To get the most benefit out of being a guest author, you’ll want to be prepared beforehand.  Here’s what you do:

1. Brainstorm possible articles you could write for the blog you’re interested in.  It always helps to have a number of possible post or article ideas fleshed out as much as possible before you contact the site owner.

Who knows, perhaps one or two postings will lead to a spot as a regular contributor?

2. Craft your resource box carefully.  This is the 3-5 line bio that appears at the end of your post.  You want to drum up interest in your products with your bio, as well as showcase your expertise in the field.  Not to mention sprinkling a few keyword phrases in for good measure.

So for example, let’s say Jane is a guest author for a blog about dog grooming, and she wants to promote her own dog grooming business in the bio box.  Rather than writing something like:

Jane Doe works as a professional dog groomer at Groomers R Us.  Visit her site at www.groomersRus.com for more dog grooming tips.

As you can see, there’s no real incentive there to click.  Instead, consider writing a more interest-generating resource box, such as:

Dog grooming professional Jane Doe runs www.GroomersRus.com – selling top-quality dog grooming supplies and products to pamper your pet and keep them looking great!  Visit our website for 10% off your order!

As you can see, a few generous helpings of targeted keyphrases along with a coupon code will help Jane create a lot of interest (and orders) for her site!

3. Have some samples ready.  If the blog owner is interested in your site, chances are, they’ll ask you to provide some samples of your writing.

Even if you’ve never guest authored a blog before, have some sample articles ready to show them your experience and writing skills.  It will go a long way in proving your credibility, showcasing your writing skills and maximizing your ability to communicate to an audience.

In the end, even if the blog owner says “no thanks”, there are literally millions of blogs for you to consider.  To find them, simply search Google for “yourkeyword blog” – and replace “yourkeyword” with your type of industry, such as “dog grooming blog”.

Here’s to your success as a newly published guest author!

P.S. If you enjoyed reading this article, you can find even more web design tips at http://www.ielectrify.com/resources/

Sherice Jacob holds an M.A. in Media Studies and has played an integral role in creating several successful web businesses – for herself and others.  She currently manages a full service web design and internet marketing firm at http://www.ielectrify.com/