10 Proven Steps to Snag a Guest Post on an A-List Blog

10 Proven Steps to Snag a Guest Post on an A-List Blog

Reader Comments (127)

  1. Jordan,

    I really appreciate your techniques for gueat posting. It definitely cuts through the clutter of avoiding all the pleasantries that people normally go through. I am going to start using this new mthod right away for all of my guest posting.

    -Joshua Black
    the Underdog Millionaire

  2. I love it. This is one area that I tend to lack in. I like the idea of completely doing the article, and then submitting it. The other way is just too damn time consuming.

  3. I’ve got a guest post idea I’ve been wanting to pitch tot he A-listers, and you’ve shared some interesting ideas, like writing it up in advance to save time. As a blogger who gets solicited and unsolicited story ideas all the time, I can appreciate the little things people can do to make my job easier.

  4. Should I send a check to the A-Blogger or they are still not charging for guest posting?

    What?! Charging for what was free is the new black! Haven’t you heard yet?

  5. This feels to me like a kick in the rear to start guest posting.

    Good timing. And good post.

    *retreats into writing cave and starts writing away*

  6. Good stuff as always Jordan :). I think we all get so caught up in submitting guest posts to big blogs and whether or not our post is good enough that we leave out all these little details that make it much easier than we think.

  7. Thank you, this post came up at the perfect moment for me. I already have an idea for a guest post accepted, but wasn’t sure how to go about writing that. Your tips about what to look for on the host blog are just what I needed. I’ll apply them during this weekend and if all goes well, next week my first guest post will see the light of the day 🙂

  8. As someone who’s relatively new to blogging/guest posting, this really gives me the confidence to go out there and shove my eloquence and intelligence down someone else’s readers’ throats. 😉 In all seriousness, it’s very helpful. Thanks!

  9. @Jim, it could use some refinement but on the other hand, it hugely beats not asking at all!

    I’ll tell you the truth, that’s how I first approached Copyblogger. 🙂

  10. Jordan, what a fantastic post! It’s been great connecting with you on Twitter and Skype. Just bookmarked this post and saved it as I would like to do guest posts not just on lesser known blogs like I have been, but A-list or even B and C list blogs.

    Thanks for the advice

  11. Great tips, Jordan. I’m working on a couple of guest posts right now, so your timing is perfect.

    If I ever get up the nerve to submit a guest post here, I’ll be sure to include an LOLcats photo in a brazen attempt to pander to Sonia. Or, maybe I’ll go with your ice fishing idea. 😉

  12. Thanks for the advice, Jordan. Anyone out there who would like to guest blog for The Story Woman blog? Take a look, if you have content that works, I’ll sure consider your posts.
    Thank you!

  13. I try to write as few words as possible when I submit a post, best way to respect blogger’s time.

    Currently, I’m submitting at least one post a week for guest posting. And now that I’ve just launched a new website that will actually benefit from SEO, I’m in the guest post mode.

    So if anyone has a big audience and wants a guest post, you know where to find me 😉

  14. Thanks everyone for the kind feedback on the post – I’m really glad you enjoyed reading it!

    @Dave – Yeah, I hear ya. You don’t realize how many times I’m pitched “jokes” after shows from audience members. It’s excruciating when they’re 3 minutes long and I know it won’t be funny one bit. At least with guest posts, you can just delete it – hard to do that in real life without looking like a prick!

    @Johnny – I agree, it kinda doesn’t make logical sense that I write humor-based posts and then go the most generic route you can possibly take in my byline. I’ll just call it “meta-comedy” and let everyone think the joke went over their collective heads. 🙂

    I’m also glad to see this post kick started some people to take action. Please do. I’m a schmuck who essentially does “fart jokes” – if I can do it, you can too. (and probably better than me)

    I always remember a quote that my father, who was a salesman for 35+ years, used to say all the time: “95% of the job is just showing up.”

    Do it. Write that guest post. Submit it to your favorite A-list blog. Don’t doubt yourself. Just show up.

  15. wow, that may just be the best pro-guest-blogging strategy i’ve heard yet…! so i have a guest post idea for your blog, do you think you’d have time to schedule a quick chat about it some time next week…?
    😉

  16. the best advice is always delivered with a twist…..

    now if only I could learn grammar, write well, overcome my reluctance to contact, come up with a killer title and by-line and convince those A-listers that I’m the best thing since sliced bread…..

    Ohh well, back to learning the craft.

  17. Great tips! I am actually working on my first guest post! I hope to be allowed to do many more! I will take your tips to heart! Thanks!

  18. Great tips Jordan. These translate well to any type of article pitching, not just blog posts. I use this system whenever I’m pitching an article or post to anyone.

