UPDATE: Thanks a lot for thinking of us, we very much appreciate it. For the moment, our editorial calendar is full, and we’re not accepting unsolicited guest posts on copyblogger.com.
So how hard is it to get a guest post on Copyblogger?
Even though Brian is top dog around here, I get this question all the time–by email, on Twitter or through the contact form on my own blog.
I’m never sure what people think I’m going to say.
“Oh, it’s totally easy, just throw any old trash together.”
Or, on the other hand, “Sorry, you’ll have to meditate three weeks in a Tibetan cave without food or water before Brian will consider your post.”
Writing content for Copyblogger is hard. But it’s not hard like climbing Everest or launching eBay. I thought I’d talk a little bit about what makes a great Copyblogger guest post.
Copyblogger is useful
First rule of Copyblogger is to make yourself useful.
Is there something about content marketing that’s difficult for most people but comes fairly easily to you? Alternately, is there something you’ve spent a ton of time mastering? Those are both great topic areas for a Copyblogger post.
Copyblogger readers want content they can act on. They want posts that help them improve their marketing and copywriting today. Explore some facet of copywriting and content marketing that you feel strongly about and that you can express clearly.
Copyblogger content needs to provide a significant benefit to our readers. Not a fake benefit, a real benefit. Copyblogger content solves the blogging and marketing problems our readers care about.
Copyblogger is relevant
Obviously, posts for Copyblogger need to be relevant to the topic at hand.
If you’re writing about direct response copywriting, improving your blog’s content and its success, traffic generation, content marketing, overcoming writer’s block or how to write great content for social media, Copyblogger might be a good fit for your post.
If you’re writing about GTD, the latest version of the iPhone, or Britney Spears, you may want to find another venue. Unless, that is, you can tie that to one of our core topics in a memorable way.
To write a great post for Copyblogger, it helps to know what’s worked for us in the past. Start with the list of popular articles to the right.
Copyblogger is well-written
Brian and I are picky. Really, really picky.
You don’t have to be the next E.B. White. (Although if you are and you want to write about a Copyblogger topic, we’d love to see your posts.)
But you do have to care about tone, style and clarity. If you’re breaking a grammatical rule, make sure there’s a great reason. It’s helpful if your writing has a little swing in its step. Be interesting. Use a great metaphor, or tell a compelling story. Spend some time on your headline.
And for Pete’s sake, run your piece through spell check.
We’re not perfect. The occasional typo sneaks in despite our best efforts. But we put the time and attention in to make our posts as good as they can possibly be.
There are some brilliant blogs out there that use “first draft” content. Copyblogger is not one of them. This is a place for your best, most thoughtful writing. Work through a few rewrites. It’s also very helpful to set your post aside for a day or two before coming back to it with fresh eyes.
If you have a useful, relevant and well-written post, what’s the next step?
Email us via the contact form and let us know what you’d like to write about and why you think it’s a good fit. It’s always a good idea to link to a post or two on your own blog that you’re particularly proud of. (If you have a blog, that is. It’s not a requirement.)
Please be patient with us–some days we’ve got a lot on our plates and we can’t answer email as quickly as we would like. But we’ll get back to you and let you know if we’d like to see more.
About the Author: Sonia Simone is Senior Editor of Copyblogger and the founder of Remarkable Communication.