Celebrities who blog enjoy the perks of their fame. Thousands of people care about what they have to say. Landing a guest post on a celebrity blog and leveraging their audience for your platform is easier than you think.
A common misconception about celebrity blogs is they are difficult to guest post on. However, if you position yourself correctly and take your writing seriously, anyone can do it.
This week on The Portfolio Life, Elizabeth Bradley and I talk about her approach to getting featured on Cameron Diaz’s blog, the key components of pitching a post, and why she thinks design is more important than content.
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Position for the perfect pitch
Guest posting is a powerful tool for growing your platform. You develop relationships, increase the visibility of your content, and generate new opportunities.
Some of the biggest names in blogging used guest posting to build their tribe (Brian Clark, Chris Brogan, Leo Babauta to name a few). I used a strategic guest posting approach to gain 10,000 subscribers in 18 months.
It really boils down to positioning a couple elements: you and your content. A celebrity doesn’t know you from Adam. Cameron Diaz knows you from Adam Levine, but that is beside the point.
Positioning yourself communicates to the host blogger who you are in relation to her. Maybe you are a subscriber or maybe you know someone she knows. Establishing the relational connection creates familiarity you can build on.
If a host blogger doesn’t know you, they definitely don’t know what you write about. Positioning your content demonstrates the value you’d bring to the celebrity’s blog in a guest post. Sharing other places you’ve published content strengthens your credibility and shows you take writing seriously. Celebrities are professionals in their craft and appreciate it in others.
Positioning is only half of the process. Waiting for the right opportunity to make the right ask can make a world of difference.
Show highlights
In this episode, Elizabeth and I discuss:
- How familiarity with failure leads to familiarity with success
- Why rejecting the idea of “finding a niche” provides clarity
- The necessary steps to guest post anywhere you want
- What one blogger ruined Elizabeth’s guest posting streak
- A simple structure for pitching anything to anyone
- Myths of guest posting for celebrities
- The difference between finding a niche and defining a worldview
- Why relationships are critical to spreading a message
- A big hurdle to guest posting
- The true nature of a tribe
- What it takes to get people to help you
- Why generosity isn’t enough to build a business
- Where the idea of traffic = income is broken
- How credibility fits in the equation of increasing authority
Quotes and Takeaways
- “Ignore the doubt and failure and do it anyway.” —Elizabeth Bradley (Tweet)
- A portfolio life isn’t about doing one thing, but how everything fits together.
- Relationships are critical to getting a message to spread.
- “If you consistently help people they will help you.” —Elizabeth Bradley (Tweet)
- Investing time and money in great design.
- Use previous wins to create bigger wins.
Resources
- Becoming Holistic: Our Family’s Wellness Journey: Elizabeth’s guest post for Cameron Diaz
- How-to: Getting Started with Essential Oils: Casey Wiegand’s guest post for Cameron Diaz
- Heart Centered Abundance: Elizabeth’s guest post for Carrie Ann Moss
- Elizabeth’s blog: Savouring Simplicity
- Elizabeth’s consulting services
- Udemy
- Tribe Writers
- Download the full transcript of Elizabeth's interview (PDF)
Where do you want to guest post? What are you going to do to make it happen? Share in the comments