This insight post is a summary of the original blog post published by Linhart PR. View the full length blog post here: Three Best Practices for Contributed Content Success.
If you’re a public relations professional, you’re probably no stranger to contributed content. In fact, you’ve probably seen an increase in requests for contributed content in the post-pandemic era.
A recent report from Influence & Co. found that 97.5% of publication editors are planning to publish as much or more guest-contributed content in 2023 as last year. This means there’s even more opportunity to reach your target audiences with messages you craft and control, as well as insights and thought leadership on relevant topics.
Contributed content, bylined articles, op-eds or guest posts are all pieces of content shared by news outlets that are written by a third-party source. Contributed content is a great way to control your message and position executives as thought leaders within an industry or on a particular trend or topic.
Best Practice #1: Be Unique
Are you writing about a popular trend? If your perspective is too similar to others, it likely won’t be picked up. Think about how your insights are unique and different. Then, tie it back to your brand or organization in a clear, digestible way. Questions to ask during this process might include: Who is our audience? What’s missing from the conversation? What do I have to say that’s unique and valuable? How are my insights helping the reader? Why does it matter?
Best Practice #2: Don’t Self-Promote
Contributed content drafted for third-party publications should share insights and perspective on the topic, rather than promoting your product or service. In fact, many publications don’t accept contributions with self-serving language. Instead, look for opportunities to link back to your website in a non-promotional manner, like to a recent study or to a blog post on a similar topic.
Visit the full blog post to learn about the final best practice: hyper-segmentation.
