May I write a guest post on your blog?
Uh, the answer is most likely no. Unless I know you. Or maybe if you are a celebrity. Ha!
Oddly, I have been getting a lot of email requests for guest posting here. From people I don’t know. Sometimes offering to write about any topic I’d like*.
Guys, I don’t get it.
This blog is my voice. My opinions. My life. I may sometimes ask a friend to share their experience or opinion on something, because I think you’d all like to read it… but it’s usually all me. It’s a personal blog. And I suspect you come here because you (usually) want to read posts by me**, not by someone else, right?
Which is not to say I have not written guests posts for other blogs, or had guest posts here. I have done both. But they were for friends or by friends.
What would be the benefit to me or my readers to have a random guest post (from someone I don’t know)? And would it even benefit the guest poster that much? Who clicks through to read guests posts? I sometimes do, but not that often.
This all sounds really b*tchy, but I’m not meaning for it to be. It’s just that I don’t do the whole blogger networking/promoting my “brand” sort of thing… so I don’t “get” this.*** So. If you are able to explain the benefits of this to me, please go ahead!
Or let me know if you get these requests**** too and think, “what the huh?”
*And you know me. I brainstormed some really inappropriate topic requests. I usually email the person back and try to politely say “no thanks.”
**Thank you!!!
***I am especially unfamiliar with freelance writing.
****From people you don’t know. I understand asking people you do know!
Themocracy
right????? I hate it. And I never return those emails. I also am bad about returning emails about anything right now related to the blog. I esp don’t like to do blog posts for someone else to get something and I get nothing in return. I”m selfish like that!
I do try to write a nice decline email, because I know how frustrating it is to send an email and get no response… but I am like you. What good is in it for me to post their content and links? It’s free promotion for them, and I am not that desperate for content!
I haven’t gotten those, but the ones that annoy me are the ones where people ask me to write a post their new website. “It’ll be a great way to drive traffic to your blog!”
I’m not sure why it annoys me when it’s so easy just to hit “delete,” but I’m really not interested in writing for free, thanks.
And it’s not going to drive traffic to your blog, either. Come on!
UGH I did NOT say Salmon, i said CATFISH! JEEZ. So will that change your response?
I’ve done a couple guest posts on request for a friend when he went out on a honeymoon, but that is it!
Alright. I am thinking about it now 😉
I had my snister guest post when I was on my honeymoon. And I recently guest posted for a friend on her honeymoon. I GET that. 😉
I think those requests are so weird! I’m like “hey stranger, I barely write on my own blog, why would I let you?” Haha. Sidenote: looking forward to the half this weekend!
Ha ha ha!
Yes! I was thinking that. We need to meet up!
Ugh, I get these emails ALL the time! I’m like what the heck? I don’t need you writing a guest post about diabetes or some skin care product or whatever! You’re right, it’s completely diff if it’s a friend, but just random strangers? Uh, no thanks.
Weirdest.Thing.Ever. I don’t even respond!
Awww, so we’re friends? 🙂
I’ve never gotten that request (seriously, who would want to write on my blog other than a friend???), and it’s a little odd. Unless it was actually from Data. I like salmon, so I’d totes read about that.
I guess 😉
Data totally had you interested when he told you about the website where you pick the salmon AND the bear you want to catch it AND can watch it on a webcam? I think he wants to write a promotional post about that.
Yes, totes! It’s important to see what kind of bear catches my fish for me. Data’s right to want to know.
Yep, get them all the time. I don’t even respond. I know that some might think that’s rude but it’s spam to me. They don’t know me, I don’t know them. It’s mass electronic mailing.
Still one of my favs is from around Christmas when I got an email from the shrimp industry asking me to post shrimp recipes to up shrimp sales for the holiday. They even gave me some recipes that looked GOOD but I wasn’t feeling it. 🙂
“Please help me up my sales!” At least they were honest?
Yeah, the emails feel super spammy.
Can Data please write a guest post about salmon? I’d love to read that ;).
I don’t get the guest posting either, especially from strangers. What’s the point?
I should totally have him write it! Unless Sonic wants to write a guest post about what products he uses to clean his fur after going up in the ceiling?!
Yep. Me, too. Got one today in fact but I deleted it so quickly that I can’t tell you what it was about. Probably vitamins, because apparently I’m going to let people talk about crazy supplements. Not.
Even the ACE book says not to do that!
First of all, I guess you should feel honored that someone wants to guest post on your blog. I assume that means they like your blog and are trying to lure some of your audience to their blog? I don’t really understand the whole building a ‘brand’ idea either. I like to keep mostly to myself on the internet and I don’t even link to my blog on a lot of comments I make. I think your blog was one of the first I ever linked to my (poor, sad, neglected) blog in the comments*.
*Don’t you feel extra special now? 😉
Yeah, I do feel like, “Wow, someone must actually think posting here would do THEM some good!” Which makes me think they mistakenly think my blog has high traffic. Ha.
Wait, your brand isn’t about salmon?
Why do I read here again?
Who is this? 😛
Where am I?
What day is it?
