Part of the Goals 2010 Challenge Series, Goal 9
One of my long-term goals is to post more guest pieces on other websites or blogs. I love having my writings published on other websites. Writing a guest post improves your writing in numerous ways, because naturally many of us hold ourselves to higher standards when we are guests. The wonderful part is you do not even have to be a blogger in order to write guest posts. Some of the most prominent members of our Personal Learning Network (PLN) do not have blogs, but guest blog regularly. These include @nmhs_principal and @tomwhitby. Guest posts help you gain a positive web presence, help distinguish you as a subject matter expert (SME), help you gain exposure to a wider audience, and boost your portfolio.
Tips
Here are some useful tips, I learned from my experience:
- Have a short bio prepared- In your bio you may want to include your job position, related experience, a link to your portfolio or website, and a link to your Twitter or LinkedIn accounts.
- Have a nice profile picture prepared- Most people recommend having a picture of your likeness versus an avatar or logo.
- Write the best types of posts- Remember this will be your first impression on many new readers.
- Grammar check your posts!
- Ask the guest blogger for specific guidelines and keep to these guidelines- format, length, whether images are necessary, and what type of topics they are desired
- Reply to those who comment- at the end of all the comments you should be able to see a button that gives you the option to subscribe to comments so you are notified each time a person comments. Leaving comments is important for engaging readers in the discussion.
- Study the audience!
Where to Submit
Here are a few places that welcome posts from guest bloggers. Contact these websites through their contact pages or through Twitter. Introduce yourself, send them a bio, and your ideas for a guest piece.
- Guest series- contribute to a blog’s guest posts focused on a theme
- Investigating Global Edtech Issues– I am looking for contributors from various countries, please check here to make sure I do not have a post from your area.
- Cool Sites– I accept posts that lists favorite education technologies with examples of how you used them with your students.
- What Did They Tweet?– Choose your favorite tweets of the week and provide pics, video, and descriptions.
- Stories From the Front Lines of EFL– Barbara Saka’s series on teaching young learners English.
- 52 Teachers, 52 Lessons– Provide advice to new teachers
- Any ning site you are a part of has an area for blogging, but you can try these as well.
- Second Life is Life ning– Are you a part of Second Life, we are always looking for posts.
- Educator’s PLN ning
- Prestwick House, @PrestwickHouse
- The Educators’ Royal Treatment
- The Lesson Machine blogezine, @MyschaTheriault
To see some examples, you can visit the guest posts I have made.
If you are new to the 30 day Goal challenge then you may want to read this post with more details!
Challenge:
Choose a profile picture for your upcoming guest post. Write a short bio.
You may want to subscribe for FREE to receive regular updates!
This is goal 9 of this series! If you’d like to join the challenge, please read this post!
Don’t forget to leave a comment that you accomplished this goal using the hashtag #30Goals!
What are you passionate about writing?
