\u201cI\u2019ve been following your blog for the past 10 years.\u201d<\/em> (Doesn\u2019t matter they\u2019re 10 years old.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou may have seen my name in the comments section of your blog.\u201d<\/em> (Doesn\u2019t matter they left only \u201cgreat post\u201d as a comment on your blog once in the past year.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n Ok, so it\u2019s a bit exaggerated, but you get the point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some recommend following the editor on social media, commenting on their posts, sharing them, and sending them emails. They swear<\/em> by it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does it work? Sure, it does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But some people think it\u2019s the only way to write for popular blogs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So they blame their failure to land guest posts on popular blogs on partiality. Favoritism. Prejudice. And any word that portrays the editor’s bias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Is that true? Do editors really look forward to discarding your pitch simply because they don\u2019t know you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n To answer those questions, let\u2019s consider…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some websites have guidelines for guest posts. For example, this is HubSpot\u2019s<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following guidelines means:<\/p>\n\n\n This is especially true for publications that have different editors for different sections of their site. This is an example from MarketingProfs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t pitch a post on \u201c100 Reasons Why Dogs Cry\u201d<\/em> to HubSpot, because it\u2019s not a pet blog, although I\u2019m sure that topic would make a great post. But only on an appropriate blog.<\/p>\n\n\n If a publication only accepts 800-word posts, you\u2019re wasting your time and theirs by sending a 1000-word post.<\/p>\n\n\n Sending guest posts in HTML is pretty cool and you’d probably think you\u2019re doing the receiving blog some good, but if the guidelines say share a link via Google Docs, please share a link via Google Docs. And follow other formatting rules too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Several people get on popular websites in this manner. I don\u2019t have numbers, but it\u2019s an easy way to write for websites that accept guest posts. Just read their guidelines and pitch accordingly.<\/p>\n\n\n Karol Krol<\/a> got published on Sophie Lizard\u2019s Be a Freelance Blogger (BAFB)<\/a>, even though he admitted in his pitch email that he wasn\u2019t a reader of BAFB.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That isn\u2019t just contrary to the guidelines of the blog, it\u2019s contrary to advice on guest post pitch templates out there!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other blogs claim not to accept guest posts, but you see guest posts published there weekly. While some blogs strictly use invitation-only writers (I\u2019m still not entirely convinced myself but more on that later), the guest posts you see on some of them are the product of successful pitches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Take Problogger for example. This is their \u201cwrite for us\u201d page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They \u201cdo not accept any unsolicited submissions or pitches.\u201d<\/em> When I did my first guest post for them in 2016<\/a>, those words were still present on that page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How do people get in? Or more importantly, how did I get \u201cin?\u201d <\/em>First, they\u2019re right–some writers are chosen to write for the blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Others break the rules. They’re not the editors’ favorite yet. But they search for the email address of the editor and send pitches anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I know because I\u2019ve written for Problogger, and all I had to do was:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t go out of your way to break guest blogging guidelines just for the fun of it. You\u2019ll fail terribly!<\/p>\n\n\n\n I can say it worked for me because: <\/p>\n\n\n\n My post was so good it wasn\u2019t just the most popular post on Problogger in January 2016, but it also gave me the chance to write a follow-up post! <\/p>\n\n\n\n Karol\u2019s post?<\/p>\n\n\n\n He took it further by even designing the layout of the post. Of course, Sophie was impressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If a website says they no longer accept guest posts, but you keep seeing guest posts on their blog? Find the email address of an editor and send a hypnotic pitch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If possible, send a complete post, so they see, not just your writing ability, but your development of the idea. If it\u2019s good enough, I doubt they\u2019ll say \u201cno, we don\u2019t accept guest posts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In other words, if you want to break guest blogging guidelines, just recall a simple principle: \u201cBe so good they can\u2019t ignore you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Then again, there are no guarantees. But there are no guarantees following guidelines will get you published either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Remember commenting on posts, following editor\/blog on social media, subscribing to their email list, and probably sending a \u201cthank you\u201d<\/em> email for a post? Yup. This is it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the part you\u2019ll find in most templates. Often called the \u201cwarm-up\u201d before asking for a guest post. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s just the way you\u2019ve read in other blog posts, so I won\u2019t rehash what you know already. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When Bryan Harris sent a cold email pitch to Hubspot<\/a> and claimed to be a fan of Hubspot (see below) he\u2019d never guess the recipient would look up his contact record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the editor had other thoughts. She says (bold is mine):<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe had been reading and interacting with HubSpot content for almost two years. How do I know? I\u2019m a creep, and <\/em>I looked up his contact record in HubSpot<\/em><\/strong>. I could see he wasn\u2019t some random stranger out to get backlinks.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Not everyone is creepy, but if you\u2019re going to send editors emails, please don\u2019t imply what isn\u2019t there. It may help, like Bryan\u2019s case shows, but you don\u2019t need to say you\u2019re a \u201chuge fan\u201d to get your pitch accepted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019ll still tow the \u201chuge fan\u201d line, be sure to have proof. Have you: <\/p>\n\n\n\n The best bloggers are voracious readers. They\u2019ve read the same parts of pitching etiquette you\u2019ve read, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Keri Morgret sums it up well with this comment on Moz<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI may be one of the few that has the view of don\u2019t worry about starting up a relationship with me. I\u2019m a marketer, I can tell when you\u2019re suddenly following me on Twitter, commenting on what I write, sending me a LinkedIn request, etc. Give me good content (and cupcakes), but don\u2019t try to be my BFF suddenly overnight. It\u2019s easy to spot, <\/em>we\u2019ve all read the same playbooks<\/em><\/strong>.