You may have seen one of the sponsored posts you've been eying lately. They look so enticing, and you just can't resist clicking on the "propose" button. Your eyes light up when the offer is for guest blogging. This sounds easy enough; after all, you write about things you are passionate about, right? So what's the catch?
When you accept the invitation to become a guest blogger, expect to get paid for guest blogging. The agreement you sign with the sponsor says so, and it is legally binding. The fact that you agreed to be a guest does not mean that you didn't get paid for your time. The sponsor pays you for your exposure, so the revenue generated from those posts should be substantial. If you don't get paid for guest blogging, then you have wasted your time and your sponsor's money.
To make a good living as a guest blogger, you need to establish yourself as an expert in your niche, with plenty of useful content on your blog. Then you need to drive traffic to your guest blog. This requires search engine optimization (SEO), which means making sure your site shows up well in the organic or "natural" listings for searches. In other words, you can't submit to just any old blog hoping to get listed in search engines. You need to target the right audience for your niche, and you need to provide them with useful information.
So, how do you get paid for guest blogging? There are actually several ways. One way is through advertisers. Many companies, as part of their marketing campaign, want to include a link to their blog in a newsletter, press release, or online announcement. Links can be bought per thousand or per day, depending on the size of the company.
Another way to get paid is through a company-sponsored contest. You can enter these yourself or pay to have one written for you. These usually pay a set amount per word or per line, with varying payment amounts as well. If you're looking to make money as a guest blogger, this can be a good option for you. Just make sure the contest is relevant to your niche.
Another way is through a payment, either per post or per month, from a company that has a contract with a particular blog. A good example is the Red Hat Society. They pay bloggers to write guest posts for their website, and also offer many other types of contests, such as a monthly photo contest, to reward people who do well in their assignments.
Lastly, you can get paid for guest blogging as a favor, if you're a friend of a guest blogger who has a big heart. Do them a favor and give them a gift that will help them out. This is often referred to as a "back-link." The amount you're going to get paid for this is generally based on the popularity of the gift you give. Generally, these gifts include eBooks, software, videos, and other information that would appeal to a lot of people.
Depending on your niche, there are literally dozens of ways to make money online. One of the best ways to make money online is by working for yourself, without an employer. Whether you're interested in freelance writing, affiliate marketing, search engine optimization, blogging, online business, or any other area, there are plenty of opportunities to turn your passion into a full time income. In order to maximize your earning potential, it's important that you do your homework and find the right type of work. Whether you're interested in pay-per-click programs, selling physical products, blogging, or any other way, you can find work as a guest writer.