Tuesday, duh!
You were supposed to say “Who’s the President?!”
I’ve been getting a crapton of those requests lately, too! I feel the same way as you – people come to our blogs to read what WE write, not some random person.
Although I would read a guest post from your cat…just sayin’!
Thanks for commenting 🙂
Hmm. I might have to think more about this guest post from Data 😉
Yes, I do get emails like this every once in awhile and I don’t understand it either. I’m interested to hear more about these guest posts from Data.
My blog must not be cool enough I don’t get those. I do think that is weird though that you would get them. It’s your blog. Why have someone else post for you…
I’ve been getting them, too! Do you respond? I do… but they’re getting annoying and I just want to delete them!
I do usually respond with a “no thanks and good luck.” But I usually just want to delete it!
Traffic-deriving guest posting isn’t as strong a draw as it once was. Still, though, the highest hit count and comment-gaining post on my blog was a guest post by Dave2 in 2007 when I was in Vegas. I’ve never come close.
Dates should write about cod fishes because I don’t like salmons. 🙂
CB says he would like to do a guest post on your blog. He can write about a variety of topics including : pooping 2 times a day (lucky bastard), looking hungry all the time even if he just ate, prancersize (he totes invented it), and many other enjoyable topics which have absolutely nothing to do with your “brand” or mine. You know where to contact him 😉
OMG! I got the most hilarious shirt for my younger bro this weekend. It says “I pooped today!” Ha. I may take CB up on that pooping guest post. I love to talk about poop. And does prancersize include a vid?!
My favorites goes something like this: “oh, you write about running, will you promote this no-exercise-needed weight loss pill that is 100% safe and has no side effects?”
Yea…because that would definitely blend right in…
I never understand those emails. It’s just odd and sometimes makes me angry. With everything being so digital and information being so available these days it seems like people pin bloggers as free advertisers, hate when peeps take the bait. This is actually the reason why I don’t regularly read very many blogs these days. Can’t take the selling out.
Ha! I can’t either! That is one of the main reasons I have been turning down most giveaways and don’t put ads on my blog. How did you decide to put ads on your blog?
I would totally let you write a guest post for my blog! But, then again, I think your blog is hilarious (in a good way) and entertaining. My blog isn’t popular enough to get those crazy requests–I didn’t even know people did that! So weird.
Aww, thanks. I am happy you think I am funny. I try to be… but I wonder if my sense of humor (sarcasm) doesn’t come through.
Be happy you don’t get all these cray cray requests! They make you feel icky! 😉
I didn’t realize people asked to guest-post. I always assumed it was something you did when you were going to be away for an extended period of time. I don’t usually read them anyway….
I hope you do let Data guestpost though.
Steven said he will work on helping Data type it out 🙂
wow I would probably fall for it, because I have never had anyone want to appear on my blog 😉
Oh, your title made me think you really were asking to write a guest post on MY blog – LOL!
Hee hee hee. No! I want to see YOU post more! 🙂
I have been getting a ton, too. Yes, I do have guest posts from people I know or respect. I love that they don’t even provide credentials or a reason why your blog is a fit. Weird.
As an answer to your question, yes YOU may write a guest post on my blog 😉
You actually answer them back?!?! Geesh, I get the emails every single day… IGNORE. SNORE. The spamming is out of control right now; I finally had to put a blocker-of-sorts on my blog comments.
Yes! I had to turn off commenting after 30 days because I was getting so dang many spam comments!
And I do answer them. But I get maybe 10 emails a month.
If I answered all of them, there’d be no time for any of my own sparkling prose! They know exactly what they’re doing with the guest posts: implanting links to clients’ sites for SEO or something like that. Annoying for sure.
I’ve gotten a few random requests like this and I usually just delete them. I would totally let a friend guest post on my blog but some random stranger, no thanks.
I sometimes like to read guest posts if they are done right. I like it when a guest posts adds to the conversation, but I don’t read it if it is just this is my blog and this is what I write about. If I wanted to know that I would just go to your blog. But if a guest poster writes a really good post I’m more inclined to click over to their blog and read more about them.
I’m trying to get Matt to guest post on my blog about his job and/or some of what goes into farming in general. Because I think that is interesting. Lately we’ve been talking a lot about organic vs. non-organic and transgenes and genetic engineering and how a lot of the general population is uniformed in terms of what that all means. I should make him write a post of that, but I think I would get a lot of haters yelling “Organic is best!”
Yes! That would be so interesting if Matt would write about that. Especially since I am not on the organic band wagon and could use some info that justifies my laziness/cheapness/un-caring-ness. 😉
My opinion is that it is not proven either way whether organic is better or not. Obviously you can’t do an isolated study on humans because there are way too many other factors contributing to our lifestyles. I am convinced that eating more produce and less processed foods (whether organic or not) is the way to go so I just stick with that.
I definitely agree with you there!
I get these all the time and I just wonder WHY-my bog is BUSTED and tiny, why do people want to do a guest post. Unless you are the creator of Reddit, it’s not going to happen. Or maybe Buzzfeed, or Ryan Gosling of course.
