What Google's New Guest Post Policy Means for Bloggers

Written by: Anyonita Green on 2/13/2104

Panic always spreads when word of a new Google algorithm gets round. I have to hand it to them, Google have perfected the task of scaremongering, whether purposefully or not.

When Google released Penguin, it targeted specific practices that many bloggers employ for boosting traffic to their sites.

One of the biggest areas impacted is that of guest posting. There's been a lot of speculation, drama and fear in light of Google's announcement that guest posting is dead. 

As always, I've done my research and in this tutorial I'm going to share with you what Google's new guest policy actually means for bloggers.
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What is guest posting?
This may seem like a daft question to ask, but hear me out. A guest post is simply when one blogger invites another blogger, brand, business or PR to share a post on their blog. That post can be anything: text, images,video, a link party. Somewhere in the post, the guest poster will have included a couple of links to their own blog or website.

Usually, this would include a straight title link and a deep, SEO boosting link. For example, if I were submitting a guest post, I would make sure that my blog name Anyonita Nibbles was a link as well as a SEO boosting keyword linking to a recipe or tutorial from this blog.

Chances are, if you've been doing your rounds in the blogosphere, you'll have come across dozens of guest posts. You may have even have welcomed them yourself. According to Google, the quality of guest posting has changed dramatically over the years and now "it's become a more and more spammy practice". (Matt Cutts on guest posting) As a result, Google's cracking the whip on guest posting in 2014.

The type of guest posts to avoid
Every now and then, I get a dodgy email from someone I don't know asking if they can write an article for Anyonita Nibbles. You know the sort? Some random PR or blogger stumbles across your blog or notices the traffic your blog gets or the number of followers on your social media accounts and suddenly they've got dollar signs for eyes and see your site as an easy target for boosting their own traffic.

It's these types of people that have ruined guest posting. It's these types of guest posts that you should avoid. You'll need to use your judgment, as always, but here are a few things you should do when you receive an unsolicited guest post inquiry:

1. Determine what they are expecting to gain. Do they want to submit a poorly written article full of links to their own website?
2. Check them out. Visit their website and have a good luck around. Are they an established website? Do they have a steady stream of activity--blog posts and comments from readers?
3. Stalk them on social media and see what kind of influence they have. Do they have a large following on Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter? Are they on G+?
4. Is the article relevant to your site?

Let's look at some answers to those questions:

1. Ultimately, it's your decision, but I'd avoid publishing poorly written articles. First off, that article will reflect on you and your website and it could damage your reputation. Excessive link dropping in articles almost always gets flagged by Google and good antivirus programs and it could result in your site being listed as one that promotes itself through spam tactics. No bueno. 
2. If their website was just published in the last month or so, I'd advise not working with them in this capacity. It's important for bloggers to establish themselves as a quality authority on their topic before other bloggers should back them or invite them into their own blogs. You can tell a site's quality by the conversations that occur on their social media or blog posts. Usually good communication between a blogger and her readers would highlight whether a site is of quality or not.
3. Every blogger isn't going to start out with hundreds of followers on social media and that's fine. But I'd think twice about working with a blogger who only has 3 or 4 likes. It's not about being rude and not helping one another out, but a blogger would need to show willing first. Bloggers should work hard to grow their followers and to secure this following before reaching out to established bloggers for a leg up. If you don't promote yourself, why should I bother promoting you?
4. You'd be surprised the number of times I get approached by potential guest posters who want to share things that aren't even relevant to my blog. Anyonita Nibbles is primarily a food blog with regular blogging tutorials. I probably don't have much use for posting things about cheap airlines, computer deals or knitting. No matter how interested I am in a particular topic, I have to use discretion. If I wouldn't post about it for free, I shouldn't be willing to post about it to make a fast buck.

In the interest of full disclosure and clarity, here are some actual emails I have received that I have rejected. I know many of you are new to blogging and haven't been approached by potential spammers yet. You might find this helpful:

This email came from a repeat-performer. About every other month, I get the same email from her, informing me that she's interested in a text link.When I inquire about the link, she always says that she can't confirm what link she'd like to place. Instead, she wants to know if I'm interested. I've always disregarded her as being a spammer and since I don't make a policy of peppering posts with paid links, I've declined. Repeatedly.

This email almost seemed legit. I mean, at least the article would have been something to do with cooking! But because I don't post articles on kitchen gadgets, I wasn't prepared to accept. Then, out of curiosity, I had a look at the link she provided. The blog is relatively new but the writing is poor. Even if she had been wanting to swap a recipe, I think I still would have declined based on the newness of her site, the fact that I don't know who she is and the poor quality of her content.

The type of guest posts that is okay
No matter what Google says, I'm pretty confident that guest posting isn't just going to shrivel up and die. Here's why:

1. Guest posting isn't just about link building. Not always. Guest posting is beneficial for garnering new readers. I've gained hundreds of new readers from sharing recipes on other, trusted blogs. 
2. Guest posting is helpful for maintaining a blog schedule. Many bloggers use guest posters to fill in when they are going to be on holiday or are off ill. People are always going to go on holiday and they're always going to get ill. Should their blogs suffer because of it? No. The solution? Guest posters.
3. Guest posting is valuable and important for attracting readers outside of a blogger's niche. Example: I'm not vegan. I quite like eating pretty much anything. Including things with cute faces. But I've noticed that although I have posted vegan recipes (unintentionally) this is an element of my blog that could be enhanced. Instead of embarking on a radical lifestyle change and trying to get up to speed with all of the nuances of veganism, I could simply invite an established vegan blogger to share her knowledge on Anyonita Nibbles.This does two things for me: It opens up my blog to vegans, welcoming their following and support. It also ensures that Anyonita Nibbles is more than a one-trick pony; it provides variety. That type of exposure is what guest posting thrives on.

So, in my opinion, guest posting is here to stay. Still, as this is an area Google is getting strict on, it's helpful to know what type of guest posting is "safe". If you plan on welcoming guest posters, you should:

1. Invite guest posters that you know or that you know have a sound reputation. I'd stick to inviting the bloggers whose blogs you read. 
2. Limit the number of links and the number of follow-links in their post. It may sound stingy, but try to keep the links to a minimum of three within the text. One leading directly to their blog, linked to their blog name. And two to other posts or pages on their blog. You could allow as many social media links as you feel comfortable promoting.
3. Get picky about which links are no-follow and which are do-follow. All of the links don't have to be follow links. When I have guest posters, I usually make the link to their entire blog a no-follow link because blog names don't tend to be keywords in the first place. Then if they have provided two deep links using keywords, I keep one as a follow and make the other no-follow. There's no formula or evidence that this is what Google prefers, it's just how I roll, but I've not had any issues with it.
4. Be careful with sponsored links. There's much debate about whether it's ethical for people to pay for links with cash or merchandise. Google errs on the side of not doing and they suggest that if someone has paid you for a link, it should be a no-follow link.
5. Avoid articles from article-writing websites. You know the type, the sites that are filled with articles on everything under the sun, written for the purpose of boosting SEO? These tend to be spammy to start and are best avoided.
6. Take control over your content. Unless I have invited a blogger to share a recipe or post on my blog, I write 100% of my content. I do not publish content written by companies, brands, PRs or marketers purely because it's important for Anyonita Nibbles to be in my voice. If a company wants an article published for a product review, it is my policy to review the product and write the review myself. What you decide is ultimately up to you.

Oh, so Pinteresting tutorials:

How to Dominate Google Image Search Results

What Every Blogger Should Know about Copyright Policy

No Follow vs Follow Links