Posting Your First Article Online

September 2, 2010 – 5:36 pm

Most things get easier with practice and writing articles is one of them. If you’ve never published online, it can be a bit scary. There’s no need to fear. The ‘net may be a big world but you’ll find there are plenty of other writers out there who are not only willing to share experiences, they’ll also share their expertise.

All you have to do to join their ranks is to post your first article online. There are several ways to do this. I’m going to cover a couple of the easiest ones.

Post to a Blog

Blogs are free to set up at wordpress.com, blogger.com, livejournal.com, thoughts.com and many other sites. If you are wanting to ease into online writing, you can setup a free blog on a topic you enjoy – a pet, hobby, pastime, etc. Focus your first article (and those to follow) around a single topic. For instance, you train dogs so you’ve set up a blog about dog training. Training dogs not to jump on people is a focused topic. So is training dogs to stay off the furniture.

Post to Associated Content

Associated Content is a place where you can post articles and earn money. One of the ways to earn money there is by article views. If you do not choose up front payment for an article, it will post immediately. There’s no editor waiting to dissect your work. There will be readers waiting to do so, however, especially if you write about a hot topic. You can post editorials, essays, entertainment topics, educational topics, humor and more. The forum at the site is a great place to interact with and learn from other article writers.

Create a Squidoo Lens

A Squidoo lens is much like a focused blog page – in some instances, a highly decorated one. If you’re the creative type (or one who likes to teach others how to do things), you’re likely to find this site to be a great place to get articles online and exercise your graphic creativity at the same time. It’s free to do and there are plenty of tutorials to help you.

You can write under your real name or choose a pen name. Use of a pen name is common, especially by people who write about a lot of different topics.

There you are. Three ways to get your first on-line by-line. If the thought of posting online leaves you suddenly thoughtless when it comes to a topic, don’t despair. There are the aforementioned hobbies in addition to passions, pet peeves, and burning opinions. You can do this. All it takes is one article. What are you waiting for?

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More About Getting the Best Return on Article Writing Time

August 20, 2010 – 11:43 am

writing articles

Time is a top commodity when running a business and article writing is no exception. If your goal is to earn income, take the time to make sure you’re making the most of the writing process. How do you do that? Here are a few tips to help you.

Planning

While I know that life can make it near impossible to actually schedule WHEN you’ll get a chance to write during each day, it is possible to be prepared for that opportunity. Choose now WHAT you’ll use that time for. Will you write, edit, or post? Believe it or not, separating the three actually increases the ROI (return on investment) for the time spent.

Choose topics and plan time lines before you ever put down words. How about covering a specific topic? Can you break it into a series to be covered in a set number of articles? Are you doing article marketing? Where will the articles be submitted? Will you be posting them to your own sites or will you need a resource box?

Preparation

Prepare the list of keywords and illustrations for each. Cloak your affiliate link (if it isn’t already) and keep it in the same file. You don’t want the writing flow interrupted by the need to hunt missing material. If you’ll be needing a resource box, prepare the links for it now. Why not go ahead and write the resource box? Because it pays to end the article in the resource box instead of inside the article body.

If you will be using an article submitter, make sure it is set up and ready to go. Ideally, your original article should go directly to your first choice of article directories ( ezinearticles.com or main blog site) and a secondary article goes into the article submitter.

free article submitter

One expert recommends submitting batches of approximately 5 articles at a time to main directory. I’ve found that brainstorming at least 5 potential article topics per keyword speeds up the creation process. Consider “How-to,”  “Tips-to” “Why You Should…”  “Why You Should Not…” “Ten Reasons…” “4 Ways”  etc. There are lots of ways to get creative with articles.

Getting the Words Out

Writing time is just for writing. Nothing else. No image linking. No affiliate linking. No researching. Just get the words down. No spell checking or grammar checking allowed either. It’s all about the writing.

Putting It All Together

When you put your editor’s hat on, you’ll now have image links and affiliate links all ready and waiting to be plugged in to the content. The original key word list helps you verify that the necessary ones have been covered and that article groups are focused. It’s time to  run spell check and to look for sentences that make no sense. Polish the finished product so that it shines and stands out among all those other written pieces online.