  19. Jordan, Sarcasm is rightly described as the lowest form of wit. Do yourself a favor and amuse your audience instead with irony, parody or satire. Or anything else but sarcasm. They’ll be more likely to love you, less likely to leave you.

    Unless of course, you want them to send you a “really nasty email” on their way out the door.

  20. An idea can only get you so far. The best way to showcase your writing (and your brilliant idea for that matter!) is to just write. Have confidence in your abilities and get that post written! Don’t get discouraged if the post is not accepted for the first blog that you have in mind. As Jordan wrote, you’ll be able to use it in some way later. Free yourself from any pressure and think of writing the post as a writing exercise. If it gets published, that’s just a bonus!

  21. Gordon…you know what’s worse than sarcasm? Being an old curmudgeon…I’d venture to guess that a pro comedian knows what he’s doing when it comes to humor…

    I think sarcasm is the best…especially when done right.

  22. I would love to post something, even a comment, on your blog… or on any blog… but I seem to be a little busy writing my own blog posts. Oh well.

  23. “Write the guest post. Don’t ask. Just do it.”

    That is the best one. Why wait on permission? Instead wait on your guest post being accepted cutting your process time in half.

  24. @Nicole – Go ask Sonia. I believe I did these 10 steps exactly.

    It also makes sense to have this guest post on an “A-List” blog like CopyBlogger. Wouldn’t it be quite illogical to have it anywhere else? 🙂

  25. I have really been worried about guest posting, but after reading this post I think I will give it a try. You know I never thought of having the guest post written before submission that is a really good tip.

  26. Truly thanks Jordan for the inspiration. I will use your advice. I heard about Copyblogger over at Third Tribe. Where have I been? I guess I have been busy writing and going to my job. I have over 1000 posts at http://www.explorelifeblog.com and I decided it is time to get more traffic and make some money doing this. I write with passion about consciousness, about finding peace and purpose and about progressive ideas in a world stuck on narrow views and old ways.

    Joseph

  27. Great to read a post knowing without a shadow of a doubt that what it advocates does 100% work.

    I am presuming you followed these 10 steps to get your guest post on CopyBlogger?

    The proof is in the pudding!

    p.s. I love sarcasm so keep it up, but the bucketload!

  28. This is comment 43 so I am not sure anyone will ever read the first 42 comments let alone No. 43. Anyway your advice obviously comes from your 13 years of doing this, is really useful and is to be followed. I’ll remember all the do’s and don’t’s the next time I am ice fishing in the Andes.

  29. Great advice, Jordan. In fact, I did all of these things other than #9 (I don’t have connections…yet), and I have a guest post up on Problogger today!

    Keep in mind that I’m a marriage blogger who’s been doing this (at all) for a whopping 6 months. Kudos to Darren for keeping an open mind and giving me a great opportunity. Kudos to me for making it as easy as possible for him, providing one of my best posts, and making relationship blogging relevant to his audience.

    If you’d like to see the final result, please check out “7 Tips to Keep Your Family On-Board On Your Blogging Journey” at Problogger. It was posted today (March 6th).

  30. I’m a fan of connecting at values and passion.

    I think the other key is unique contribution in a relevant way that adds exponential value.

    I’m just basing that on the guest posts I like to read.

  31. Recently I have begun interviewing A list bloggers on my blog. The results have been rewarding. I welcome your advice for guest blogging and hope to do it this week. Thanks for the advice and the fun of your approach.

  32. Will it not be very much important for a blogger to concentrate his/her mind to write a good post for his/her own blog rather doing it as a guest post on another blog?

    anyway….informative suggestions about Guest Post.

  33. @ want to know more come, may I finish the sentence?

    ” . . . overcome my tendency to stop the sentence before the end.” 🙂

    As you say: “the best advice is always delivered with a twist…..” 🙂 🙂

  34. ok, that was funny.

    @Nicole, yep, I’d say Jordan practiced what he preached. He also did an eerily good job saying what I would have said, so I didn’t have to do the work of writing it. Which takes a good observer. (Probably a trait shared with stand-up comedians.)

    @Dustin, you also really worked #2, you figured out the intersection between what you knew and what the Problogger readers would find relevant. Very smart.

  35. Great post. One question, though. After I follow all these steps, of course, and am ready to send my favorite blogger the guest post of his dreams, what format would you recommend sending it in? A word doc formatted with bold/italics/hyperlinks? The whole post in html, so all he has to do is cut and paste it into his code view? Both?

    Thanks!

    David
    SixEstate Communications
    http://SixEstate.com/blog

  36. I haven’t tried the guest blogger thing yet, but will certainly be bookmarking this post for reference when I do decide to strike out. Thanks for some really great advice.