\u201d<\/em><\/p>Keri Morgret, former content manager at Inbound.org<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n And there are other editors like Keri out there too. They won\u2019t mind if they know you or have seen your name elsewhere, as long as you give them great content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Building relationships may increase your chances of getting your pitch accepted, especially on sites that do strictly-on-invitation guest posts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Notice I said \u201cincreases your chances,\u201d because an editor won\u2019t accept a terrible idea from you simply because they know you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I can only imagine how difficult it may be for editors to turn down guest posts from people they know. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t make your acquaintance with editors an affliction for them. Make it a relief. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some sites that previously accepted unsolicited guest posts still leave the published guidelines online. Here are Copyblogger\u2019s guidelines<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It lets you know what the folks at Copyblogger wanted before they stopped reviewing and accepting unsolicited guest posts on their blog. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What if you can\u2019t readily find guidelines on any page on the blog? A quick search on Google can help. For example, this, for Outbrain:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Do you know the best part of building relationships for guest posting? Read on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are several ways to get this invitation:<\/p>\n\n\n As a good example, Barry Feldman\u2019s prolific guest blogging<\/a> gives him many invitations to write for other blogs, and sometimes he\u2019s paid to do it. Adam Connell of Blogging Wizard<\/a> wrote for Smart Blogger because Jon Morrow saw his post on Problogger, liked it, and invited him to write for Smart Blogger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin Duncan wrote for Smart Blogger in this way too. In fact, he also wrote a whole guide about blog comments<\/a>. He’s now Smart Blogger’s Editor-in-Chief\u2014all from a relationship that began via blog comments!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The possibilities are endless. A post on your site can also go viral and you’ll get an invitation to contribute on other sites. The thing is, you don\u2019t choose who invites you to write for their blog. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But you can choose how well you write your guest posts. You can choose to build relationships with editors of your favorite blogs. You can choose proactivity\u2014actively pitching editors accepting guest posts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nobody is entitled to attention. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When you\u2019re not getting attention from an editor you admire, then you\u2019ve probably not done something remarkable enough to seize their attention. Or you\u2019ve not given it enough time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Like Keri\u2019s quote earlier says, don\u2019t expect to be an editor\u2019s BFF overnight. It may take time; otherwise, an invitation to write for a popular blog is a dandy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You’ve probably seen this line or a variation of it on some websites: <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis post originally appeared on [insert website here] but has been republished here with permission.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n That means the post you’re reading was syndicated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Typically, you can achieve this in three ways:<\/p>\n\n\n For example, Melissa Fenton wrote a post on her tiny blog\u2014it was even a Blogspot domain name then. After some promotion and 500,000 shares later, she woke up one morning to an email from an editor who wanted to publish the article on HuffPost. Melissa got a blogger account with HuffPost and they republished her article<\/a>\u2014all from one viral post on her free website!<\/p>\n\n\n As an example, all of Aja Frost\u2019s articles on Entrepreneur<\/a> are syndicated from her posts on the Buffer blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From experience, a guest post on Jeff Bullas\u2019<\/em> blog can get you on Business 2 Community<\/em>. Here’s my guest post on Jeff Bullas\u2019<\/em><\/a> blog:<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the syndicated version:<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow to guest blog for any blog\/publication<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
Follow guidelines when pitching<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/HubSpot-Marketing-Blog-Guest-Blogging-Guidelines-blog.hubspot.com_-1-953x1024.png\")
\n
Sending your pitch to the appropriate editor<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Write-for-MarketingProfs-Guest-Byline-Submissions-How-To-Marketin_-www.marketingprofs.com_-1-1024x781.png\")
\n
Pitching the right ideas to a website<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\n
Following their desired word count<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\n
Using the required formatting procedures<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
Don\u2019t follow the guidelines when pitching<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ProBlogger-problogger.com_-3-1024x618.png\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Why-Publicly-Available-Gigs-Suck-for-Freelance-Blogging-1024x397.png\")
Build relationships with editors<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Keri-Morgret-moz.com_-1-1024x801.png\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Copyblogger-Guest-Post_-Copyblogger-copyblogger.com_-1-770x1024.png\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Outbrains-guest-blogging-guidelines-Google-Search-www.google.com_-1-1024x637.png\")
Get invited<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
An editor sees your post on another reputable blog and decides to invite you to contribute on their blog too<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Bloggingwizard.com_-1-1024x241.png\")
\n
An editor notices your meaningful interaction on their posts, in the form of comments, shares, etc., and asks you to write for their blog<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
Syndication<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
Write a remarkable post on your blog, an editor notices, and asks for permission to republish it on their site<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\n
Write a great guest post on a blog often syndicated by media publications and the latter may republish it<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/5-Hidden-Content-Marketing-Benefits-You-Didn\u2019t-Know-About_-www.jeffbullas.com_-1-1024x968.png\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/marketersincharge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/FireShot-Capture-067-5-Hidden-Content-Marketing-Benefits-You-Didn\u2019t-Know-About-Business-_-www.business2community.com_-1-1024x556.png\")
\n
Pitch a post you’ve written on your site to publications that permit syndication<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n