Why You Need an Article-Marketing Strategy before Posting a Single Article Online I
By Dr. Lynella Grant
Part 1 of a 2-part series
To read Part 2
http://www.promotewitharticles.com/strategy102.html
First, Define your Bulls Eye
If youre going to write and post articles on the Internet,be unambiguous about what you expect them to accomplish.Dont start writing just yet. Think beyond the mechanics ofwriting an article or deciding where to post it.
Its one thing to spin out an article or two. Its quiteanother to incorporate them into a strategy that builds yourwebsite traffic, reputation, and business. All yourmarketing methods should work together - online and off.
Your Strategy Clarifies:
- Who youre trying to reach
- How to find them
- What you want them to do next (does your website support that aim?)
- Your primary goal and message
- How articles (with particular titles and keywords) mesh with your other marketing
Article marketing is nothing more than a way to getinformation (not advertising) broadly distributed on theInternet. It cant compensate for a muddled or dull message.And it wont build your site traffic unless it connects toreaders in an interesting way.
Write Articles that Trumpet a Unique Business Message
A frequent business error is treating each customer-attracting activity as though it stands alone. Yet eachmethod works better when echoing a common message that linksto the others.
To quote Roy Williams, the Wizard of Ads,http://www.wizardofads.com Its hard to tell a powerfulstory badly. But its easy to tell a weak story well. Ivenever seen a business fail because they were eaching thewrong people. But Ive seen thousands fail because theywere saying the wrong thing... Its amazing how many peoplebecome the ight people when youre saying the rightthing. Believe it or not, its advertising third, customerdelight second, strategy always first.
Maximize your Customer-Attracting Methods
Last year I wrote an ebook showing how to make the businesswebsite and Yellow Page ad work together to bring newcustomers. It made the point that each promotional methodhas its own strengths, and reaches different groupshttp://www.yellowpagesage.com/smarts.html By them workingtogether, each approach does a more persuasive job.
As an example, the directory ad should display a websiteaddress. A recent study found that over 60% of peoplesurveyed only call Yellow Page ads that show a website (evenif they dont intend to visit it). Besides, the website letsthe business provide information that wont fit within thedimensions of an ad.
A single approach cant cover all your bases. The sameapplies to article marketing.
Article Marketing Strengths
- Ability to deliver an interesting sample of your expertise
- Long enough to be informative (600-800 words)
- Reaches and speaks to tightly focused interest groups
- Quickly delivers the message throughout the Internet
- Long shelf life - some websites keep articles posted for years
- Builds on the keywords that your website uses
- Incoming-links from websites that post your articles
Plan More than One Article at a Time
You cant develop much momentum with one article. Thatslike shooting a gun with a single bullet, or a PPC (pay-per-click) campaign for just one term. The odds of hitting yourmark arent too good. Several articles written to reinforceeach other generate more mileage. As you get more articlesout there, people start paying attention, and you can targetmore keywords. Repeated publications develop a personalitythat readers recognize.
Plan a number of titles in advance, with a theme buildingfrom one to the next. Keep each one tightly focused, butrelated to the others. In that way, you develop the in-depthvoice of an expert. And your information wont lapse intoho-hum generalities. Write first-rate articles when you relyon the extensive free resourceshttp://www.promotewitharticles.com at Article MarketingAcademy.
Try writing some in a series (like, Part 1 of 3 parts) tobuild anticipation for future segments. Also, your messagewont be confined to the 600 to 800 word article limit.Since each article in the series resides on your website,readers neednt wait to read them all (giving them anincentive to visit your site). Later, the whole series canbe offered as a special report or ebook (once relatedmaterial is added).
Write with your keywords in mind. Maintain your primarymessage, with a different twist for parallel niches. Go tothe extra effort to say something new. Thats easy when youprovide stories, examples, case studies from your ownexperience. As you dish out practical assistance in yourarticles, readers will be eagerly watching for your nextones.
Lynella Grant, 2005
Part 2 includes posting articles, writing to please thesearch engines, and ways to re-use articles. Part 2 of 2,http://www.promotewitharticles.com/strategy102.html
--Dr. Lynella Grant http://www.promotewitharticles.com - Article Marketing Academy - Promote yourself, business, website, or book with articles posted online. Author, Yellow Page Smarts, http://www.yellowpagesage.com/smarts.html (719) 395-9450
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