The Bottom Line

Once you’ve actually separated the processes involved in article creation, you’re likely to find that you  produce better articles (and more of them) in less time.  When you have more than one piece in process, you can fit the task to the time you have available. Sitting in a waiting room somewhere? Brainstorm and write. Find yourself with real time? Clean out the edit stack.

Like many other processes, writing improves with practice. Both the writing time and the editing time will decrease as your ability increases. The equation is certainly an encouraging one. Potential earnings (your return on writing time invested) will rise. It truly pays to plan the writing process.

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Writing Better Articles in Less Time

August 12, 2010 – 6:58 am
write more in less time clock

Writing and Editing Improve With Separate Time Slots

When you are writing articles for money, it pays to write fast and to write well. What if you’re a slow writer who’s still learning?

There’s one habit that will help you get more article writing done in less time and still produce quality content.

What is the key? Simple. Split the writing process and the editing process into two separate activities done at separate times.

Writing time is just that – time to get the basic draft down in words.

Editing requires a different mindset. Don’t mix the two. Treat them as different do’s to be done on different days.

You read that correctly. Different days. Yes, if you’re in a bind and have to crank out the material no matter what, you’re going to have to do it all at once. You may suffer for the process and the material you produce is likely to suffer too.

Once you begin separating the tasks of writing and editing, you’ll soon find it easier to get into the proper mode and likely find your production increasing. If you are writing from home and faced with the typical challenges and interruptions, consider scheduling editing time when there is the least competition for your attention.

Writing is a creative process – editing is a controlled one. It makes sense that different areas of the brain control the two. When it is time to write, just write. Set a timer if that helps.

Don’t waste any time thinking about spelling or paragraph order. Just get the words on the screen (or the page). Once you’ve completed the creative process, put everything aside and go do something else.

Return to the article draft later, preferably on an entirely different day, put on your editor’s hat and re-visit what you produced. Look at what you’ve written with an eye for grammar and spelling, paragraph order and clarity.

Does the first paragraph attract and hold the reader? Does it naturally hold attention and direct the reader on down the page? If your goal is to keep that reader’s attention all the way to the resource box, you’d best be providing real information in an engaging way.

Make sure that everything is tied up neatly and ends in the resource box, not the paragraph preceding it. Yes, you do want the perfect ending with nothing left undone. For best results, write naturally then edit the last paragraph to make it the resource box. This saves the hassle that can accompany resource box creation and makes for better written content.

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Finding Royalty Free Illustrations for Articles

July 26, 2010 – 9:38 pm
Clickart

Images Make Articles Stand Out

Readers love pictures. Adding pictures to articles can increase effectiveness and earnings potential. The key is to use royalty free photographs that relate to the topic under discussion or the message you are trying to convey.

Just because a photo or image can be found online does not mean it can legally be used any way you desire to use it. Many website images are copyrighted and belong to the site owner or the designer who is using them.

There are a couple of ways to safely and legally practice royalty free article illustration. One is to directly download images from sites that allow images to be published on websites and in articles. Another method is to purchase a collection of images via software collection on disc or by download.

Sample MorgueFile Photo

MorgueFile.com features a large collection of royalty free photos. Categories include people, nature, business and more. It is also possible to search by emotion — i.e., sad, happy, anger, fear, etc. Many of the photographers represented on the site make contact information available and ask that you send them an email to let them know where their photos will be posted.

Carlos Porto at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

FreeDigitalPhotos.net is another good source of royalty free illustrations. Registration is not required. Attribution is. If you choose to use images from this site, you must include a link acknowledging the photographer and the site.

Should you want to use the photos without referencing the site, you have the option of purchasing rights to do so.

Image collections are available in all price ranges. Amazon is, of course, one good place to find them online. Local discount stores and online stores carry a variety of royalty free image and graphic collections.

Increase the impact of your articles by adding royalty free illustrations. If you are downloading images from different sites, I recommend saving them in separate folders.

Separate Downloads by Site

For instance, putting all Morguefile photos together makes it easy to find images that do not require attribution aka a link to the site.