I would be willing to let Kara Goucher or Shalayne Flanagan post on my blog as often as they’d like to.
I usually decline when they ask me, so I will direct them to your blog!
LOL.
I so totally wish!
I get these too and they drive me crazy! I just had someone who wanted to place links about braces in a post. I was like, uhh…?
Meghan S. that you just went to lunch with recently sent me your blog and told me you just did a 70.3 relay, so I’m excited to follow along and read more. She said we’re like minded and that I might like your blog!
Ha ha ha! Braces! Really? I am surprised I didn’t get that one… as my husband just got them!
Thanks for commenting! Meghan was telling me how you have fallen in love with swimming and biking after your stress fracture and I thought that was so cool! I am excited to read your blog! 🙂
Yeah that is weird. I have been featured on some blogs who do guest posts about other ‘crazy’ (crazy in a good way) runners but never written a blog post for someone else. My favorite is when I get an email from someone wanting me to basically advertise for something on my blog for free. I will recommend things I use and stand by for free but I am not willing to push products that I don’t use or know about. I feel that my blog is where I get to be creative and have a voice and connect with other fun people with similar interests not sell products.
Yes! THANK YOU! Gah. I don’t get random people just asking me to advertise for them… especially if it’s something I don’t even use. I get that a lot too.
I get these too and I don’t respond. I don’t like guest posts. I never read them on other blogs. I read a blog to read THAT PERSON’S writing, not someone else’s.
That is how I usually am, too.
I actually do a LOT of guest posting, as a way to amp up my writing portfolio. Luckily, I had enough of a readership to have 25+ bloggers let me post on their blogs, but now I’m getting to a point where I’m going to have to start asking other bloggers to write for their blogs BUT I know I won’t be asking bloggers I don’t already have a relationship with. I get emails like this ALL THE TIME from people I don’t know, usually don’t even have a blog, and just are doing it for click-throughs or whatever. Usually, they contact me about the MOST random topics that have nothing at all to do about my blog at all. And I usually just delete and move on. I know they’re probably appealing to TONS of blogs a day and I’m just a drop in the bucket, especially since very rarely do they follow up if they haven’t gotten a response from me. Anyway, all this to say: guest blogging is good, but only if you’re blogging for someone you have an already established relationship with. I’m totally up for people to guest blog on my own blog, but if I don’t know you? Not gonna happen. 🙂
Thank you for commenting! I figured that a lot of people do guest post to build their portfolio, but it didn’t make sense to me that someone who doesn’t know me would ask. So I am happy to hear that from someone doing that… you think it is cray cray, too! 🙂
Late to this party but I have to admit I never read guest posts, with the exception of the “Why I run” series that was for the Run For Voston Chicago 5K. Otherwise I honestly skip right past them because…if I wanted to read their blogs…I’d probably already have them bookmarked. That sounds kind of mean but I guess – I read your blog to read what YOU say, yanno?
So at least for this admittedly fickle reader (because I honestly tend to read blogs in fits and spurts, which you can probably tell, unless I happen to be following them on FB too) it actually hurts traffic for the primary blog because I just…skip it.
That said, your honeymoon example or there’s a blog I read whose husband guest-posted when she had her baby…those I will read 🙂 So I guess nothing’ 100%.
Was this a useful comment or what! 😛
Hahaha, the ONLY time I’ve had someone ask to guest post on my blog they then declined because my “numbers” weren’t high enough. Oh well 🙂 I have had companies contact me to ask me to post about something but I will only do it if I A. get something for myself or B. it is something I am interested in anyway. But those are still my words and my thoughts, not someone else’s!
OMG! Really?! That is MEAN! Ha ha ha. LOL! But that was not the ONLY time – you asked me and I said yes! P.S. ORANGE CLOTHES!!!
I’m with you, my blog is MAG Mile Runner, so like you it’s MY blog and MY voice. The nice thing for me is that I also have ChicagoRunningBloggers.com, so sometimes when the offer includes a payment, I can do it on that site and still keep “my” voice on my personal blog. But it’s usually pretty clear which ones are sponsored posts, and I write them so it’s still my voice.
I have only done guest posts for friends … Kelly when she was studying for her exam and did a series of guest posts, and the Run for Boston blog and ZOOMA blog. I think that’s it. I think the closest thing I’ve done to guest posts on Mag Mile Runner have been Q&A posts with friends or interesting people I’ve found online, but they have all been runners.
Whenever a person starts to take their blog too seriously (focusing on networking and page views), it is reflected in their content, and I lose interest.
That is a nice perk of CRB! I was thinking about CRB a few days ago and just how happy I am that you started it and put all of us in a central location. Thank you! 🙂
And I think guest posts for friends make sense. And for an event for which you are an ambassador 😉
LOL. It cracks me up when people talk about pageviews.
I’ve had a few guest posts on my blog. But I’ve asked for them to write them. Almost every single one of them (under 10) were went I went on vacation and wanted my blog to have regular posts.
I don’t get the guest posts for any other reason, unless it’s an interview with someone.