1. Brainstorm at least 50 topics related to your book/product/service that you could write/talk about if you guested on someone’s blog.

2. Brainstorm several types of blogs that would be a good fit for your topics (parenting blogs? finance blogs? political blogs? marketing blogs?)

3. Visit a blog search engine such as Google Blog Search or Technorati and look for well-read blogs within those topic areas.

4. Visit each blog to get a feel for the writer, the topics being written about, and the reader interaction.

5. E-mail the blog’s author and introduce yourself (many bloggers don’t include their e-mail address in their profile, so you might have to use the Comments area beneath the most recent post to get the blogger’s attention).

Yes, researching for a blog tour takes lots of time and energy. But a well-planned tour can be an excellent means of getting the word out about you and your product.

Laura Christianson
co-founder, HeBlogsSheBlogs.com

I do an ongoing blog tour for the two books I’ve written on the topic of adoption (”The Adoption Decision” and “The Adoption Network”). My tour is ongoing since my topics are timeless and there’s an ever-changing crop of new prospective adoptive parents.

Since my books are very niche-market, I will often ask another blogger if they’d be interested in hosting a Q & A with me on their blog in exchange for a couple of free books. Bloggers are always looking for new content and books/authors within their subject area, so they almost always say yes.

And I don’t just guest on adoption blogs, either. As Camy recommended, I look for blogs across the spectrum that might be interested in a topic from my book (for instance, I guested on a personal finance blog and provided tips about how to fund your adoption).

Since I have been blogging about adoption for over four years and have developed a steady following, people often initiate e-mail conversations with me. After checking out their blog and making sure it looks legit, I will often offer to bring my blog tour to their blog.

I’ve discovered that most bloggers feel hesitant to ask an author to “guest star” on their blog. Maybe they believe the author is too busy, or not interested in them, or too famous to care. So it’s important that YOU offer if you’re willing to make their blog a stop on your tour.

So let’s turn this around for a sec: If you’re interested in hosting an author (or anyone you admire) on your blog, just ask them. What’s the worst that can happen? They can either a) not reply or b) say no.

But chances are, they’ll say yes, and you’ll have the opportunity to develop a relationship with that person and introduce them to your blog’s readers.

When working with a person on blog tour, I advise being respectful of the person’s time. Don’t inundate them with e-mails or add them to your e-mail list (I’ve had bloggers who think I’m their new best friend do this to me). When the tour is over, send the person a thank-you note or e-mail (whether you’re the host or the guest).

Laura Christianson
co-founder, HeBlogsSheBlogs.com

Thanks, Teri

Thanks, Kathy, I’m glad it was helpful!
Camy