Likewise, putting FreeDigitalPhoto files into their own folder helps remind you to create that link. Consider saving these photos by the name of the photographer. This too, makes giving credit where credit is due much easier.

Adding royalty free illustrations to articles is one way to improve article ratings. It isn’t necessary to spend a lot of money or time doing so. It is important that credit be given where required.

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Writing Articles That Get Good Results In Article Marketing

July 26, 2010 – 8:48 pm

Article marketing is an effective way to promote products and earn extra income. Carefully targeted pages serve two purposes: one, they provide educational or entertaining information to readers and two, they create an opportunity for you, the writer, to earn money online.

Now that the Internet is more and more available, more and more people are using the Net. Faster and more convenient connections lead to more and more consumers online. Good article writing is a no-cost or low-cost way to tap into that online customer base via article marketing.

upwards graph

Careful Keyword Selection Can Increase Views & Earnings

Article writing helps in website promotion as well as individual product and service promotion. Content submitted to one article directory can be picked up by website and ezine owners all over the world.

If a well-crafted resource box with an affiliate link accompanies the article content, the odds of making multiple sales from one article can increase significantly.

Power of Keywords

Careful keyword selection directly impacts everything from article placement to potential earnings. Website owners choose material that features the key words the site is built around. Ezine producers also choose content based on keywords. Potential readers type key phrases or words into the search bar in order to find information.

If you want to see your article marketing material at the top of the search list, re-printed on websites and showing up in ezines, spend time on word selection and on the title to be made from those words. Searchers are provided with plenty of link options. Give them a reason to choose your link over and above the rest.

Put key phrases or words in the title. Turn them into a question or some other type of attention-grabbing line. Consider how readers will be searching and base the title on that phrase or combination of words. In other words, think like a reader.

For example, will someone new to photography search “photography” or will they type in “learn how to use a camera” or “how to take good pictures?” If they’re tired of the neighbor’s dog barking all night, will they type in “dogs” or “stop dog barking?”

Once you’ve gotten Internet surfers to choose your article marketing link, don’t disappoint them. Continue using the words they’re looking for and turn them into paragraphs that answer the question, solve the problem or provide a solution to their dilemma.

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Article Writing: How to Promote Your Home Business and Make Money From Article Marketing

July 19, 2010 – 12:44 pm

By Peter Nisbet

Article writing is a skill that most people can learn, and if you know how to promote your home business by writing articles, and then article marketing can be an effective to make money. However, most people do not know how to write in such a fashion as to maintain the readers interest, and have an even less idea of how to properly use those that they do write.
Writing articles is a skill – that cannot be denied – but it is a skill that can be learned. Sure, you will need a reasonable grasp of grammar in your language, but not so much spelling if you use a good spell checker. It is not so much these that are the problem, as knowledge of how to write the content in such a way as to be of use to the reader.

Therefore, let’s consider the reader and what they are seeking when they find your article.

1. Information

People use the internet for information, to chat or to buy something, and by far the most extensive of these is information. The vast majority of people that use Google are seeking information of one kind or another. It could be a price, it could be technical information or even what time the next bus is due, but it is information and most of that is the type of information that you can provide them with by writing an article on their topic.


You might have website focusing on the niche, or simply write an article on it with a link to an affiliate product. In the latter you can make money without having a product or even a website, and in the former you have a means of collecting names and email addresses that you can use to keep in touch with people that have expressed an interest in your niche.

2. There is No 2

That’s right – there is no 2 that concerns you. People want information, pure and simple, and you can provide it to them either with a well constructed website that you advertise using article marketing, or with a well written article, offering good and accurate information about their subject, and that in their eyes will make you an expert in their subject. That’s right – their subject. It isn’t yours, but theirs, and you are providing information to them on their subject by writing articles on it.

Article writing is more than just knocking out a few quick essays, but involves good keyword research, time in providing useful informing of a type that people are genuinely seeking and also perhaps contains an element of the benefits a prospect can achieve by reading it.

article writing text book

Free Download

How to Write Articles

There has to be a benefit for the reader, or there will be no incentive to read it. That benefit must be stressed in the title of the article: the first part of the article that anybody sees, and the part that will head your Google listing, or that of any other search engine. This confuses many people, but if you submit your articles to article directories, and your article is approved for publication, then it will appear on its own web page, and can be spidered and listed on search engines just like any other web page.

