GlossarySEO
What is guest posting?
Also called: guest blogging, guest post, contributed article
Definition
Guest posting is writing an article published on someone else's website under your name, usually with a bio linking to your site. Done for readers it builds reach; done for links at scale it's link spam.
Guest posting, explained
At its best, guest posting is simple: a publication your buyers read needs good articles, you have expertise, and you write something genuinely useful for their audience. You get exposure, credibility and often a link. The host gets content. Plenty of founders built their first audience this way.
At its worst, it's a link scheme. Google's spam policies list, among link spam examples, advertorials or native advertising where payment is received for articles that include links passing ranking credit, and links with optimized anchor text in articles, guest posts or press releases distributed on other sites. Sites that exist mainly to sell "guest posts" to anyone, with keyword-rich anchors, are exactly what that describes.
The line is about purpose and scale. One thoughtful article on a relevant site, with a natural author bio link, is normal. Dozens of thin articles on unrelated sites, each with an exact-match anchor pointing to your money page, is a pattern built to manipulate rankings.
How to do it well: pick publications by audience, not metrics. Pitch a specific topic with an angle the site hasn't covered. Write your best work, not your leftovers. Accept the host's link policy; if they use nofollow or sponsored, the exposure is still worth it. Put the link in your bio or where it helps readers, with natural anchor text.
Red flags on the other side: sites with a "write for us" page and a price list, sites publishing guest posts on every topic from casinos to CBD, and sellers promising a DR number rather than readers.
Why it matters for founders
A few guest articles in the right publications can bring a new product readers, credibility and relevant links. Mass guest posting for links puts you in the pattern Google's policies describe.
Example
A founder of a devops tool writes a detailed incident post-mortem guide for a respected engineering blog. Readers sign up from the bio link for weeks, and the article earns links from other blogs.
Common mistakes
- Paying for guest posts on sites that publish anything for a fee.
- Using exact-match anchor text in every guest post.
- Choosing sites by Domain Rating instead of audience fit.
Sources
- Google Search Central: Spam policies for Google web search
- Google Search Central: Qualify your outbound links
Checked
Related terms
- Link buildingLink building is the work of getting other websites to link to yours. Links help search engines discover pages and judge their importance, which is why link quality and how links were earned both matter.
- Link schemeA link scheme is any practice of creating links to or from a site mainly to manipulate search rankings, such as buying links, excessive link exchanges or automated link building. Google calls it link spam.
- Anchor textAnchor text is the visible, clickable text of a link. Search engines read it as a description of the page being linked to, so clear, specific anchor text helps both readers and rankings.
- Paid links (sponsored links)Paid links are links placed in exchange for money, goods, services or free products. Google allows them for advertising if they're marked
rel="sponsored"ornofollow; unmarked paid links that pass ranking credit are link spam. - Editorial linkAn editorial link is a link another site's author or editor chose to add because it helps their readers, without payment, a trade or any requirement. It's the kind of link search engines are designed to reward.