10 Ways to Intensify Your Article Marketing by Terri Seymour

Article marketing is a method of online and offline marketing in which you write informative articles and make them available for reprint and distribution to various webmasters and print publications. If your article is well-written and contains helpful information it has the potential to give you an enormous amount of exposure for your business. These articles can also help build your reputation as an authority in your field which can help bring you more customers.

Many people have doubts when it comes to writing and distributing articles but with a little time and effort it can be done. Below are ten tips for establishing your article marketing campaign.

1. Keep It Simple – Craft articles that are simple and straightforward. Be sure it contains relevant and helpful information for your readers. There is no need for big, fancy words. Write as if you were simply telling a friend all about the article subject. Let your personality shine through in your words and watch your article come alive!

2. Research Thoroughly – One mistake some people make is to publish information that is outdated or inaccurate. Be sure to research all your facts and be sure everything is up to date and accurate.

3. Keywords – Using relevant keywords in your writing is important for search engine placement so people can find your articles more often. But do not make the mistake of overloading your articles with keywords and phrases to the point that your article will not be well-written or make any sense. Be sure to read your finished article and watch for keyword overload.

4. Attention Grabbing Titles – Your article title could be the deciding factor to whether or not your article gets read. I know when I am sifting through articles the title is what helps me decide which article to read. Use power words in your title to grab and hold a person’s interest.

For example:

Which article would interest you more?

“10 Ways to Increase Your Income”

“10 Guaranteed Ways to Make Money Now”

Both sound interesting but I would probably go after the second title. It has that something extra that gets my attention. Using power words like “Guaranteed” and “Now” will spark emotion in the reader and draw them in.

5. Always Proofread – Even though you are writing an article containing basic information, you want it to look and sound professional. Be sure to use proper grammar and make sure all words are spelled correctly. Unfortunately I have seen some articles that looked as if a 5 year old had written it. Please be sure to check it over at least once. I like to proofread twice as I have missed a thing or two over the years.

6. Effective Resource Box – Always write your resource box in third person format. You want your name to get etched into the reader’s memory. Tell a little about yourself and then list a compelling reason for people to visit your site/business.

Example:

Jane Doe has 15 years experience as a business coach and has worked extensively with major corporations. Visit Jane’s site for free information on how to improve your business and her award-winning book on how to triple your company’s sales. Add your link here.

7. Quality Not Quantity – Some people will say to submit your article to as many places as possible, but I disagree. I would submit each article to a dozen or more of the higher ranked, quality ezine directories. You can see a list of the top ten at my site. It would be impossible, time-wise to submit to all the article directories so making a list of the top 10 or 20 or so would be the best thing to do. I personally submit my articles to a list of 30 with the top one being EzineArticles.

8. Social Bookmarking – Social bookmarking is a way for people to share your articles with friends and/or business associates. This can greatly increase the power of your article. One of the best sites for social bookmarking beginners is Blinklist.

Some others are:

Delicious

Digg

StumbleUpon

9. Follow Guidelines – All article directories will have guidelines for you to follow. Be sure and abide by each site’s guidelines or your article will be rejected. Most directories will require a 500 word minimum with links only being allowed in your resource box. Do not put your site info or link in the article body. Most sites will not allow links of any kind in the article body.

10. Article Spinning: Good or Bad? – Article spinning is taking an article, and using software to change parts of it in an attempt to make it another unique article. In doing so, one article can become 5 or 10 (so-called) unique articles. To me, this is the lazy way of writing articles and in my opinion does not do much for your reputation. Some people say it works for them but it is something I would neither do nor recommend. Writing a true unique quality article can be done in an hour or two and will be much more beneficial than wringing out one article to try to get several.

I have been writing articles for about 12 years or so and still try to learn more on how to improve my article marketing. The above ten tips will go a long way in improving your article marketing success. Much luck to you in your campaign efforts.
About the Author:
Terri Seymour has over twelve years of online experience and has helped many people start their own business. Visit her site for free articles, resources, information, resell ebooks and more. Sign up for the RSS Feed for a free business ebook with MRR. http://www.SeymourProducts.com

Article Source: WAHM Articles

10 Major Online Marketing Mistakes by Terri Seymour

Online marketing, also called internet marketing is forever evolving and if you own an online business you need to keep abreast of all the options available to you and your business. Building a business is a learning process and we all will make mistakes. The main thing is to learn from our mistakes so as not to make them again. In my years of online marketing I have learned a lot and want to share with you, what I think, are 10 of the major online marketing mistakes.