  37. @David, probably smart to ask as everyone’s process is a little different. I like something I can cut and paste into WordPress, with links in particular coded up rather than embedded into a Word doc.

  38. Thanks for these great tips, I will try latter.
    Unique contribution in a relevant way that adds exponential value.

  39. I never put much thought into doing a guest post. I actually think I may give it a shot now! Thanks for the great advice.

  40. We talk about guest posting all the time on Twitter’s blogchat. So many people ask questions about this (including me). These tips for guest posting are fantastic–thanks!

  41. Great post Jordan! I didn’t know about Not A Pro Blog, I’m glad there’s plenty of good stuff to read there waiting for me 🙂

  42. Ha, we’ve gotten some very nice guest posts in recently, and all using Jordan’s tips! Nice side benefit for us. 😀

  43. Glad to have helped, Sonia!

    Although, I’ve just made it even harder on myself – now that everyone knows my secrets, how in the world can I up my game to make my guest posts stand out?

    I’ll probably just steal old jokes from Johnny B. Truant. It seems to work here. 🙂

  44. Yes and amen! If someone comes to me with a post for Herbivoracious with that level of preparation, I’d accept it in a heartbeat. What I usually get are half-assed proposals from people who are just trying to drum up links to their crappy top-ten-list site.

  45. What an article: informative and amusing at
    the same time!

    Thanks for all the wonderful advice.

    Cheers. 🙂

  46. Excellent post! Thanks for the insights on this. I love the concept of “just write it” and see if it gets posted… if not, you’ve got a solid article anyways.

    Cheers to you for the solid content!

    Patrick Hitches

  47. I have read quite a few post on how to become a guest post author but never one with such a sense of humor. Thanks for keeping it real yet upbeat. Oh yeah, I enjoyed reading all the great information as well.

  48. Nice post, and interesting advice. This is defnitely a way of getting noticed in your particular niche. I’ve now added to the 101 other things on IM marketing to do list!

  49. These are some really great tips. I’m glad I came across this because I’m planning on trying out something new in the Blogging world. (Actually it may not be too new. I don’t know how many other people are trying something like this.)

    My idea is to be a blogger without a blog. I’ve had a blog at jonathanfrei.com for a while but let it lag and languish. What I want to do be a blogger on other people’s blogs. Basically the idea is to be a perpetual guest blogger.

    Rather than having a blog at my homepage, I’d like to just have a simple landing page about me and what I’m out to do. This way people will be able to get in touch with me if they’re looking for a guest blogger.

    The problem I had with posting on my own blog is that I felt everything was self-promotion. There was no editor to say, this is a good post lets promote it. That’s what I like about guest blogging. There is someone to censure me…

    Does anyone know of any bloggers out there that take this approach? I’d love to get in touch with them to see how they do it.

  50. when I decided to learn more about blogs. and there are times when I feel confused looking for material to be used as my guide in learning about blogs. I finally got here.
    and in fact there are many good tips and advice here. which will help me in studying about this blog.
    I am a beginner who started all from scratch. did not much know how to make a good blog, how to make my blog is a blog that interests many people.
    all tips and advice given is really very useful. thankful I get to here.

  51. Whats the best WordPress plugin for guess submissions? I just installed uCan Post, but it doesnt seem to have an “About Author” section, which I need.

  52. This is some solid advice. I didn’t even know about guest posting before reading the article, but now I think I might try to utilize it. I chuckled a few times too. Funny and informative! Keep up the good work.

  53. Nice tip. It’s more like being unique. Since guest posting trend is increasing, It’s always a good advice to Do something out of box and enjoy traffic via Guest posting.

    Is it hard to get accepted as a guest poster or are most blogs open to it?

  54. I see guest blogging in another dimension in the years to come. It’s surely going to override conventional article submission via directories. I have tried it and honestly, it’s the best thing that can happen to an online entrepreneur, if done creatively.

  55. I had some success… or rather I’m waiting for it to come up on the A-list blog. But nice perspective on guest blogging. I think it really puts your writing skills to the test. I don’t know if I’m ready for it, but there’s only one way to find out 🙂

  56. Though your steps are quite handy but what if a blog publishes guest posts secretly I mean they haven’t mentioned publicly that they accept guest posts but they do publish guest posts submitted to them via some back channels ?

  57. This is definite Great article!!! I am searching guest posting steps from a long time because I listened to various time about gust blogging and I have searched on Google a lot of times but I did not get sufficient answer now I am very glad to find your blog and I am going to new implement in my SEO techniques and I hope it would be helpful to all sides. Please keep it up.

    Thanks for sharing!

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