Simply put, Google is not a fan of guest writing, according to Matt Cutts. With over 280 comments on Cutts’ blog, the reaction from digital thought leaders like copy bloggers and search engine journals, and an eruption of clatter on Twitter, the MLK-day announcement drove the online community into a frenzy.
The succinct primary point: put a fork in it Guest Posting is over. But is guest posting truly extinct? Is it classified alongside heinous black hat practices such as content farms? If you’re only doing it to improve your search ranking, then yes. If, on the other hand, guest posting is a key component of establishing trust and relevance among peers, influencers, and partners, then blog on friends.
Guest Posting Strategy Designed by SEO:
Guest posting strategies designed by SEO spin doctors are not the same as a genuine guest blog posting. Guest writing to amass SEO links was a lousy idea, to begin with. Google is acutely aware of SEO hounds and deploys powerful engineers to systematically eliminate “spammy” practices.
- Dead Directories extinct.
- Anchor Text extinct.
- Duplicate Content extinct.
- PR Articles extinct.
- Unmindful Meta Tags extinct.
Nevertheless, for those who approach guest posting with fairness, authenticity, and a real desire in educating and connecting with readers, guest posting isn’t extinct – in fact, Cutts’ revelation may bring it back to life.
So, What Comes Next?
Continue your guest posting with a professional, genuine attitude. If you engage with thought leaders and industry guest bloggers who boost both your and their presence, Google will be pleased, and your brand will benefit. Before it was defined, guest posting was established as a dependable tool for businesses to increase influence, educate target customers, and test new markets for relevance. This remains true.
Networking with industry partners and other true experts in your sector raises brand awareness and creates the opportunity for your organization to develop and learn. For one thing, it allows industry professionals to communicate with one another. Here is a place for businesses to learn new ways to deliver good customer service, business solutions, and innovative techniques, among other things.
Second, the guest post entries that emerge from these discussions are chock-full of useful information that your target audiences need. Guest posting, at its best, is a process that builds trust with customers, offers respectability for your company, and connects disparate industries for mutual benefit. Win-win-win. Furthermore, as Cutts and company seek to diminish (the) perception of guest posting moving forward, your legitimate guest posting will fare better as the need to sprinkle SEO fluff fades.
Cutts expressed it this way:
There are still numerous compelling reasons to engage in some guest posting (exposure, branding, increased reach, community, etc.). Such reasons existed before Google and will continue to exist in the future. And there are some amazing, high-quality free guest post websites available. I modified the title of this piece to emphasize that I’m discussing guest posting for search engine optimization (SEO).” For guest writing, SEO is not the point.
The Most Important Takeaways for Guest posting:
- Be Genuine: Create guest blogs that are genuine and meaningful to your audience. Communicate with Your Audiences: Understand your target markets and who you are speaking with. Continue to create material that is tailored to their interests, needs, and delights.
- Keep Your Brand Credibility: When contemplating any SEO approach, keep honesty in mind. Adorable page rank methods are short-sighted and virtually always caught by Google. A true SEO strategy is developed around an original, good, honest web presence.
- Continue Guest posting : It is now, more than ever, a good moment to create guest posts. Cutts’ revelation will deter content spinners, allowing the good stuff to shine through.
- Bottom line: Guest posting is alive and well if you guest blog for friends, peers, and influencers to genuinely provide something of value. Oh, and Matt Cutts is welcome to guest write for us at any moment.
