Article Submission Guidelines

Length: minimum of 500 words

Content: must be unique and original

Formatting: single-spaced, with proper headings and subheadings

Language: appropriate language and no profanity

Images: should be high resolution and relevant to the content

Topics for Submissions

• Personal essay on a unique experience or perspective

• Listicle or round-up of related information or products

• Profile on a notable figure or organization

• How-to guide on a specific skill or activity

• Opinion piece on a relevant topic or issue

• In-depth analysis of a current event or issue

Review Process

i. Prescott City Guide team will review all submissions

ii. Will notify authors if their piece has been accepted or rejected

iii. Constructive feedback will be provided for rejected submissions

Tips

Posts should be 1,000 – 1,500+ words in length. We find this is a sweet spot with our readership, and you’ll fit in with the rest of our blog this way. Longer is good, too.

Break up your content, so it’s easy to read. This means including headings, subheadings, bullets, and any other visual elements to increase the readability of your piece.

Write in a natural, conversational tone. We want to share content that is authoritative, but not robotic. We’re producing blog content — not Wikipedia pages, so don’t shy away from showing off your sense of humor. That said, if your guest post was a movie, the highest rating we’d want to see on it is PG-13.

All content MUST BE ORIGINAL. We do not accept duplicate or syndicated content as guest posts. If your post has appeared anywhere else on the web, we can’t publish it on our blog. If you quote other content, link to it.

Always name your sources. We understand that you’re an expert, but our audience might not be so sure. If you’re going to drop some stats (ie: “open rates jumped 55 percent overnight”), link back to the original source.

Talk about your real-world experience. Talk about mistakes you’ve made, plans you’ve built, and strategies you’ve executed. Draw on your own personal experience to speak authoritatively about what you know.

Other Things to Include in Your Guest Post

• Statistics. Try to include verifiable first or third party research, statistics, and data in your post.

• Outbound Links. Does somebody else have a great point of view on a topic? Want to make sure people know a certain definition of a word or concept? Link to it. Make sure these links are to authoritative sites. Only link to your site if it’s a highly relevant blog post.

• Lists and Bullets. We’re fans. Readers are fans. Most people skim articles until they find the value. Bullet points make this easy.

• Actionable Takeaways. Recap the takeaways of your article as bullet points at the end of your post.