Lightings Expert Blog

Guest post requirements

Here are some best practices that will help us to respond to you faster and, if your topic is a go, get it published sooner.

1. Get a feel for our style

Please do this! To get a feel for not only our topics, but also our tone and basic format (short intros, lots of headings and subheadings, short paragraphs, value-adding images, etc.). Read a few posts in full, and then do some skimming and exploring.

2. Make sure we haven’t already covered your idea

We’ve been around for over a decade, so this is a must! If we have covered your topic, we may still be interested if you can offer something more up-to-date or approach it with a fresh angle or different perspective. The best way to see if we’ve covered your topic is to do a site search on Google:

Here’s what we want!

•         Sufficient length: 1,500 words minimum (but don’t add fluff if you don’t hit that mark)

•         Short intro: ~150 words. Introduce your topic and then tell the reader what the post will cover.

•         Friendly tone: Conversational, not corporate!

•         High quality: Original, actionable, organized, and accurate!

•         Skimmability: Headings, subheadings, short paragraphs, etc.

•         Please use sentence case with your headings!

•         Images: Images should add value to the content

Here’s what we DON’T want!

•         Too many backlinks: You can include a maximum of 1 per post, to YOUR site.

•         External links to sites other than your own are okay for citing images and stats. They are not okay for earning that site a backlink.

•         Thin content that demonstrates a lack of depth of knowledge on a topic.

•         Fluff: redundant, filler words, uses many words to say little.

•         Overly promotional content.

•         Previously published or sponsored content.

•         Stock images!

What to expect

We get a large volume of guest pitches, so please be patient with us throughout the process.

1.       Pitch response: If your pitch is chosen, we’ll do our best to respond within 1-2 weeks. Please follow up in three weeks if you haven’t heard from us.

2.       Outline: Once we nail down the topic and title, we’ll request an outline. If the outline is approved, you’ll get drafting!

3.       Publishing: Depending on the level of edits needed and our content calendar needs, your post could get published anywhere from 2 to 3 days after you’ve submitted it. This can be longer if we are particularly backlogged.

Ready to pitch?