1. Not Collecting Email Addresses – Have you ever heard the statement, the money is in the list? Your list can be your goldmine. If you are not collecting email addresses, you need to start now. Put a sign-up form on your site so people can sign up to your mailing list, newsletter, RSS, articles, etc. Offer them a free bonus for signing up. You will be able to collect a list of names with which to send your special offers, sales, etc. and greatly increase your income potential. Be sure to include an opt-out in all mailings. This will give your subscribers the chance to remove themselves from your mailing list if they so choose. Also, never add a person’s email address to your list without their permission.

2. Not Being Social – Social networking has exploded on the internet. Millions of people use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and many other popular sites. If you are not using these sites for your business, you are making a grave error. People will be finding other businesses and not even know you or your business exist.

If you are not yet social, start now by opening an account on the top three:

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

3. Not Being Available – I have so many people tell me that they have emailed websites and never receive a response. I know from experience this happens way too often. Make it a number one priority to answer email inquiries as quickly as possible. I try to answer within minutes, if possible. This does get a huge response of appreciation. Your visitors need to know that a person is available if they have questions about your products and/or services. This will help in building the relationship and trust needed for an online business.

4. Not Studying Your Web Stats – Your web stats can help you determine how many visitors you get, where they are going, how long they are staying, if they are returning and so on. By analyzing this information, you can develop your website into the most efficient website it can be. One of the best site stats you can use for free is Google Analytics.

5. Not Using Viral Marketing – Viral marketing uses the same concept as the snowball effect. You start with one tiny snowball and roll it down a hill and it turns into a great mass of snow. Viral marketing can do the same thing for your site. You can give away free ebooks, free reports, free articles and other helpful resources. You give one person a free ebook with your name and link info in it and this person passes it onto their visitors and those visitors pass it on to their visitors and so on. One big giant snowball of traffic!

6. Not Keeping Up with Changes – Over the years internet marketing has changed immensely. Some methods become outdated and new innovative marketing concepts come into play. Even though some of the older methods might still work, you still need to keep up with the new innovative changes in marketing such as social media and video marketing. Always be learning and always keep up with new marketing methods.

7. Ignoring Your Competitors – In business you always have to keep an eye on your competitors. You can learn a lot from your competitors and about your own business as well. Visit forums where you and your competitors might be discussed and learn from what is being said. There is software that will help you find such forums called Boardtracker. Visit your competitors’ sites often to see how they are evolving and how it is working for them. Find out their strengths and weaknesses. Find out what works and what doesn’t. Don’t ever ignore your competitors!

8. Not Being Professional – Your business is a business and needs to be treated as such. Your site needs to look professional. Be sure to proofread all your content and add a Privacy Policy page to your site. You should also have a policy page with your shipping, return, exchange, etc. policies so buyers know what to expect. Make your site look, feel and read like a professional site. You also need to respond professionally in emails, forums, social sites, etc. Be polite, courteous, fair and never let your emotions get the better of you.

9. Not Having a User-Friendly Site – I have seen many sites which have caused me to immediately leave.

Some examples would be:

Blaring music that comes on with no way to turn it off.

Flashy irritating graphics all over the place.

Ads plastered all over with no clear way to navigate the site.

No contact info.

Basically no professionalism of any kind.

Don’t let your site fall into these categories. If you have music on your site, give the option of music or not. Always make the pages clean, easy to read and navigate. Be sure to have your contact info on all pages. Don’t have a lot of flashy graphics that will drive your visitors away. Control the amount of ads you have on your site as well.

10. Don’t Give Up! – In my opinion, one of the biggest mistakes people make when they start an online business is giving up too soon. Building a business takes time and you have to commit to it and stick with it. Unfortunately, I have seen many people give up prematurely and then wonder why they can’t make money. I thought of giving up myself many times but stuck with it because I wanted to help my family while being able to stay home and take care of them. I kept on and was persistent and it slowly started paying off. Once I started with ebooks, my business really took off and now I am very grateful I did not give up when I felt discouraged!

