We’ve talked about Panda, and we’ve talked about why guest posting is a fantastic way to get backlinks in the post-Panda world of SEO. 

But in today’s article, we’re going into the nitty-gritty. We’re going to tell you exactly how to find blogs to guest post on, and what you need to do with your guest posts to dominate your niche.

Which Blogs to Post On?

Locating blogs to guest post on can be difficult. In general, there are two types of blogs that accept guest posts:

1. Blogs that use guest posts as the only form of content

2. Blogs that occasionally accept guest posts, but have a team of writers

The second type of blogs are, by far, the best sites for guest posts. Often, websites that survive thanks to guest posters lack a real community. They’re used by SEO’s who want to get a quick link. As a result, the posts aren’t very high quality. And since the content isn’t great, people really have no reason to form a community around the website.

Sites with a dedicated team of writers, on the other hand, usually do a great job at building a community. Each writer will focus on a specific topic within their overall niche, giving visitors a “favorite” to latch on. And a writer publishing posts week after week will become familiar to people who visit the site again.

People want to have a personal relationship with bloggers. They want the blogger to respond to their comments and write about topics they’re interested in!

If a blog only uses random guest posters for content, this sense of familiarity and community will never develop.

So keep that in mind when looking for a blog to guest post on.

Using Google to Find Guest Posting Opportunities

For most people getting into the world of guest posting, finding the right blogs is the hardest part. Well, thanks to Google, this job is actually fairly simple. By using specific searches, we can tell Google to show us all the blogs in our niche that allow guest posts. Sounds neat, right? Here are the searches:

“guest author” inurl:blog

This search gives us 112,000,000+ sites that allow guest posts. Not bad! But how do you get blogs that are in or related to your niche? Try this one out:

“guest posting guidelines” keyword

In the keyword spot, type in your main keyword (ex: “guest posting guidelines” guitar). For “guest posting guidelines” cooking, Google returned 82,700 blogs that have the phrase “guest posting guidelines.”

As you can probably tell, this makes things a LOT easier. Instead of having to dig through the blogs you know about and trying to figure out if they accept guest posts, you can simply use Google to give you literally thousands of guest posting opportunities.

Getting the Most out of a Guest Post

So now you know how to find guest posting opportunities. But how do you dominate your niche? 

When you submit a guest post, you automatically get two benefits. The first is a link back to your website (SEO gold). The second is exposure to the site’s community (this is why posting on blogs with a community is essential). 

Not only do you get SEO juice, but you also have the opportunity to gain the attention of an entire community’s eyes. Yes, this can make (or break) a business. If you get everyone talking about your website, you’ll get a lot more than just one link from your website. You’ll get a flow of new traffic and additional links + social shares.

You can use the credibility of this newfound attention to guest posts on other popular blogs in your niche. Eventually, all the top websites in your niche will know about your website. And since you’ve been posting valuable guest posts, you’ll be capturing the attention of their audiences as well. This is how you can become an authority in a very short period of time.

The best way to make an impact with your guest post is to write a post that’s tailored to the audience you’re talking to. Don’t just talk about your website. Talk about the topic of your website, but through a frame that appeals to the audience, you’re talking about. (Read our post on Viral Posts to learn how to write content that’ll knock your reader’s socks off)

If your approach is more salesy than personal, then you are going to run off many of the viewers, and possibly lose the opportunity to ever post a blog on that site again.

How Do You Get Access to Blog on the Top Sites?

You can simply ask to post a blog, it never hurts, but do not expect a “yes” at first. These blog sites did not get to the top by allowing just anyone to post their opinion. They are extremely cautious about who posts and what they actually display on their site. So, you could start by writing a blog and sending it to the site for approval. If they like it, they will post it.

Another good way to gain access to post blogs on the top sites is to start commenting on other blogs. Have something useful to say and then say it. Join discussions, jump into the forums and get involved with the community. If you are familiar with the group and the site administrator has seen you posting comments on other blogs throughout their site, they are more likely to allow you to post your own blog.

Keep in mind that posting your own blog does not mean you are given an opportunity to ramble about how great you are. Find a topic that works for the community and talk about it. If you have a health website, find communities that are interested in health-related topics and find one you feel you are an authority on and write something useful, such as tips for new exercises at your desk, healthy lunches to bring to work or ways to reduce the signs of aging through the foods you eat.

Just remember to keep things on point with what the others in the community are talking about. If everyone else seems to be talking about healthy ways to lose weight, posting a blog about the debate surrounding the confederate flag is not a good idea, and will oftentimes get your blog removed and your access to write anything new revoked. 

Maintain the same level of quality when writing on other sites that you would have when writing on your own site. Your name is attached to everything you post, so make sure your impressions are something to be proud of and not something you will end up regretting later down the road. 

Want More Tips?

If you’d like top-quality SEO tips delivered straight to your inbox, go ahead and fill out the form below.

Prefer social media? Like our new Facebook page!

Lastly, don’t forget to run a free SEO diagnostic on your website! If you’re not ranking #1, it’ll probably tell you why.