Palm Springs California USA
Did you know that blogging is the only strategy you yield complete control over?
Think about it.
You pay the domain and hosting bills. You own the content, lay down the cyber law, monetize how you wish, set the seeming algorithm and call the blogging shots.
Being the Big Blogging Honcho is the logical choice as you prioritize strategies.
Case in point; I sat down to write, edit then publish this post today because I maintain full control over Blogging From Paradise Dot Com. I could have done offsite stuff but
- have only a little time to blog because we travel soon
- do not own those offsite sources so I make my blog A1
No one else has power here but me. I bought the domain. I pay the hosting bills. It is mine. I do as I wish here.
Running your blog is the best way online to:
- build authority
- earn trust
- leverage
- grow a loyal tribe
- set the rules
- generate online income
Owning a blog means that you lay the law, own everything and flat out call the shots.
Nothing beats that, including guest blogging.
Why Am I Writing This Post?
Guest blogging rocks.
I suggest guest blogging as a leveraging factor. Go for it to expand your online reach far and wide.
I noticed something about guest blogging over the years. A surprising percentage of online entrepreneurs use guest blogging and social media to drive organic traffic and grow their online business. Some toss in LinkedIn to enhance the effect.
But you do not:
- own the blog where you guest post
- set the guest blogging rules
- own the content on blog where you guest post
That’s a big problem.
If you do not own these blogs – and certainly none of you own social media sites – your online business rests precariously on a foundation of quick sand.
What if the blog changes ownership? What if the blogger moves in a different direction as far as a niche? What if the blogger closes guest blogging permanently?
What if the blogger changes values? How does that reflect on you and your blog? I guest blogged for dozens of bloggers who jumped from sharing detailed posts to pushing money-making opportunities. My guest posts – although still helpful – became linked to “make money online” opportunities. Did the new readers who wanted only to make money online harbor any interest in patiently following the creating and connecting steps I shared through my guest posts?
Hell no!
What about any potential SEO benefits? My blog link was subsequently aligned with a spammy blog. Google did not like that at all. Ultimately, I lost serious SEO sway because I spent too much time guest blogging on sites where I had zero control.
Do you see why blogging trumps guest blogging?
Respect this Process
First, build your blog. Buy your domain and hosting. Publish detailed content covering one niche. Be consistent.
Add guest blogging as a secondary marketing tactic but after you establish a strong foundation for your blog.
Give almost all attention and energy to building your blog first and foremost.
Publish one long form blog post weekly. Link to prior posts based on relevance. Open blog comments. Read and reply to comments in a timely fashion. Solve pressing niche problems. Share practical tips to guide readers from problems to solutions. Drive organic traffic. Build your blogging community.
You own your blog. You control it. Of course you need to spend most time building your online real estate.
Slowly add guest blogging and social media marketing to amplify your reach. But prioritize your blog always because you’ve no control of these other blogs, X, Facebook and YouTube.
Never Go Gaga for Guest Blogging
Online entrepreneurs sometimes go nuts for guest blogging.
But if you do not own the site…..why are you so excited?
1,100 guest posts of mine got flushed down the cyber toilet in a split second years ago.
Someone else bought the blog. That someone else had a different vision. That someone else deleted my 1,100 guest posts. Hey; it happens.
Good thing I had hundreds of Blogging From Paradise Dot Com posts generating passive sweetness for me around the clock.
I make my blog A1 because I own it, set the rules and call the shots here.
Help people primarily through your online real estate.
If offsite traffic channels come and go – as is often the case – your organic traffic and blogging income increases independent of one or more channels disappearing overnight.
Perhaps your traffic and income dips mildly if you lose one traffic channel. But doubling down on remaining offsite streams, adding streams or tripling down on your blog content by adding depth, targeting and lowering your bounce rate spikes traffic and income again.
Do You Value Your Blog?
Most bloggers focus on guest blogging before blogging because most do not value their blogs.
I used to treat my blog as an afterthought. Working offsite seemed far more important than blogging onsite.
Get burned enough and you change values stupid fast.
The 1100 guest posts down the shitter debacle woke me up violently.
But I noticed something else.
I submitted hundreds of guest posts to blogs with few readers because I:
- felt guilty about turning bloggers down
- wanted to do favors for them
I assure you; building a business on guilt and favors does not make consistent bank.
I would have been most helpful spending those 100’s of hours:
- writing detailed, targeted, long form blog posts for Blogging From Paradise Dot Com
- running a lively commenting section on my blog
- building a large, loyal community on my blog
- keeping my bounce rate low
- promoting my blogging online course and blogging eBooks aggressively here
versus placing guest posts on sites with no readers.
I do not say that to mock new and/or struggling bloggers. I love you guys. I condemn no one.
But pointing out my mistake guides you to NOT make an identical error.
Conclusion
Prioritize your blog.
Backburner guest blogging until your blog gains some serious mojo.
Your Turn
Do you guest blog?
Do you need to prioritize your blog over guest blogging?
Blogging Resources
