Writing Articles for
Publicity
If you're looking
for a powerful way to get free publicity and build your credibility at the
same time, then writing articles may be your answer.
If you've been on the Internet for a while, you've probably subscribed to
a few ezines. Many ezine publishers will include an article written by a
guest author. At the end of the article are a few lines of text about the
author referred to as bylines or resource box. These lines of text are basically
just an advertisement for the writer. They usually contain a couple of lines
about the author and a web address.
The writer gives the publisher permission to publish their article, free
of charge, in exchange for the publisher including the author's bylines.
By writing articles and allowing them to be freely published, your articles
will have the potential to be viewed by millions of Internet users. They
may be published by several ezines with subscriber bases of a few hundred
to several thousand. In addition, they may be displayed in ezine archives
or on high traffic websites.
Article
Formatting
Most ezine publishers
prefer short articles between 500 and 750 words. Short "tip" articles of
just a couple of paragraphs are also very popular. Articles should be formatted
to 65 characters per line or less, including spaces, and written in short
paragraph sections.
When you begin writing your article, avoid using your standard word processing
programs, as they do not allow for proper formatting. Instead, use a text
editor such as NotePad. It should already be installed on your desktop.
When you begin typing your article, use a hard carriage return (hit enter)
when your text reaches 65 characters, including spaces, and leave a space
between your paragraphs. This will enable publishers to easily copy and paste
your article into their publication. By taking the time to properly format
your article, you will increase your chance of being published significantly.
Getting Your
Article Published
Most publishers
receive many article submissions each week and only select a few to be published.
Here are some basic guidelines to assist you in getting published:
(1) Make sure you follow the publishers' submission guidelines. Articles
submitted to publishers that don't follow the submission guidelines will
most likely be deleted.
(2) Make sure your article is properly formatted. Publishers won't take the
time to format your article. They'll simply delete it and move on to the
next article submission.
(3) Keep your bylines down to 6 lines or less. Publishers will not publish
articles that contain excessively long bylines.
(4) Select a descriptive title to intrigue your readers. Use a powerful headline
that demands attention and try to keep it all on one line.
(5) Use proper grammar and spelling. Publishers will not take the time to
edit your article. Make sure you read your article several times and use
spellcheck.
(6) Avoid articles that are nothing more than a sales letter. Publishers
want quality content and will simply delete an article that is written like
a sales letter.
(7) Avoid referring readers to an affiliate URL. Articles containing affiliate
links may make your article appear to be biased and untrustworthy.
(8) Write your articles with a sincere desire to teach and inform. Talk to
your readers and share your expertise.
Developing a
List of Publishers
Once you've written
your article, you'll need to develop a list of publishers that may be interested
in publishing it. The best way to accomplish this is to display your articles
on your website. Place a subscription box on each of your article pages to
enable your visitors to subscribe. This list should be used to send your
new articles to your list of publishers.
In addition, you can visit some ezine sites to locate publishers who may
be interested in your articles. A good place to start is eZINESearch.
http://www.ezinesearch.com
Search through the database for publications that may be interested in the
type of article you've written.
Another great way to promote your articles is to submit them to article
announcement groups. These groups enable writers to submit their articles
to an entire group of publishers, completely free.
Article Announcement Lists:
Article Announce
Subscribe:
mailto:article_announce-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
AABusiness
Subscribe:
mailto:aabusiness-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
AAInternet
Subscribe:
mailto:aainet-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Articles Archive
Subscribe:
mailto:articles_archives-subscribe@egroups.com
Free Content
Subscribe:
mailto:Free-Content-subscribe@egroups.com
Make sure you review the submission guidelines prior to posting your article
to an announcement group.
Here are some additional promotional resources to help you get published:
http://www.web-source.net/syndicator_submit.htm
http://www.authorconnection.com/
http://www.ideamarketers.com/
http://www.ezinearticles.com/
http://www.marketing-seek.com/
http://www.netterweb.com/articles/
Article Distribution
Services
If you would
rather not take the time to distribute your own articles, there are a number
of article distribution services online that will distribute your articles
for you.
Visit any of the following services for assistance:
Article Marketer
http://www.articlemarketer.com
The Phantom Writers
http://www.thephantomwriters.com
iSnare
http://www.isnare.com
Writing and distributing free articles on the Internet will be one of the
best promotional decisions you'll ever make. Not only will it provide you
with free publicity, but if your articles are good, you'll become a trusted
professional in your area of expertise.
Copyright © Shelley
Lowery
About the Author:
Shelley Lowery is the author of the acclaimed web design course, Web Design
Mastery.
http://www.webdesignmastery.com
And, Ebook Starter - Give Your Ebooks the look and feel of a REAL book.
http://www.ebookstarter.com
Visit Web-Source.net to sign up for a complimentary subscription to Etips
and receive a copy of the acclaimed ebook, "Killer Internet Marketing
Strategies."
http://www.web-source.net
You have permission to publish this article electronically, in print,
in your ebook or on your web site, free of charge, as long as the author
bylines are included.
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