If you have found the business you are passionate about, stick with it and do not give up! Keep your passion alive and you can be a great success!

Terri Seymour has over twelve years of online experience and has helped many people start their own business. Visit her site for free articles, resources, information, resell ebooks and more. Sign up for the RSS Feed for a free business ebook with MRR. http://www.SeymourProducts.com

Article Source: WAHM Articles

Article Marketing is a great way for you to promote and advertise your business online and it can be done free. With that said…the length of your article is an important thing to consider when you sit down to write your articles.

There will be people who tell you that length doesn’t matter and that is totally incorrect information. When thinking about the length your article should be here are a few things to consider:

1. People who reprint articles in online email newsletters have limited space reserved in their newsletter. When writing articles to use in newsletters your article should be 300 words or less.

2. When people are looking for articles for their blog sites…again, they are looking for shorter length articles and your article that is geared towards blog sites should be between 350-400 words.

3. When people are looking for articles to use on their web sites they are typically looking for articles that are longer in length but not “book” length. A good rule of thumb for articles that you think will make great web site content should be 450 to 550 words in length.

People who use your articles in their newsletters, on their blogs and on their web sites usually have a certain amount of space set aside for that reprint article.

When I sit down to write my articles I always think about the length and which type of people are most likely to want to publish it on their sites or in their publications and figure out the length I want my article to be.

I feel this is something we all need to remember when we are writing articles for our article marketing campaigns.

When it comes to promoting a small or large business online it is very important to get involved with article marketing. Article marketing gets you valuable incoming one-way web links to your site along with valuable new traffic. In addition…article marketing is one of the most cost effective ways for you to market you business online and to set yourself up as a leader in the niche that you represent.

For those who wish to market their businesses online via article marketing, here are a few important tips to remember when you begin this marketing journey.

1. Article Length: The length of your article will depend on where you plan on having it published. You will find that the majority of article directories require a minimum of 250 words in length. I personally recommend 400-500 words as a good length to strive for when writing your articles.

2. Article Topics: The topics you write about should pertain to the Direct Sales business that you represent and the content of your article should match the links and information that you include in your author’s resource box. When you are writing articles pertaining to your business you can really set yourself a part from other consultant’s in your same company by marketing your business online via article marketing. Topics can be geared directly towards the type of products you are trying to market and/or towards the Direct Sales or Home Business Industry as a whole.

3. Consistency: You will need to be writing articles often and I recommend around 10 new articles a month so that you consistently have fresh new material going out across the internet on a consistent basis. You most likely won’t see a lot of results in the first month or two when you start this type of marketing and most article marketers start seeing great results after 4-6 months.

4. Proofread For Typos & Grammar Mistakes: When you write articles they should always be proofread 2-3 times for typos and grammar mistakes. You can not rely on spell checker to catch all of your typos and grammar mistakes. First impressions are everything and I don’t know anyone who likes to read an article that is loaded with typos and grammar mistakes. If you can afford it, hire a ghostwriter or assistant to proof all of your articles before you publish them live. Often times a fresh set of eyes can catch mistakes that you the writer can not catch.

5. Author’s Resource Box: An Author’s Resource Box should be included at the end of each and every article that you write and publish online. This box gives the reader important information about you, your business and your expertise. Your resource box should be several sentences in length and include 1-2 web links to your business web sites that are related to the article you just written. It is extremely important to double check the links you include in your resource box to make sure they are correct as broken links do you and your business absolutely no good.

This article was written by Shelly Hill ~ Owner of Work At Home Business Opptions and is exclusive to this (my) web site. Please do not reprint it! Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved.

Are you in Direct Sales? Are you thinking about writing articles for your article marketing campaign? If so, finding topics to write about within your own business niche can be a daunting task for new direct sales professionals, who are just getting into article marketing.

Today I would like to share with you how you can come up with new topics to write about each and every day for at least the next few months, if not years.

1. Talk to your fellow business associates and ask them about topics they want to learn about in regards to the niche that you represent. You can take their questions and turn them all into informative articles.