The title will be the heading for the listing, and your summary, or the first few words of the article, the summary that appears below the title in the listing. Visitors seeking information, using the keywords that appear in your title and article, will be offered your article to click, and hence the importance of a compelling title.

Use your main keyword early (main is ‘article writing’, and other main keywords in the rest – in my title I have managed to include: article writing, how to promote your home business, home business, make money, article marketing, money from article marketing

You expand on the theme of the title in the introductory paragraph, including the main keyword within the first 100 characters, and then write the article itself. Use keywords sparingly (once each 300 words), and use vocabulary that explains and defines the main keyword. Use a sparse sprinkling of the other keywords used in the title.


Overuse of keywords will result in your article being dropped from the listings, because Google’s purpose is to provide Google customers with good solid content, and not keyword repetition. Keep Google happy and you will be rewarded.

Most reward is in the form of high search engine listings for your keyword and lots of visitors. However, this can easily be transferred into cash if you have a good monetizing system operating on your website. You might be using Google Adsense adverts, selling affiliate products or offering a service, but traffic is what brings sales and writing articles brings the traffic.

As to the mechanics of article writing – well, let’s just refer to that as a different topic, since it would take more than one simple article to teach you article marketing, and the effective use of articles to advertise your website or product. Articles can be use to promote your home business, and you can also make money from article marketing if you understand how to do so.

About the Author: For more complete information on article writing and how to make money from article marketing, visit Article Czar for a free writing course and other free gifts, and learn how to promote your home business in a very simply way.

Source: www.isnare.com

Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=369812&ca=Marketing

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Keyword Tips for Article Writing

July 6, 2010 – 9:00 pm

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Choose Article Keywords CarefullyKeyword choice in article writing directly impacts written result. Without key word focus, writing can drift and risk losing readers. For those using articles to draw website visitors or to earn money on commission sales, key words are the difference between making money and losing money.

Word choice: before the writing even begins, choose specific keywords that represent the site under promotion. If referring readers to someone else’s site, visit that site. See where the focus is.

If you’re having trouble generating key words or phrases, use the Google keyword tool or the SEO one.

Consider compiling one main list of one to five words. Each word should be the focus of one article. If you have five words, you’ll write five articles. Compile an additional list of words to feature in the body of the writing. General related phrases that relate to the topic and might also fit additional search terms.

Writing: Again, focus on one main phrase or key word per article. Use that word in both title and introduction and toward the end of the article. Consider increasing the visibility of the word with bold or italic highlighting. Making the word a clickable link is an excellent way to make it stand out, both to reader and to search engines.

Illustrating: Adding a picture helps draw and hold reader attention and can improve site appearance. Use the article keyword in the photo caption.

Protect your image as a professional article writer. Use focused keywords, sprinkle them through the article and in the image caption. When the article looks good, reads well and lures readers, you’ve accomplished what you set out to do.

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Keywords in Writing Articles for Websites

June 23, 2010 – 8:10 pm

Article marketing is a low cost, high effect tool in driving traffic to websites. It isn’t enough to throw some words on a page and add a link to the website. The article must provide specifics about the service or product provided by the website. Keywords are the anchor between article reader and the website owner.

Some website owners have done their own keyword research and will provide article writers with the list. Others leave the research up to the writer. If you don’t have a pre-set list of keywords, you’ll need to compile one before the writing process even begins.

Researching and compiling a list of keywords doesn’t have to be difficult. What service or product is being offered at the website? How will that product or service meet a need in the reader’s life?  Most importantly, what words or phrases will the potential customer be using to find answers and therefore end up at the website?

One of the quickest ways to find those terms is to use a keyword tool. There are plenty of them available and many are free. SEObook offers several free tools, including keyword search and keyword density.  Organize the keywords by the number of searches. Don’t overlook keyword phrases. They work just as well and sometimes even better than single words.

Now the writing can begin. If you’re writing for hire, the website owner may have given a specific keyword density for each article. Keyword density is nothing more than how often the keyword or keyword phrase is used in the article. Generally speaking, the keyword should be used once for every 100 words.

