Written by: Kimberly Viera, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
You don’t have to create all of your content yourself. An excellent marketing strategy that offers high value and extends your reach is to leverage the power of guests in your business.
By inviting guest experts to appear in your content (podcast, blog, videos), you offer even more for your audience while taking some of the pressure off of yourself.
Why invite guests to join you?
By leveraging the combined experience of you and your guest, you offer more value to your audience.
Your guest can fill in gaps where you’re not an expert on the topic.
You can gain access to your guest’s audience. Some of their audience will check out your content because they’re there.
It presents a great opportunity for networking. Invite new people you’ve met to join you in this win-win project.
How to use guests in your marketing strategy
One of the best ways to incorporate guests into your marketing strategy is to interview them.
Find an expert in your niche and interview them for your blog, live stream, podcast, or YouTube channel. Ask them questions from your audience or get them to talk about their areas of expertise. You only have to come up with the questions and lead the discussion. Your guest will do the rest.
You can also invite a guest to create content for you. The most common way to do this is guest blogging. Let an influencer in your niche publish their own posts on your blog and interact with your audience. This gives your readers some variety and adds to the knowledge you can share.
You can also invite a guest to co-host a social media event with you. For example, you could hold an online seminar or social media challenge with a guest. With both of you promoting the event together, you’re sure to attract a lot of participants.
Brainstorm event or project ideas with potential guests or come up with ideas on your own.
6 Tips for choosing guests
Spend time vetting your guests. Choose your guests wisely. They should be a respected expert, preferably with a large following. The quality and value they offer will reflect back on you.
A good way to vet is to start following influencers and experts in your niche long before you approach them. Then, when you’re ready to make a proposal, choosing who to contact will be a no-brainer.
Relevancy beats follower counts. While it’s natural that you want a guest with a large number of followers, don’t let audience size be the sole determining factor. If someone’s expertise is relevant to your audience, they’ll offer great value.
Be transparent. Be genuine and transparent about why you’re reaching out to the person. Explain the reasons why you’d like them on board and the benefits for them.
Create a winning proposal. Create a customizable proposal template for current and future guests. Your proposal should explain the project in detail and explain the benefits.
Offer something in return. You may want to offer guests something upfront in return for their participation. If you don’t want to offer something specific, leave it open for them to decide. Don’t offer them “exposure” but instead offer something you’ll actually do for them that has value.
Make It long-term. Don’t think of this partnership as a one-time event. Guest projects are a great way to kick off a valuable long-term relationship. Think about events or projects you can collaborate on in the future.
Get into the regular routine of networking to seek out potential guests and include them in your social media strategy. The work you do finding them and incorporating them into your strategy will pay off.
Ready to discover other creative ways to reach your audience and sign up clients? JoinTheEveolution.com
Kimberly Viera, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Kimberly Viera is on a mission to help every woman become financially independent and gain control over her life by starting an online business. As the founder of JoinTheEveolution, she helps women build transformational coaching and wellness businesses that earn them a sustainable living within a year while giving them the time and lifestyle freedom they've been dreaming of. Stop Letting Things Happen. Start Making Them Happen. Join the Evolution.
