I am often asked to consider posting an article from someone else on my blog. Until this point, I have always said “no.” However, Daniel Scocco’s practice at DailyBlogTips, convinced me to give it a try. He has produced a nice set of Guest Post Guidelines that inspired me to write my own.
So, yes, effective immediately, I will accept guest posts. Currently, I do not plan to publish more than one post per week. These will likely appear on Friday.
Content
Your post must be on one of four topics:
- Leadership
- Productivity
- Social Media
- Publishing
Your post cannot be an advertisement for your product or the equivalent of a sponsored post. (However, I do have an advertising category for that if you are interested.)
Guidelines
- Your post must be original and not previously published either on the Web or in print.
- You agree not to publish it anywhere else, including your own blog or Web site. You may, however, post a brief “tease” or summary on your site that links to the post.
- You may provide up to three byline links: one for your blog or Web site, one for your bio or About page, and one for your Twitter username (optional).
- Your post should be at least 300 words long and no more than 1,000 words.
- You may want to read “9 Ways Become an Exceptional Guest Poster” by Darren Rowse. He contains some very helpful tips to maximize your post.
Editing
- I will likely copyedit your post for grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. If I make substantive changes (unlikely), I will email the post back to you for your approval before posting.
- I may provide a short introduction or conclusion to your post to provide context or the rationale as to why I think the post is important. I will make sure that my comments are set off from yours stylistically, so that my readers are clear that these are mine and not yours.
Disclaimer
I understand the work that it takes to write a blog post. However, the fact that you have written a post and submitted it to me does not obligate me to publish it. The only guest posts I will publish are those that in my sole judgment add value to my readers.
Furthermore, if I do not approve your guest post, I will not explain why I did not approve it or provide any detail. Frankly, that would take more time than I can afford.
Submissions
If your post meets the above guidelines, please email it to me for consideration. I will respond with a “yes” or “no” within one week. If I reject your post, you are obviously free to do whatever you want with it, including publishing it elsewhere. Also, please put your post in the body of the email rather than as an attachment.
Building Champions has been coaching me since 2002. They have taught me to be more proactive and intentional in both my business and personal life. Visit their Web site to learn more and see their special offer for my blog readers.
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Thanks for the opportunity. The guidelines you posted look straight forward enough. The only thing that might could be included is the pay (or the understanding that there is not pay).
Kathryn, that's a really good point. Yes, there is no pay. Bloggers who would be interested in this would do it to (a) gain access to an audience they don't have in hopes of gaining readers for their own blog, (b) garner a few back-links to their own blog which will help their Google Page Rank, and (c) increase their reputation and visibility in their field.
Thanks for your input!
Thanks Michael. This sounds like a great opportunity to get featured on a popular blog by a leading publisher. Wow. I'm guessing you will receive a flurry of mail on this.
I hope so. That will mean I will have more good stuff to choose from!
I've got one or two posts that I'd love to contribute. I'll let you know!
:)
Awesome, John. I'd love to hear from you.
Very kind of you to give others a chance to speak through your microphone. I like it. Curious to see what type of volume in submission you will receive. Will you share that? Just hope you don't get slammed with so many submissions that it becomes a time bandit for you to read and reply. Will be interesting to see.
Yes, it will be interesting to see. If the volume is overwhelming I will share that. It will be an interesting experiment.
This is a very generous act, Michael. I agree with the other commenters and assume that you will get bombarded with posts. I will be very interested to see what bloggers make the cut. I certainly intend to submit something as soon as I can. Your clear guidelines are a fantastic idea, also!
Michael, this really is a terrific idea… Thanks for offering to consider a guest post. I am going to take a stab at it and will be back in touch with you soon!
Regards,
@michaelmccurry
Michael, this is a cool idea. To have a guest blog posted on your site would be a great honor and also a bit of validation of ones writing skills.
Thanks for the opportunity.
Great idea. Hopefully I can come up with some time to write something that would be decent.
One question, Michael; who will own the copyright to the guest post?
Good question: The writer will retain the copyright.
Good to know. Do you intend to update your Copyright page to reflect that?
Yes, I have done so. Please see the last section of the Copyright page
That's what I call thorough; I'm guessing that years of experience in the publishing business led to the final sentence. I look forward to seeing how the guest posts blend into your stream.
For future reference, in the publishing area of content, are you looking for material from the publisher's point of view, the author's point of view, or both? Right now, I barely have time to write my own posts, but during school breaks, I will be able to find time to write more.
