll find half a dozen guest blogging opportunities in these links (not to mention: you'll learn a lot more about your competition!).

I also maintain a spreadsheet listing every guest blogging opportunity I find this way. This spreadsheet lists the site address, primary keyword, page rank, and Alexa/Compete.com traffic rank. This helps me prioritize the posts: sites with higher page rank and traffic are targeted for guest posts ahead of others.

And before I forget: even if a site does not publicly accept guest posts, it never hurts to ask. Just shoot the site owner a courteous email, tell him that you are a fan of the site and would love to write for it. More often than not, you'll find that site owners will oblige. No one says 'no' to quality content (and some flattery)!

Now that you are a confirmed guest-blogging convert, you must be itching to learn the secrets to effective guest-blogging.

Except that there are no secrets to effective guest-blogging!

What works in real life works for online communication and networking as well: quality, honesty, and punctuality.

When you get in touch with the site owner for a guest post, try to be genuine and upfront. Give them a few words of praise for their website (here, it is important to be specific than generic. Don't say 'love your site' but 'great article on XYZ last week!') and ask them if they are accepting any guest writers at the moment. Also mention a few possible article ideas within the email itself.

Rinse, repeat, and see your site climb on top of the SERPs.

It's important here to craft your content according to the site you're trying to guest blog on. On a relatively poorer site with low quality content and a page rank of less than 2, don't waste half a day writing up an in-depth, research heavy article. Reserve your best work for the heavyweights in your niche - the high PageRank, heavily trafficked websites that'll boost your rankings significantly.

Just like you wouldn't dress up in a tuxedo to visit Wal-Mart, or show up to the Red Carpet in a pair of cargo pants, you should craft your content according to the site you'll be guest blogging on.

Here's a sample email you can use to get in touch with a site owner for a guest post (comments in brackets):

Hi XYZ [There's no bigger sin in email communication than beginning with a 'Dear Sir'. Be informal. It works]

Excellent post on Jan 17 on 'how to grill the perfect steak'. Can I tell you that you're doing an amazingly awesome job on yourblog.com? [This tells the site owner that you aren't just some spammer and have taken the time to actually read the content. Make this a habit for all your online communication: be specific].

How would you feel about a guest post on yourblog.com? I run a site [your site address here] on barbecue and would love the opportunity to borrow your audience for half a day :)

I have a few article ideas in my head:

1. 10 of the best barbecue dishes from around the world

2. The 30 minute steak recipe

[Again, being specific. Rather than telling the prospect: I want to write for your blog, here, you've given them a few article ideas they can consider.]

How do you feel about this?

Regards

Internet Guest Blogger

MySite.com

Now, it's important that your site isn't littered with sub-par content. This will cause your prospect to just relegate your email to the spam folder. This is also a good reason to start updating your sites with high quality content - if you aren't doing that already.

It's also a good idea to mention some other high profile places where you've already been published. This will instill some confidence in the prospect.

Happy guest blogging!