Marketing Ninja

On Monday I answered a question from a reader regarding how to locate relevant blogs within your domain, and today I’m going to cover a second question from that same reader.

Again, I’m going to share my insight as well as ask my readers for theirs.

Speaking of time consuming, what sort of presence do we need to have on other blogs before we begin requesting guest writers, etc? Should I go out and register for as many sites as possible and begin systematically commenting on anything I find interesting?

Only add comments that contribute value to the conversation

I’d recommend that you start establishing a presence on other, established blogs in your domain as soon as possible, but only comment if you’re able to provide additional value to the conversation. Commenting on other blogs can potentially hurt your blog’s brand if done incorrectly, so make sure you’re adding value whenever you post a comment.

Spending money on guest writers

As far as the sort of presence you need to ask for guest writers, it depends on if you’re willing to spend any money or not. Many bloggers routinely earn revenue through paid postings or through paid blogging gigs so it’s not an unusual request to ask bloggers if they’d be interested in writing about X for $Y. PayPerPost is a company that specializes in acting as a middleman between corporations looking to promote their products through bloggers and bloggers looking to earn a dime or two, but I have to warn you that PPP is a highly controversial organization and utilizing it may have adverse effects on your blog’s brand.

That being said, if you are willing to pay authoritative bloggers to guest write for your blog, the best approach is to look for a page with contact information and contact them privately. You’ll find that most bloggers work for cheap, so this can save you a lot of money.

Developing relationships with potential guest writers

However if you’re looking to develop your blog organically, which is probably the best way to establish a credible brand, then establishing your presence on existing, authoritative blogs is a good way to go about building up a natural relationship with those bloggers. Once you’ve established a good relationship with another blogger then it would not be out of line to ask if they’d be interested in writing a guest post on your site.

Again, if you’re not interested in spending money on recruiting guest bloggers, I’d recommend building up your blog to a decent size (a few hundred unique visitors a day, medium size) and then try contacting experts who work in vertical niches and don’t typically receive that kind of traffic; the allure of getting their name exposed to a larger audience and having their name affiliated with a higher credibility blog is very enticing. Another approach is seeking out aggressive, up-and-coming bloggers who are trying to develop their audience; these people may not be the strongest vertical experts, but they are people who may be willing to add value to your blog and lend credibility to your blog if asked.

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