I am looking for YOUR point-of-view—whatever you are.
What a fantastic idea! I was blessed to have the pleasure of hearing you speak at the Building Champions event in Sun River. I have been following your blog since, and have a couple of great ideas for a guest blog. Thank you for being a great inspiration.
Very thorough guidelines, Michael. You've got me both considering submitting and opening up my own blog to guest posts.
Working on it. Thanks for the platform opportunity.
Letting some ideas simmer. Thanks for the opportunity!
This is a great idea, I'm just wondering if my blog would qualify. My blog is on my journey as a caregiver for my spouse. It's like an online journal, but for the purpose of sharing with others for support and encouragement instead of keeping private. Would this fall under your guidelines?
Honestly, the subject matter of your own blog is not relevant, provided you write compelling content in one of the four categories I listed. Thanks.
No additions-but I was just thinking that people should not get their feelings hurt if you dont use their submission. You could not use it for a wide variety of reasons. It doesnt mean you dont like them personally. I have learned that people find rejection very hard to deal with.
Yes, that is absolutely correct. The truth is (based on what I have seen so far) most posts won't work. As you pointed out, there are a variety of reasons. The content may be perfectly acceptable for other blogs; it just won't work for mine.
i don't have time to write more posts…but i'll recruit a box of commenting ninjas to speak/share/and spread the word…
Awesome. That would be helpful!
Mr. Hyatt,
I sent you an article about Book Blog Tours. I hope you find it interesting! Thanks for this opportunity.
alisa hope
Got it. Thanks. I am considering it. (This is good news: I reject most immediately!
Kathryn’s first post made me smile, given the book you are currently promoting. I hope she gets a copy and reaps the rewards. Well done, sir!
my suggestion re Copyright is that the original author retains full copyright (except as restricted above) with you (Michael) receiving an implied license to publish the article on your blog (a la social networkings Ts & Cs)
It seems already that you might want to add a restriction to your guidelines that a limited number of submissions from the same author each month (i.e., only one submission per month per author). We're all afraid of you getting swamped!
Thanks for your sensitivity. If that becomes a problem, I will add it!
What a great and generous offer! Thank you. If I may, I'd like to offer one suggestion for the guidelines. I completely understand why you want the post to be exclusive to your blog. However, I've seen other policies that allow guest bloggers to post a tease or excerpt on their blog and link to the post. This generates additional traffic for you, but also lets the guest blogger promote the post on his/her own blog. Just thought I'd offer my two cents.
That's actually a great idea. It fact, I have added it. You can't have too much promotion!
I'm glad you liked the idea. I hope it pays off! Now, I need to think of a post would benefit your readers! I've learned so much from your blog – I would love to help someone else!
I would suggest to you that you have people 'pitch' their blog post ideas to you so that you don't have to spend a whole lot of time reading a whole bunch of potential blog posts. If you only read the blogs with good pitches that 'fit' what you are looking for it seems to me you would save a whole lot of time. I tried tweeting this to you but limited characters made it difficult so I wasn't sure you could follow what I was trying to say. Anyways I hope this helps, I envision you being flooded with potential posts & I can't imagine you'll be able to read them all. Have I ever told you I love your blog and learn alot from it? I do! Thanks for taking the time to share with us.
I love seeing the way different people use their blogs in different ways for different purposes.
I love the way you are handling this and I think it's a very bold, but good step forward.
I handle guest posts quite differently on my blog but then, my blog is written with a very different purpose in mind.
I can't think of any guidelines that you should add… I think you've pretty much covered all the bases – except maybe for images.
Do you want images to be submitted with the post or would you prefer to source your own image to use?
Question: If a post is submitted and doesn't make the cut then is it OK to post on our own blog? If so…How do we know if it didn't make it? Are they all cleared back to zero each week or will you hold certain submissions over for another week?
Yes, if I don't use it, you are free to do with it as you will (see the last sentence of my post above). I will respond to your submission within 48 hours.I will schedule posts out in advance for as many good posts as I get. Regardless, I will notify you. Thanks.
Interesting post you got here. It would be great to read something more about that matter.
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Wow! I've already been tremendously impacted by your writing; now I can look forward to a variety of wisdom from others you've found valuable and/or interesting. This is particularly helpful since finding good sources of information and inspiration can be difficult.
By the way, congrats again on your Guy Kawasaki mention!
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