2. Talk to your newly added team members and ask them what they would love to learn about in regards to the business you represent. Often times the newly recruited members need basic information that you are already educated about. Use your education and experience in the field to draft up new articles that are geared towards beginners.

3. Talk to your customers and ask them what they would love to know about in regards to the products you sell and about the business opportunity that you represent. Use their questions to draft up new articles related to the niche you are trying to target.

4. Visit online blogs and web sites that are geared towards your niche. Spend some time reading the posts and articles on those sites to see what everyone is talking and writing about. Use these subjects to generate your own ideas for new material.

5. Visit online article directories and look for categories that are related towards your niche. Read through old and current articles that have already been published to see if any of those spark new ideas for you. One of my favorite things to do is to read old material and rewrite that material to include updated information and advances in technology.

6. Educate yourself in something new that is within your own niche. Often times when we learn something new (like new technology), we can use what we have just learned to our advantage by writing about it.

7. Join a few social media networking sites and make friends with others who are in your niche. Spend time networking and sharing information with them. Often times my article ideas have come from just chatting with other professionals on social media networking sites.

As you can see, these 7 tips are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to finding new topics to write about that pertain to your business niche. I like to keep a little notebook beside me or with me at all times so that when new article topic ideas pop into my head, I can quickly write them down.

Shelly Hill has been working from home since 1989 and is a professional ghostwriter. You can visit Shelly’s Two Classy Ghostwriting Chics web site at http://www.twoclassyghostwritingchics.com to learn about the ghostwriting services that she and her partner Chris Carroll have to offer.

Are you looking to hire a ghostwriter to help with your article writing, blog posts, newsletters and marketing documents? If so, there are a few things you need to look for before hiring a ghostwriter to do your work.

1. Ask the writer for a list of references and check out those references. You want to make sure that this person does quality work and that they deliver that work on time.

2. Ask to see examples of their work and look at their work with a fine tooth comb for spelling errors, grammar mistakes, keywords, etc. You want to make sure that their final copy is professional looking and correctly done.

3. Take a good look at their rates. Just because someone is “cheap” to hire doesn’t mean they produce quality work. You know the old saying “You get what you pay for?” well, that applies to ghostwriters too!

4. Try to hire a ghostwriter that is multi-dimensional. (in other words, one that can write on a variety of subject matter for you).

5. When hiring a ghostwriter it is extremely important to tell them that you want “original” material produced by them. You do not want re-spun or re-gurgitated material that they previously done for another client. It is important that all work is “original”.

Anyone online can call themselves a ghostwriter but that doesn’t mean they are a “good” ghostwriter! Take your time and really check out the ghostwriter you are thinking about hiring. The quality of work the ghostwriter produces for you does indeed reflect back onto you!

If you are looking for a professional ghostwriter to handle your business projects, you can check out my Ghostwriting blog called Two Classy Ghostwriting Chics that is owned by myself and my business partner Chris Carroll.

Marketing to Moms – Why You Should be Writing Articles for Work at Home Moms by D. L. Willms

If you sell a product or service for almost any target market, you’ll want to make sure moms know about it. Moms have a lot of buying power, and are responsible for making most purchase decisions for their families.

How Publishing Articles for Moms Helps You

A recent survey of North American moms revealed that more than 70% of moms look online for the information they need. Writing work-at-home-mom (WAHM) articles and distributing them on the Internet is an effective and affordable way to get your information online, where these moms can easily find it.

You don’t need to be a mom to write WAHM articles, but it might help because you’ll know first-hand what kinds of information they want to read about. However, writing WAHM articles can be lucrative for anyone who takes the time to learn about the information moms are looking for, and make it accessible to them.

What Information Do Moms Need to Know?

Think of everything a mom might do in a day. She’s a nurse, a chef, an organizer, an event planner, a teacher, a decorator, business person, and the list goes on and on.

Work-at-home-moms are constantly looking for all kinds of information. They
need a lot of information on hundreds of topics to help them balance their busy
lives.

Whatever it is you know, chances are that somehow that information could help a work-at-home-mom. Here are some ideas to get you started:

How to Start a Home Business
Home Business Ideas
Websites and Blogging Information
Marketing Ideas
Childcare Issues
Marriage
Family relationships
Hobbies
Education
Product reviews
Book reviews
Pets
Health and Fitness
Food and Nutrition
Crafts
Scrapbooking
Entertainment
Holiday Celebrations
Parenting
Money Management Tips

These are just a few that I thought of. What else do you know about that could
help a busy work-at-home-mom?
Give it some thought… you might be surprised!

