By Don Sturgill
Guest Blogging – it’s like candy. You know you want some, but you’re not sure it’s good for you.
Once considered the primary way for publishers to get fresh content and writers to get not only a backlink, but their names splattered all over the webosphere … guest blogging has come under fire recently.
Why is that?
Table of Contents
Google and Game Theory
I don’t believe I’ve ever heard anyone accuse googlers (Google staff) of being dumb. One thing you can bet, behind every move Google makes, is that there is a good reason for it. Many observers see Game Theory at work, especially over the past year or so and especially concerning Panda/Penguin and all the hoopla surrounding them.
“War, business, and biology” — hmmm.
Think of a situation where a labor union wants to represent the employees at a manufacturing facility. The company bucks back hard, and the workers are caught in the middle. Some say the union would be a good thing: medical benefits, no firing without just cause, a pay raise. Others say the company is doing just fine, they are fortunate to have a job, and they don’t want to pay union dues. The company says unionization would cost too much and would force them to shut the doors. No one would have a job.
Given two choices: fight for better conditions, but maybe lose your job, or agree with the boss and keep your job … which would you take? Game Theory says most workers will choose to play it safe and not rock the boat – since to hold out against the crowd is a dangerous proposition. Status quo is the safest choice.
The logic goes like this: Google knows the internet is too big to control. To get folks to adhere to their wishes, they must get the momentum of the people working in the direction Google wants them to go. By leaking certain information, by insinuating certain things, bloggers and webmasters around the globe are being taught to dance in a certain way. (By the way, I’m not saying it’s a bad dance … just that it may be choreographed.)
Game Theory and Guest Blogging
Action: Someone at Google mentions guest blogging as a potential source of getting Google-slapped. Reaction: There is a rush to the door.
Google has netizens running together like a herd of cattle, all managed by one cowboy who doesn’t have to do more than whistle to get his way. And should any of the doggies stray, his wranglers will take care of them. It’s a beautiful thing to see.
Except if your livelihood depends on the SERP. Then, it’s a bit scary. (The good news, of course, is that AdWords is standing by to carry you on home.)
In a way, Google is like the wonderful, generous, unmarried uncle who loves to distribute money and gifts to his nephews and nieces. He wears a “Don’t Be Evil” tee-shirt and loves to help people learn and grow. Then comes that awful day — August 19, 2004 – when the uncle falls for the siren call of the evil Cruella von Cash. He slowly turns into a miser, even returns to his relatives and demands repayment, threatening to cut them out of his bountiful will if they don’t pay up. His new shirt says “Behold My Power and Dance.”
Ouch. The one you once loved has turned into a monster. What can you do? Most have simply turned up the volume and started dancing to whichever tune the piper chooses.
Enough of that – here’s the bright side
The internet, my friend, is fueled by links. You need links. Your readers need links. The search engines need links – but they also need worthwhile content. You need Google. That is true. But Google also needs you. Like any other business, Google must have customers in order to survive.
Here’s the first secret
Guest blogging is still the best way to build links, get your message out there, and get your face spattered on computer screens all the way from Boston to Hong Kong and everywhere in between.
Here’s the second secret
Given the mass exodus by those without sufficient courage and common sense (a rare combination, by the way), there is a plethora of great articles available for the taking. Even mediocre sites stand a good chance of being awarded all the content the funnel can handle.
Where do you find well-written articles … for FREE?
Enter Ann Smarty and My Blog Guest.
Ann Smarty had a dream
What if someone launched a website aimed at introducing writers and publishers? And what if the site was bursting with value, but charged only for premium services – and, even then, at a ridiculously fair price? Ann has a big heart. And seeing the results she and others were realizing from their guest blogging activity (a huge part of Ann’s own success), she wanted to pass on the good news.
That’s why she founded My Blog Guest. It is the premier internet location for writers and publishers to meet and exchange value. Writers have work needing a pubisher. Publishers have websites in need of articles. It’s a “beautiful thang.” Nobody gets hurt. Both sides win.
Spammers and scammers have dreams too
As the project developed, Ann saw there had to be intervention. Otherwise her infant site would get smothered by horribly spun articles and obvious attempts at SERP manipulation. Early on, she warned the online community to police themselves in order to keep from being policed … though few listened.
Ann brought moderators on board to help keep My Blog Guest (MBG) clean. She pleaded with people to listen and stop hurting themselves with low quality articles and websites. Many took advantage of her goodness, accepted a free membership, and repeatedly tried to pass pigs ears for diamonds. Some grasped the vision and began networking with one another, and others saw the potential but couldn’t quite figure out how to make it work. (MBG is like visiting a city. Knowing your way around adds considerably to your experience. Otherwise, you can end up in places you’d rather not be.)
But … once you have things figured out, once you know where you are and what’s going on … magic can happen.
Right now, smart publishers are reaping gold on My Blog Guest
In the not too distant past, good articles didn’t last long. Publishers were eager for content, and link-building via guest blogging was in full swing.
Then, the wind changed. The Google wranglers got the herd’s attention and the drive to market was on. Fearing repercussions, publishers began battening down the hatches, hastening first to confess their sins to Google, then to point fingers at one another – all reminiscent of the granddaddy of all Game Theory scenarios: The Prisoner’s Dilemma.
In the wake, the outlets for articles are fewer – meaning those that remain are getting more of the flow. Last year, I was awarded maybe one in ten of the articles I requested on My Blog Guest. When the herd moved south, my success rate doubled, then tripled, then quadrupled. It’s a bidder’s market out there folks, opening the door for decent publishers to score big and attract great writers.
How can you get in the action and become as smart as Ann Smarty?
One place: My Blog Guest.
Latest posts by Don Sturgill (see all)
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