Writing articles can provide you with enormous amount of exposure onthe Web. You are branding yourself "on a shoestring budget, the smell of an oily rag"...and best of all, it hasn't cost you a cent, but a little time and effort.
Writing a free content article is simple and follows a similar professional approach as an article for a standard, paying market.
People want quality content : for theirezines and their web sites ; however, as you no doubt realise by now, the competition for content is fierce. Every Web site owner wants content(informative and helpful) and hundreds of writers want their content visible on the Web. It's FREE promotion through your signature file at the end of your article. Articles thatprovide good and accurate information,or ones that explain how to accomplish something are usually best, and will be read most often.
So start by pointing out a problem your reader has. Ask yourself this vitally important question:How will your article help people in solving their problem? In this article I attempt to provide a solution, ie. how to promote your online business "on the smell of an oily rag"!
Here are some pointers in writing articles for the www and getting them published by article announcement listsor ezines (electronic newsletters):
Firstly,
1. Accept that writing for the web is different to writing for the off-line world. People tend to skim and scan (note alliteration) when reading online. They read quickly scrolling down the page.
2. Identify your target audience. 3. Give your article a catchy title that will grab people's attention and make them want to read it.
4. Keep your title reasonably short.Put some thought and effort into your heading - again to get your reader's immediate attention.
5. Be professional and take your article writing seriously. Write aboutsomething you know professionally.Don't be overly casual in your writing (ie. don't write exactly as you speak)
6. Keep your paragraphs short.
7. Get to the point quickly (enough waffle with maple syrup, Craig!).
8. Target your article to your audience with "focussed information".
9. Be brief, if you are a "waffler", like this writer. People want immediate information online and have limitedtime usually - it's the "instant coffee, sorry generation.
10. Write briefly and concisely (redundant words, meaning the same thing, Craig!) Try to keep your article under 1000 words. (People get bored quickly reading online). Most paying markets usually only accept between 500 and 1500 words...and with a bit of luck they may even"pick up" your great article. Try to be concise in your wording. Brevity is the hall-mark of good writing...or so say many of the teachers of writing!
11. Use the OCCASIONAL exclamation mark (!) to get your readers attention. Forget the ALL CAPITAL LETTERS and exclamation points!!!
12. Be credible (big word, eh?) at all times.I try to write my articles in a "conversational style with dashes of my funny humour".
13. Use HUMOUR. People like to have a bit of fun with the occasional laugh, whilst being informed on a serious subject. At least I believe so!
14. Write from "your heart", so that you come across as a REAL person. Just write what comes naturally with INTEGRITY...and BE YOURSELF.
15. Be totally honest in your writing and don't "borrow" too much from others content. It's so easy to "steal" on the www - so do your own work and if you "borrow ideas or material, ACKNOWLEDGE. "Incidentally, in addition to my own materialbased on my experiences of internet marketing over the past four years, in this article I have "borrowed" numerous ideas from some fine writers and well-known internet marketers - thanks a lot for,sharing your info, David, Michael, John, Meredith, oe and Edward).
16. Be humble…and don't talk down to your readers. (Who wrote that song, "It's so hard to be humble?"):
17. Use bullets in your articles - its makes the points easy to follow... but beware ofsecurity in the form of metal detectors!
18. Don't forget your byline, your "business card". Make sure that you resourcebox at the end of the article provides enoughinformation to identify yourself and provide contact information. It's FREE advertisingat it's best.
19. Offer a free report with your article - this is an easy way to collect a list of adresses for marketing your product(s). An instant target market.
20. Check all the links in your article beforesubmitting it.
21. Offer your articles by autoresponder
22. Conclude with a strong message. Your final point (and paragraph) should be amessage that summarises your article or getsyour reader to take further action, like "GET STARTED" (as I've done in this article).
23. Finally, make sure your layout is good (not one of my strong points!), as this greatly enhances your prospects of getting published. Use a spell-check. Go over your article carefully and be an editor yourself.
24. Make sure your article flows properly.
25. Re-read and re-read, until you get it "just right." then see what happens to your site traffic.
"Aim for perfectionArticle Search, but settle for excellence" in your article writing..
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Craig Lock is an author of numerous books
and the creator of the ORIGINAL online
creative writing course.
http://www.nzenterprise.com/writer/creative.html
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