Contributor Guidelines

Realzermatt.com is the evolution of our printed ‘Zermatt Ski Guide’ and is a website aiming to give useful information from Zermatt locals about the on mountain (or related) activities. We are focussing on the mountain side of the area for now rather than the town / hotels / restaurants etc.

We’re excited to open our blog to contributors who share our passion for mountain activities in Zermatt. Our aim is to highlight authentic voices and local expertise, offering readers useful, inspiring content and giving you or your business a platform to reach a wider audience.

We think to make the site more useful to visitors it would be good to have more thoughts and opinions from like minded locals.

What We’re Looking For

We welcome blog contributions that are:

  • Relevant to our audience (e.g., travel tips, local experiences, hidden gems, gear advice, event guides)
  • Authentic in tone — personal insight and storytelling are a plus. We’d like contributors to add posts with their thoughts and opinions. Be it on runs, restaurants, lessons, skiing, etc
  • Useful — posts should inform, educate, or entertain
  • Non-promotional — while we allow a backlink and short business intro, posts should provide genuine value, not read like an ad

Contributor Benefits

While we cannot offer payment at this stage, we offer:

  • A  backlink to your business or project
  • Promotion of your post on our social media channels
  • Exposure to a growing audience interested in skiing and snowboarding in Zermatt
  • Opportunities for ongoing collaboration

What We’re Looking For

Please include:

  1. A blog post draft (800–1200 words preferred)
  2. A short author bio (50–100 words, including 1 link to your business)
  3. High-quality images (minimum 1, max 4 — JPEG or PNG, with captions and image credits if not your own) If you do not have any we may well have something relevant in our collection so please let us know what you are looking for
  4. Suggested title and subheadings
  5. Any relevant links (max 2 external links within the post — 1 may point to your business site)

Writing Tips

  • Keep paragraphs short (3–5 sentences)
  • Use clear headings (H2/H3) to structure your content
  • Write in a friendly, knowledgeable tone — imagine you’re sharing tips with a curious traveler
  • Avoid jargon, and spell-check before submitting

What We Don’t Publish

  • Thin or duplicate content
  • Overtly promotional pieces or press releases
  • AI-generated content without significant human editing
  • Topics unrelated to our audience

1. Title (H1)

  • Clear, compelling, and includes a key phrase
  • Ideally under 70 characters
  • Example: “5 Hidden Hikes in Zermatt You’ll Love This Summer”

2. Introduction (2–3 short paragraphs)

  • Hook the reader with a relatable question, surprising fact, or anecdote
  • Set expectations for what they’ll learn or discover

3. Body Content (divided with H2s)

Break content into sections with descriptive subheadings:

  • Use H2 headings for each major point or section
  • Use H3s if you need to break down a subsection
  • Keep paragraphs short (3–5 sentences)
  • Use bullet points or numbered lists where useful
  • Add internal links to other relevant posts (if applicable)

Example Structure:

H2: Why Visit in Summer?

  • Quick overview
  • Personal insight or experience

H2: Top 5 Hikes in Zermatt

  • H3: Hike #1 – Riffelsee Walk
  • H3: Hike #2 – Five Lakes Trail
  • …

H2: Tips for Planning Your Trip

  • Weather, gear, transport, local guides

4. Visuals

  • Include 1–4 high-quality images with captions
  • Format for web (under 300KB if possible)
  • Add alt text for accessibility and SEO

5. Conclusion

  • Summarise key takeaways
  • Add a personal note or encouragement
  • Invite readers to comment or share

6. Author Bio (optional and only necessary with 1st post you send)

  • 50–100 words
  • 1 link to your website or social media
  • Example: “Jane Doe is the founder of Alpine Eats, a local food tour company in Zermatt. She loves hiking, fondue, and helping visitors discover the best of the Alps.”

Style Tips

  • Friendly, conversational tone. Make it ‘Real’ and sound like it comes from someone who genuinely lives in Zermatt.
  • Avoid passive voice and filler phrases
  • Spell-check and proofread
  • Always aim to offer real value to the reader

What We’re Looking For

Please email your submission (or pitch idea) to: contributions@realzermatt.com with the subject line “Blog Contribution – [Your Business/Name]”

We’ll review and get back to you within 1–2 weeks. We may suggest edits to better align with our voice and formatting. If you have any questions regarding a post you have in mind then please get in touch at the same email address.