Guest post

Guest post explained

A guest post is an article you write for someone else's website, usually with a byline and often with a link back to your site. Done for the right reasons, it reaches a new audience and shows your expertise. Done purely to collect links, especially at scale or for payment, it falls under link spam in Google's spam policies.

How it affects trust

A useful article on a respected trade publication, a local business association's blog or a partner's site can bring both visibility and credibility. But "guest post packages" sold by the dozen usually put your link on sites that accept anything from anyone, which helps nobody.

Regulators and editors also notice. Trade publications and local organisations value genuinely useful contributions, and a good article can lead to speaking invitations and referrals worth more than any link.

Risky habits

• Buying guest posts priced by "authority" scores.
• Using keyword-stuffed anchor text in your bio.
• Writing the same article for several sites.
• Choosing sites for their link rather than their readers.

A realistic example

An HR consultant writes a practical guide on handling flexible working requests for her regional chamber of commerce's newsletter and website. Members read it, several contact her, and the chamber links to her profile. That's guest posting working as it should.

How to review yours

Before writing for any site, ask whether its readers are your customers and whether you'd be proud to share the article. Check the site's other posts: if they cover random topics with links to unrelated businesses, walk away. If you've bought guest posts in the past, look at where they sit and whether the links are marked.

Related link terms

• Link building: Earning or acquiring backlinks: quality and relevance matter.
• Sponsored link: A rel value marking paid or sponsored links.
• PBN: Private Blog Network: a manipulative link scheme Google targets.