Blogs are increasingly important to companies for lead generation and nurturing. HubSpot even found that 55% of marketers say blog content creation is their top inbound marketing priority.

With growing content needs, marketers may be inclined to invite guest bloggers to contribute content, thinking it will save time and fill a content gap. Although guest bloggers are a great option that can yield tremendous value for your brand, they are not right for every blog, and they can be more resource-intensive than you think.

If you’ve been considering a guest blogger program, use these four steps as the foundation to assess if your blog is ready for guests, and how to get your guest blogger program off to a good start:

Running a blog can quickly become resource intensive, especially if your team hasn’t first taken the proper planning steps. Scrambling to push out content, some teams may default to inviting guest bloggers to fill the content gap. While this can be a great idea, it’s not the best for every blog, and not every guest blogger is a fit for your brand.

In this #ContentChat, we explore how to tell when your blog is ready for guest bloggers, and how to approach the relationship.

As we gather for #ContentChat please introduce yourself and share your experience with guest blogging.
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

Q1: When is a blog ready to start inviting guest bloggers to contribute?

Your team first needs to develop the objectives and goals for your blog before you can bring on guests (we explored how to start your planning in this content chat). Also, ensure you have an established brand voice to find contributors that complement this.

A1: Everyone hates this answer, but, it depends. Specifically, it depends on the objective and goals you have for your blog. For most of my/client blogs, I’ve waited until the site had a well-defined editorial voice before inviting guests. #ContentChat https://t.co/1IYNGsSS3I
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

A1. Once you have a clear voice, message and direction for your blog. It’s important to really establish the mission of the blog before inviting others to contribute or else it feels all over the place! #contentchat
— MeetEdgar (@MeetEdgar) November 19, 2018

A1: A blog is ready for guest bloggers when it has defined it’s voice and brand so it knows what guests will be a fit.#ContentChat https://t.co/rtTxfMUqB1
— Kathryn Lang (@Kathrynclang) November 19, 2018

Double check your blog traffic to make sure that you are already meeting your goals and that there is a value for any guest contributors.

It definitely does. After all, have you really defined and honed your editorial voice if no one is engaging with your content? #ContentChat
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

A1: I guess the answer really depends on the blog or site and what the goals are for that blog. Does it have a good following and how are they promoting of the blogs/content out to other channels? Plus, is the blog content of interest to others to want to contribute? #ContentChat
— Bernie Fussenegger 🐝✌️the7️⃣ (@B2the7) November 19, 2018

A1b: However, we also need to look at it from the guest blogger’s POV. If you have a domain authority of 1, for example, what’s in it for the blogger? #ContentChat
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

To make a long story short, Tod recaps it well:

Lessons learned on #ContentChat: A blog is ready for guest bloggers when it has:
(1) Defined Goals,
(2) Defined Audience,
(3) Defined Voice and POV, and
(4) Traffic that interests guests.
— Tod Cordill (@todcordill) November 19, 2018

4 Steps To Start A Smart Guest Blogger Program

November 19, 2018 Content Chat Recap: Building an Effective Guest Blogging Program

Q1: When is a blog ready to start inviting guest bloggers to contribute?

Your team first needs to develop the objectives and goals for your blog before you can bring on guests (we explored how to start your planning in this content chat). Also, ensure you have an established brand voice to find contributors that complement this.

Double check your blog traffic to make sure that you are already meeting your goals and that there is a value for any guest contributors.

To make a long story short, Tod recaps it well:

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guest blogging

Q1: When is a blog ready to start inviting guest bloggers to contribute?

Your team first needs to develop the objectives and goals for your blog before you can bring on guests (we explored how to start your planning in this content chat). Also, ensure you have an established brand voice to find contributors that complement this.

Double check your blog traffic to make sure that you are already meeting your goals and that there is a value for any guest contributors.

To make a long story short, Tod recaps it well:

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Connect