Yep, you’ve read it right. We aren’t talking about paying guest posters, but getting payment from guest posters so that they will have a chance to be published. And it’s not like these blogs are just selling spots to anyone who wants to have their articles published- they want the same quality, original and targeted posts that other respectable blogs (that either pay by bylines and exposure or the ones that do pay actual money in addition to that) do. And while these blogs that require you to pay do offer the bylines and exposure, they have the added requirement of payment exchange for a quality guest post from you.
I first came across this on We Blog Better’s guest posting guidelines. Now, in all fairness, the editor gives you two options:
1) You can apply to be a regular contributor (though the contributor will be paid by exposure only),
2) Or you can deposit $40 with your guest post, and if it is not accepted, you will get a refund. If it is published, you’re not getting the refund.
She also explains her reason for these options: crappy, time-consuming submissions. And while her new set of guidelines seem to be an effective way of eliminating the careless and generic articles, it might put off bloggers/writers who actually pay attention to their pitches and writing.
Granted, this successful blog doesn’t exactly need all the guest post writers out there, but I don’t think many good writers would tempted to deposit or apply for a regular position (which probably doesn’t pay either.)
It just might be easier for them to apply to other popular blogs that they don’t have such guidelines. They might have to wait longer for a response, but that comes with the pitching territory.
But there is another blog that doesn’t offer a refund, at least not on their guidelines.
Million Clues says “Cost per Guest Post is $50,” meaning they do want to be paid $50 – no wonder a lot of the other guest-post guidelines are yelling “get featured for free.” This “benefit” listed on their guest post guidelines had seemed redundant to me until I came across this one.
Yes, you will only need to pay after your post is accepted. But honestly, if Problogger or Copyblogger doesn’t request money, I don’t think anyone else should. And then there established blogs for writers/bloggers who actually pay for the guest posts their publishing – such as Make a Living Writing, The Renegade Writer and Rock Solid Finance, among others.
Imagine what would writers’ lives be like if suddenly established magazines started charging money to read submissions? Ouch. It gives me the shivers to think about it.
You might say one is blogging and the other is writing, but come on. If a blogger is truly researching the publication, sweating over her query, outline and the article, I’d say that she is a writer. Why should she also pay in addition to her efforts, especially if she is content with byline and exposure for her efforts?
There might be more blogs charging for a guest post (opportunity), but I have stumbled upon these two so far.
So what do you think?
– Are you a fan of guest posting as a marketing strategy, whether it is for your blogging/writing career and/or your business?
– Do you think blog owners should pay guest bloggers?
– Do you think it is a good idea to ask money from the posters?
Hi Pinar,
I’m glad you took on this topic – I like the objective way you approached it. I hope you’ll give me this opportunity to expand on my reasoning behind charging people to guest post on my site. I just don’t have the time to keep contending with spammers and bloggers whose sole reason for wanting to guest post on my site was to gain a link. That’s who $40 fee is for. The reason I needed to establish a “regular contributor” system was to also help me regulate quality. Unlike Problogger or Copyblogger, I don’t have a content manager who can sift through the crap. It’s just me – spending countless hours reviewing and painstakingly editing less than perfect blog posts. My time is valuable, the most time I send reviewing and editing guest posts, the less time I have to do more productive activities that bring in income. I had to be the one to start valuing my time, no one else will.
Most bloggers who know me, know that there’s always an open invitation to do a one time blog post if they only ask – with that said, so far, I’ve only charged one person – and their goal was to get the link, so both parties were satisfied. It’s just like purchasing advertising, but all of us know that blog posts are more effective than purchasing ad space – so in essence offering guest posts had become free advertising, so I had to do something about it. I don’t regret it. Things have been much quieter and peaceful. Reviewing guest posts is no longer a time-consuming chore that I wasn’t getting paid for.
Hi Kiesha,
Thanks for replying! Since your blog is quite popular, I didn’t really expect you not to have an assistant. My reaction was more of a writer’s than a blogger’s- some bloggers do see writing as content marketing and nothing more. I also know that people offering to guest post who haven’t even got an idea of the blog’s tone and purpose is quite annoying. I’m getting guest post offers even though I am not searching for them, and some of the generic stuff is laughable. With all the guest blogging guides out there, you would expect people to have gotten the hint by now.
It is great that you know how valuable your time is, and you have found your own way of not wasting it. But you can see how scary it would be for writers if editors suddenly started asking for payment-I think many writers would have a heart attack just seeing that requirement on the guidelines : )
Hi Pinar — Thanks for taking this topic on.
I’m a little stunned to hear Keisha is charging people to publish guest posts.
I don’t have a content editor either, it’s just me. Consider flipping it over and paying people, Keisha — you’ll immediately see a big difference in the quality of submissions you receive.
I also do not accept pre-written posts or any post I have not pre-approved. You have to pitch me a headline and outline and then get a greenlight to write it to get paid.
I find this process screens out 95% of the garbage — most people cannot seem to follow these directions! Also helps get rid of all the weird scams out there where people really just want to figure out how to get a link to onlinecolleges.com or some such garbage onto your busy site for linkbuilding.
If I’m not going to like their writing or idea, I can tell in the pitch phase and move on. To me it’s worth the $50 because posters I DO work with tend to take the post more seriously and the writing is usually great, and they provide fresh voices and tips from their own experience, and it broadens the knowledge you can get from subscribing to my blog.
Pay-to-play has sucked since I was doing it to play rock ‘n’ roll in L.A. back in the ’80s. That’s not helping to win you raving fans among your guest posters the way paying for posts does. Try it, you’ll like it!
Hi Carol, I’m glad you stopped by, since you inspired a lot of other bloggers to pay for their guest posters as well.
The fact that you pay might have increased the number of submissions, but it has also increased the quality as well. It motivated more and more writers, of all levels of expertise and success, to share their stories. I hope more blogs follow your lead.