Donovan Baldwin
How to Make Money Online With Short Articles - Sharing Your Articles
Letting others use your articles, as long as they include
your byline, is a very effective way to increase website
traffic. Most articles which are posted online will
include a byline which not only tells visitors you wrote it
and might say how they can contact you, but will normally
include a link to the website you are trying to promote.
So how does this work?
Let's say I sell do-it-yourself legal forms...which I do.
I then write a short but helpful article explaining how
important it is to have a last will and testament...which I
did. I include a link in my byline that leads people to my
do-it-yourself website.
Now, I take that article and submit it to several article
directories, making sure that I include it in relevant
subject areas, i.e. law, legal matters, government, or even
last will and testament if I'm lucky.
On the internet, there are two major groups of people
seeking information or help.
Group A is seeking information on preparing a last will and
testament. Their search leads them to an article directory
site where I have posted my article. Browsing through the
list of articles, my title catches their eye, they look at
my article, and they notice my link, click on it and find
out that they can prepare a will themselves using an
inexpensive package available there, thereby saving a lot
of time, effort, and the potentially large fee that an
attorney might charge.
Obviously, not everyone seeking that information will read
my article or find it relevant to what they are seeking.
Even among those who think that I have just provided them
with the exact info they needed and that I am the best
writer in the world, only some will actually click on my
link. As is the way with Internet business, only a few who
wind up at my website will actually buy anything...but
there will be more than there would have been without the
article.
Group B, on the other hand, provides information. However,
instead of researching and writing it all themselves, they
go to article directories and find articles that fit their
website, blog, or ezine. They then present those articles
to their readership. If they have selected my article,
there will be a lot more people who will see it than if it
simply sits on the article directory site collecting
virtual dust.
Wait! It gets better!
1. Remember that remark earlier about posting it to as
many article directories as possible? The more websites
you can get to carry it, the better chance you have to
eventually initiate the chain of events outlined above,
hopefully resulting in a sale. So, you can enhance your own
chances of success with any one article by placing it on as
many article directory sites as possible.
2. If you can write several related articles, you can
repeat the process as many times as you can come up with
articles. This begins to create an exponential return from
the fact that as some people read your articles, they
realize that you have written other articles as well.
Group A may choose to read more what you have written,
improving your chance of being seen as an expert in their
eyes, leading possibly to a sale. Group B may choose to
keep an eye out and catch your next article because they
like your work and know that it will fit in with the thrust
of their website, blog, or ezine.
Still more!
3. Some of the website owners from Group B who found your
article where you posted it on an article directory
website, also run their own article directory websites and
take the articles they find and post it on THEIR
sites...sometimes for use by even OTHER website directory
owners!
Don't stop!
4. Once the article is written, it can be posted by you in
forums and on message boards. Although you might not be
able to include your byline, many of these sites allow you
to create a signature which can include a link to your
website.
TIPS:
-Stick to one point. Don't try to solve the mysteries of
the universe. If writing about the last will and
testament, don't get off into dissertations about law,
trusts, living wills, quill pens vs. ballpoints, etc.
-Keep it concise. Obviously, the subject and your style of
writing will dictate the length to some extent, but most of
these articles should be between about 400 words and 1200
words in length. If the topic is complex or just has to
run long, break it up into Part I, Part II, and so on.
-Use your keywords. If the topic is the last will and
testament, you will want to use that phrase about 3% of the
time. It is a good idea to make sure it makes it into the
title and first sentence as well, and, if the article
directory allows, make sure it's in the description and
keywords (some directories allow you to pick keywords
relevant to your article).
-Check your spelling and grammar. Nobody's perfect, and
most sites, and readers, will not be looking for perfection
anyway. However, not many people will bother with an
article replete with spelling and grammar errors.
-Research your facts. If you are presenting opinion, feel
free to soar above the clouds. In fact, controversy may
work in your favor in that event. On the other hand, if
your article is fact-based, or if you give statistics, or
quote others, make sure you've got it right before you
publish it.
-Get some help. Posting your articles one-by-one on a
hundred different websites can be time consuming, not to
mention incredibly boring. There are services available
which, for a fee, will send your article to several
different article directories and ezine publishers. There
is also software available which can do this, although
setting up the accounts initially can still be very time
consuming (and boring). However, this can be worth it.
----------------------------------------------------
Donovan Baldwin is a Texas writer. He is a University of
West Florida alumnus, a member of Mensa, and is retired
from the U. S. Army. Learn more about the importance of
your last will and testament at
ment.html .
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