Once the article is finished, proofread everything you’ve written and double-check the links you have inserted. Correct any errors or rough reading areas. When all looks well, send it off and move on to the next keyword on the list.

Writing keyword articles for websites is an affordable and proven method of marketing. The right words can lead potential customers right to the door of the online business.

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Basic Article Writing for Website Guidelines

June 22, 2010 – 5:12 pm

No matter what type of website you are writing articles for, following a few basic guidelines will result in articles that both read better and produce better results.

  • Keep it Short. A promotional article is not a book. Stick to the accepted range of 300-500 words if the site you are promoting doesn’t have specified length details.
  • Stick to What Matters. Focus on the details that are important. If there are many details available, break them out into groups and write more articles.
  • Support Article Details With Resources. Authenticate any facts or statistics that are used. Stick to reliable sources. Your reputation is on the line.
  • Support Information with Facts and/or Statistics. When it comes to reading a topic they enjoy,people are information junkies. Feed their need.
  • Check links to make sure they’re correct.
  • Be Professional. If the website owner provided keywords, use them. If there’s a deadline, make it.
  • Use action words as much as possible, no matter the type of article. Avoid words like could and would. Use words like Do or Go.
  • Use spell check before submitting or publishing the article. Spelling errors are the marks of an amateur.
  • Give a call to action if your article is promoting a product or service. Tell the reader to “Click Here” or “Start Now.”
  • Communicate. If you run into problems, contact the website owner. Maybe keywords need to be changed a little. Maybe there isn’t much information available and you need an extra day of research time.
  • Create an email account just to use for article writing and remember to check it often. Keep emails on file. You never know when you might need to refer to them.
  • Obey any guidelines the website client has provided. If they’re allowing you only one affiliate link, use only one. If they aren’t allowing any affiliate links, do not use any.
  • When providing images, give credit where credit is due. As an author, you are entitled to your byline as long as you are not ghostwriting. Photographers and illustrators should receive the same courtesy.
  • Original content only. Do not copy and paste someone else’s work. Not only is it unethical, doing so can cost you article writing jobs and affect your reputation as a website article writer.

Writing articles for websites is a good way to earn extra income and to build your reputation as a content provider. Paying attention to the basic guidelines will make you look good.

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Article Writing Tips for Beginners

June 21, 2010 – 2:44 pm

pen for article writingArticle writing is an excellent way to earn extra money, gain traffic to a website, and to build an online presence. One of the best things about article writing is that you don’t have to be a genius or have experience in order to write articles.

If you are considering writing articles online or need to write them and have been afraid to take the first step, here are a few tips to help you get started.

Article Writing Tip #1: Write like you speak. Think of a topic you know a lot about. Animals, pets, parenting, anything. Write a paragraph about your chosen topic. Pretend you are talking to a close friend or family member. Repeat this process and soon you’ll feel more comfortable about writing.

Article Writing Tip #2: Set a timer (a small kitchen timer works great) for 10 minutes and write everything you can think of about your chosen topic. Write as fast as you can so you can get as much information down as possible before the timer goes off. You don’t have to write full sentences. You can make a list instead. Use this list in creating article content.

Article Writing Tip #3: Learn to use the spell checker on your word processing system. The check spelling command is usually shown by an icon that has “abc” with a checkmark on it or beneath it. Using spell check will reduce spelling errors, one of the biggest distractions in articles.

Article Writing Tip #4: When you must write articles about a topic you aren’t familiar with, one of the quickest ways to learn about a topic is to visit the children’s section of the local library. Books meant for kids often condense the most important parts of a topic into easily readable sections.

Article Writing Tip #5: Just do it. Every article begins with a blank sheet of paper or a blank screen. You can always erase or delete after you have something on the paper.

Article Writing Tip #6: Read. Read. Read. Read what others are writing in articles and on blogs. Read newspapers. Read books. Reading will increase your awareness of topics, lead to more article ideas and improve your vocabulary, all at the same time.

You can write articles, even if you’re a total newbie. You don’t have to have a college education, or even a high school one, to write great articles. You just need passion for a topic (or the ability to inspire passion) and self-motivation.

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