Denise Willms is a work-at-home-mom and the owner of WAHM-Articles.com, a busy article directory for moms. To learn more about how you can profit by writing WAHM articles, please visit http://www.WAHM-Articles.com and download a copy of the free e-book Get Started!! Making Money by Writing WAHM Articles.

Article Source: WAHM Articles

Article Marketing to Boost Your Business by Genesis Davies

Article marketing is one of the least understood and much underused methods of free business promotion around. Despite this, quite a few business owners have been using this free method to give their companies a huge boost without spending a penny.

Let’s look at a few ways article marketing can help increase your business.

Online Reputation. Even if your business is a real world one, such as a coffee shop, establishing an online presence is vital. All businesses need a website now and to ensure that yours isn’t just one of millions of unknown websites stuck in the corner, you can use article marketing to break into the public eye.

Expert Status. While this is related to online reputation, YOU are the expert, not your business. When you have promoted yourself as an expert, whether it be in the world of taxes or shoe sales, you can take this fame and turn it toward any business you choose to start up, as well as your existing one.

Traffic. Article marketing will help your sales go up, if you have great website copy that convert. The higher the number of visitors to your website, the better the chances that you will make a sale. Article marketing promotes your business far and wide, when done correctly and you’ll see more traffic as a result, usually quite quickly.

Search Engine Optimization. A benefit of using the more popular article directories and sites where you can submit business articles is that they usually boast a high PageRank. This means that effective use of keywords in article marketing will result in your articles appearing in the top search results, with a link back to your site. In addition, your backlinks will go up each time the article is published, either on the article directory site or on someone’s website.

Education. Informed clients equal clients who know what they are looking for in a service or product. When you’re the one offering what they need, it’s quite likely you’ll be getting a boost in sales. You’ll also build client trust, as you are the provider of free, useful information that they can use. Trust is essential when you are trying to grow a business.

Article marketing is something that every business could and should be using. It’s completely cost free and requires little more than time to accomplish, yet the results are amazing.

What are you waiting for? Start working on your own free marketing strategy today with article marketing! Or, if you aren`t interested in writing your own articles, try hiring a professional freelance writer.

Article Source: WAHM Articles

Writing Effective Blog Posts and Articles for Online Marketing by Roger Moody

If you’re reading this, you found it online and most likely are seeking assistance in growing your online presence or an online business. Any successful online business owner should have and maintain at least one blog.

Blogging has become an integral part of any online business and updating the blog or blogs should become routine. Having a business blog can be one of the best things you can do for your successful online business as it helps attract people to you and gain more prospects for your business.

Blogging and article marketing should be done simultaneously and can significant increase your online marketing efforts.

Blogging also allows you to stay in touch and build a relationship with people already on your team that may be scattered around the country or the globe. If you desire an effective and popular blog you don’t need much.

For example this author, Roger Moody has a successful online home based business from a home office in Indianapolis, Indiana. We may operate a successful online business from Indianapolis but our home based business income is spread nicely across the country. Our business blog (at rogerlmoody dot com) mentions Indianapolis but the information contained on that blog site is applicable to anyone working a online home based business.

The real trick to building an effective blog doesn’t lay in the domain name, or the layout (although obviously you don’t want an ugly blog) but in the content aka the posts themselves.

So how do you write more effective blog posts that will not only captivate your current readers and keep them coming back but help you gain a bigger and bigger audience and at the same time raise your blog in the search engines?

Her are a few simple tips to help you write better content for your blog.

1. Keywords

This can not be said enough. If you want to build a successful home based business, popular and effective blog you can’t do it without the use of keywords. Take some time and do your keyword research because it will pay off big time if you do it right! Another good tip is to use keywords in the categories for your blog as well! Wherever you can fit in a keyword do it!

2. Be Original

Nobody is going to come back an visit a boring blog. Make sure your content is original and exciting. The most effective blogs I’ve found will have a mix of helpful content and personal stories. You want your readers to know and trust you as a business person as well as care about you as an individual.

