Is Guest Blogging Dead?

Guest Blogging: Defined

Let’s first go over the basic definition of “guest blogging,” as some people are likely hearing about it for the first time. Guest blogging is exactly what it sounds: you write an article or post for another blog (as a guest) in exchange for a backlink to your own website or blog. The blog on which you are posting the content benefits from free content, while you benefit from a free link and hopefully traffic.

You can find guest blogging opportunities through one of two ways: by using a middle-man website, such as MyBlogGuest.com, which connects guest bloggers to blogs in search of free content. Or you can find guest blogging opportunities manually, by searching for specific keywords in Google.

Here are some of the different keywords you can use to find guest blogging opportunities:

• “guest bloggers wanted”
• “guest blogger login”
• “blog for us”
• “write for us”
• “guest bloggers needed”
• “hiring guest bloggers”
• “submit guest blog”
• “guest blog application”

Google’s Matt Cutts Talks About Guest Blogging

Just last year, Google’s Webspam team leader Matt Cutts wrote an article called “The Decay and Fall of Guest Blogging For SEO” on his personal blog, in which he made some startling revelations about the practice of guest blogging. In this article, Cutts reveals that guest blogging no longer has the same SEO value as it once had. This is due to the fact that many people began abusing the system, using guest blogging as a means to manipulate Google’s search results. This prompted the Big G to take action by tweaking its algorithm so there’s less emphasis placed on guest blogging.

But this doesn’t necessarily mean that guest blogging is dead. As noted by Cutts, there are still plenty of reasons for writing and submitting guest blogs, such as increased exposure, brand recognition, establish yourself as a leading industry figure, etc.

“There are still many good reasons to do some guest blogging (exposure, branding, increased reach, community, etc.),” said Cutts. “Those reasons existed way before Google and they’ll continue into the future. And there are absolutely some fantastic, high-quality guest bloggers out there. I changed the title of this post to make it more clear that I’m talking about guest blogging for search engine optimization (SEO) purposes.”

If you are guest blogging strictly for SEO purposes, you might be disappointed with the lackluster results it will yield. On the other hand, if you’re guest blogging in hopes of building brand recognition and driving direct traffic to your website, it can certainly help.

Do you think guest blogging dead? Let us know in the comments section below!