Home
>
Article Writing
>
Be a Jerk - And Watch Your Business Grow!

Be a Jerk - And Watch Your Business Grow!

Who remembers the 1979 movie, The Jerk with Steve Martin? Do you remember the scene where Steve's character finds the phone directory and runs around screaming, "The new phone books are here, the new phone books are here! I'm somebody!"

I was 17 years old when the movie came out and I fondly remember that scene. Why? Because in 1979, I didn't have a phone number of my own. I remember laughing at Martin's goofy character but privately thinking, "Imagine that, my name in print for thousands of people to see. How cool!"

What did I do when I got my first apartment? You guessed it. Looked myself up immediately when the new phone books came out and ran around yelling, "I'm somebody!" I hoped someone would find it hilarious that I was quoting lines from The Jerk. No one got my joke. But that didn't stop me.

Secretly, I was addicted to seeing my name in print. I wanted more. Guess who is the happiest person in town when she sees the Verizon truck loaded with its stacks of books, glossy yellow on the outside, thin pages with fine print on the inside, each book with my unique personal gem (my name) deep inside, adorning one of those beautiful pages? I can't wait to get my hands on those fresh, clean, new, pristine pages.

Imagine my delight this morning when I Googled myself and found not just one entry, but at least 13 pages of entries associated with my name. Holy cow! Last time I checked there were only 9 pages! Why the new pages?

It's simple. Article marketing.

I'm more of the slow, steady article marketer rather than a prolific one, so if you're writing huge volumes of articles, imagine the exposure. Aside from the vanity aspect, what does this mean for me? Simple. My blog traffic has tripled. My articles have been picked up in a few newsletters. I have submitted the same articles to several article sources. I'm selling a ton of shortbread and just landed some freelance copywriting business.

This all translates into EXPOSURE. Exposure translates into REVENUE.

Don't be a jerk and sit there.

Or should I say, "BE The Jerk and feel the power of YOUR name in print."

Ann Zuccardy is a freelance technical and copy writer with 17 years of industry experience in marketing and technical communication. She currently consults with IBM in Essex Junction, Vermont where she writes software user manuals, training guides, and release notes. Ann is also the owner of Vermont Shortbread Company. She can be reached at wordbrains.com.

no-contract cleaning service Mundelein ..

In The News:

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

Be a Jerk - And Watch Your Business Grow!

Article Writing