Guest Post Guidelines
Why You Should Work With Us:
The Next Summit has a large and active reader base. Our website reached more than 303,000 users during 2022 and we are still growing. We have more than 26,000 followers on social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) and a growing email base of 3,500 subscribers.
By submitting a guest post to The Next Summit you get the opportunity to introduce yourself and your website to our community of hikers, campers, and travelers. You also benefit from two new high-quality backlinks back to your site. Third, we aren’t just a blog – we’re an organization using multiple strategies to educate the public. Working with us helps indirectly support all these efforts.
We are currently accepting guest post submissions!
The Next Summit accepts guest post submissions from other outdoor writers that provide value and solve problems for our readers and meet our guest post guidelines below. Our content focuses on quality and education – not click bait and unhelpful promotions. We prefer guest post submissions that are well-researched and written by experienced and knowledgable bloggers and writers.
We do not accept unrelated guest posts or those trying to sell goods or services .Please follow all of our guest post guidelines and the submission process below to have the best chance of getting published.
Guest Post Submission Process
1. Submit a pitch idea to us using the link below.
2. Double check to ensure it meets the guest post guidelines further below.
3. Allow us 2-4 weeks to review your pitch. If we need more time we will let you know.
4. We will email you to either 1) approve it, 2) approve it with caveats, or 3) take a pass.
5. With our feedback and approval, you can write your guest post and submit it by email.
6. We will review your submission and make edits (we reserve the right to make any necessary edits for SEO and tone).
7. We will give you a publishing date for you to share with your readers.
Guest Post Guidelines
Your material must be original and not published elsewhere
We only accept original posts. Before you start writing up a story, pitch us an idea for a story, guide, or article. Focus on how your content will be relevant and valuable for our readers.
Your topic must align with our content: hiking, camping, leave no trace, safety
Our niche is hiking, camping, mountain travel in the western United States, with a focus on safety and leave no trace info. We may accept a broader range of topics or areas, if you can show it is still valuable to our readers specifically.
Your post should be based on your personal experience, expertise, and knowledge
Pick a topic you know well – not something you need to research extensively. You should still ensure it is well-researched and use additional links in your article to cite information sources (do not use your own site more than once).
Your post can have two dofollow links to your site - one in your bio and one in body
All links you include must go to a blog – not a product or commercial page. Links to products or commercial enterprises are considered sponsored posts – guests posts are for blogs and writers only. No affiliate or marketing links are allowed.
Additionally, please meet these editorial requirements:
These are the most common guest post guidelines that people fail to meet while submitting their first draft. Ensuring you meet all of them will improve your chances of getting your pitch approved and your story published quickly and without numerous rounds of edits. Please meet the following:
- Draft is between 1,000 and 2,500 words in length
- Free from spelling and grammar mistakes
- Make use of H2 and H3 sub-headers throughout
- Include a headshot and bio (you can include one link to your own site)
- Include 2-4 links in your article (you can include one link to your own site)
- Provide five to six high-quality photos that you have ownership rights to use
Guest Post Submission Form
Before you submit your pitch, keep in mind these best practices from previous successful pitches and make sure you’ve met all of the guest post guidelines.
- Focus on how this would help solve a problem, answer a question, or teach a skill to my readers.
- Ensure it emphasizes safety and leave no trace practices.
- Try to pick an interesting angle or tell a story to teach a lesson – something that sparks interest
- Ensure the idea has depth and isn’t just a listicle of hiking trails you found on AllTrails (yes, this happened).
- Pitching a topic that can easily be optimized for SEO and potentially rank will get you extra points.
- Be 100% sure you followed all of our guest post guidelines above. This is the easiest way to get rejected.
Guest Post Guidelines Resources
Writing well-researched guest posts is not an easy task (we know – we do this work too). These are some resources I have found during my own guest blog submissions. If you follow their advice, you’ll have an easy time pitching an idea that meets our guest blog guidelines and piques our interest.
- Ultimate Guide to Guest Blog Strategy
- How to Write a Good Guest Post
- Guest Posting Best Practices for Serious Writers [2023]
Have any questions about our guest post guidelines? Visit my contact page to send me a message and I will get back to you with more information as soon as I can (usually 48 hours).