3. Use Videos and Pictures when applicable

I can not stress enough how much adding videos and pictures will add to your blog. Breaking up your text with pictures will make people want to read more and more and the more personal the pics can be the better. So if you’re talking about your trip to Hawaii with the family don’t just use a stock photo of Hawaii use one of you and your family! Another tip is to make sure and keyword optimize the titles of your pictures before you post them as well!

Those are just a few simple tips that will help your blog become more popular. Make sure you work on your blog at least a couple times a week and follow these tips and you’ll be good to go!

Blogging to grow a successful online home based business from Indiana or anywhere in a home office. Understand that it’s a total lifestyle shift.
www.ChristianFaithBusiness.com

Article Source: WAHM”>http://www.wahm-articles.com”>WAHM Articles

Steps to a Writing Effective Press Releases by Diana Ennen

Want to get the most media attention and spotlight for your business? Then the first place to start is with a great press release. Now I can almost see half of you leaving now, dreading the thought of having to write one of these. But wait. I’m going to show you easy methods to make your press release work for you and get the attention it deserves. Ready? Let’s go.

We’ll briefly go over the basics because of their importance. Editors want to see things done the RIGHT way. I would bet that a lot of good releases simply get tossed out just because they aren’t set up properly. To a busy editor, that all too familiar three-second glance says a lot for you and your business and if you’ve done your research enough to warrant that release to be placed in their newspaper or magazine or even on their website.

Here are your essentials:

“FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” on the top left of the page.
Your contact name, phone number, e-mail address, and website follows. Double check this. No, triple check this. You don’t want to waste a good release because they can’t get ahold of you.

The headline is next, normally in bold and centered on the page. Summarize what the release is about and capture their attention. Spend almost as much time on your headline as you do writing the release. It’s that important. Make sure to get those valuable keywords in there and hopefully in the first few words.

The press release body starts with the location of the release and the date (Margate, Florida, January, 200X.)

Most press releases are between 400-500 words, and no more than a page. The first paragraph has the most important information. Don’t save the best for last, it won’t get read. Make sure that you explain the title of the release in this first paragraph.

It is recommended that you write press releases in the 3rd person and use short sentences and paragraphs. Do not go over board, trying to dazzle the editor, it won’t work.

Target your release. You will be sending your release to a specific audience so make sure that in your release you keep to what would appeal to that audience. What don’t they know that you can add? Nothing works better than getting an “AAH HAA” when an editor is reviewing your release. Also, keep in mind with the Internet today, that press releases, or news releases as they are now frequently called, are read by your target audience just as much as the editors. The buyers of your products or services are reading this, tell them what they need to know.

Provide statistics. Do some research and find some relevant information that applies. Research and make sure that if you are providing accurate quotes and not from some fly by night company. Remember your reputation is riding on this release. (Well, not exactly, but you don’t want the editor to read this and red flag you.).

Provide a quote from yourself or include relevant quotes from experts in your field that will reinforce what you are saying. You can approach authors, leaders in your Industry, and other experts in your Industry for a quote. They will normally appreciate the added publicity and you get the quote you’re looking for. For example, as an author I’ll often get asked to provide a quote for an article on home-based businesses or the virtual assistant industry. I welcome the opportunity as it provides me more publicity.

The last paragraph should be your call to action. You’ve talked the whole release about your business or product, now tell them what to do with this knowledge they just got. Too many leave out this vital step.

At the bottom of the release include ### to indicate you are done.
Double check this for accuracy. At this point, you’re tired and done with the Release. Well if it goes out to the world with the wrong web address, you’ve wasted your valuable time even writing the Release.

That’s it. The basics for writing a press release. Now one other thing I’d like to add in, they work. They truly do. You also want to make sure that you submit them out, but that’s another article.

Diana Ennen and Kelly Poelker are the co-authors of numerous books including Virtual Assistant: the Series, Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA and accompanying Virtual Assistant the Series Workbook, and Virtual Assistant – The Series: Working Virtually, A Guide to Working Remotely as an Employee. Stop by their site for complete information on starting your own VA business http://www.vatheseries.com. Article is free to be reprinted as long as the author’s bio remains intact.

Article Source: WAHM Articles