What, So Google REALLY Killed Guest Blogging, Right?

Since 2011 when Google launched its new battle against webspam through the release of its algorithmic animals, so much has changed – whether you are talking about content marketing generally or search engine marketing in particular.

As much as some of us applauded Google’s move to “sanitize” the web, one of Google's moves was however really “controversial.” It was actually earlier this year that Google’s head of spam, Matt Cutts came out with his, “Stick a Fork in It, Guest Blogging Is Done” blog post. Since then a whole lot of theories and insinuations about guest blogging has taken over the web.

But Is Guest Blogging Really Dead?

Since the fear of Google has become the beginning of wisdom for internet marketers, Matt Cutts’ post has since become the reference point for those who want you to run for your dear live when guest blogging is mentioned.

A closer look however will reveal one common link among those who have continued to ramp up this rhyme: they are sleek internet marketers who have some “alternative” product to sell to you!

It’s true that when Matt published the above post on guest blogging, he was dead angry at what guest blogging has grown to be – an internet marketing monster!

Hear him:

“Okay, I’m calling it: if you’re using guest blogging as a way to gain links in 2014, you should probably stop. Why? Because over time it’s become a more and more spammy practice, and if you’re doing a lot of guest blogging then you’re hanging out with really bad company.”

And then, to show how angry he was about this issue, he warned:

“So stick a fork in it: guest blogging is done; it’s just gotten too spammy. In general I wouldn’t recommend accepting a guest blog post unless you are willing to vouch for someone personally or know them well. Likewise, I wouldn’t recommend relying on guest posting, guest blogging sites, or guest blogging SEO as a linkbuilding strategy.”

However, following the outcry that followed that post, Matt was quick to make some clarifications. He even went as far as editing the title of the post to read:

“The decay and fall of guest blogging for SEO.”

By adding, “for SEO” to the title Matt has shown that Google was not totally against guest blogging. This is clear with his additions to the blog post:

“I’m not trying to throw the baby out with the bath water. There are still many good reasons to do some guest blogging (exposure, branding, increased reach, community, etc.). Those reasons existed way before Google and they’ll continue into the future. And there are absolutely some fantastic, high-quality guest bloggers out there. I changed the title of this post to make it more clear that I’m talking about guest blogging for search engine optimization (SEO) purposes.

I’m also not talking about multi-author blogs. High-quality multi-author blogs like Boing Boing have been around since the beginning of the web, and they can be compelling, wonderful, and useful.

I just want to highlight that a bunch of low-quality or spam sites have latched on to “guest blogging” as their link-building strategy, and we see a lot more spammy attempts to do guest blogging. Because of that, I’d recommend skepticism (or at least caution) when someone reaches out and offers you a guest blog article.”

Unfortunately, despite these clarifications, many of these sleek internet marketing practitioners have continued to trumpet the “guest blogging is dead” tune.

Should Google Be Blamed For This Guest Blogging Is Dead Song?

I must say that I have always been a fan of Google when it comes to its stand against webspam. There is no doubt that their efforts have helped, in no small measure, in weeding out the bad and not too good.

Besides, Google’s stand is not different from what I have always believed in and preached on this blog. Having published a good number of guest posts on this blog I know the pains I go through in my bid to ensure that only the very best guest posts were published here.

Unfortunately, not many guest bloggers really appreciate this stand since many of them were “commercial” guest bloggers, paid to build links through those posts.

After trying to bring in some form of sanity by re-working my guest blogging terms a number of times, I took the initiative back in 2012 to do a series on guest blogging which, in every sense clearly outlined the stand of Google even though it was published almost a year before Matt Cutts came out with his “stick a fork in it” death blow on guest blogging!

So, Is Guest Blogging Really Dead?

My Verdict? No!

It is apparent that Google does not have an automatic bad guest post algorithm that is designed to place a spam penalty on you because you do guest posts. It is however, clear from Matt's explanations after that Google, as usual, has an eye for quality and valuable content. It doesn’t matter whether you are writing a guest post or doing a post on your own blog.

The rational is, if you are thinking of doing guest blogging as a marketing strategy you must do it well. Seek to please Google by doing it right and you can be sure that guest blogging can become a great tool in your online marketing arsenal.

In closing this post let me reference the guest blogging series which I know is still very relevant today even with Google trying to “stick a fork in it” 🙂

Ensure you read these posts for you will definitely thank me for them;

1. Strategic Guest Blogging Tactics That Gets Results!
   Let's get the party on track. Read this to get thrust of the series.
2. The Secret to Getting Hordes of Endless Free Traffic as a Guest Blogger!
   Do you want to craft monumental guest posts empowered to generate endless traffic for your business? Then start from here…
3. Ignore This Essential Element and You’ll Fail Woefully as a Guest Blogger!
   Do you really want to know the secret recipe for creating guest posts that will guarantee your success? You have it right here..
4. How to Guarantee a Continuous Flow of Traffic with Your Guest Posts!
   Finally, here is how to optimize your your guest post to ensure a continuous flow of traffic for years to come. It's what you have always thought…

If you want to download the series as an ebook there's no problem. I have published it as a pdf download available on my content writing site. Click here to download it for free.

Over to you: So, what is your stand on this “guest blogging is dead” mantra?