Home
>
Article Writing
>
Publishing: changing realities (IV)

Publishing: changing realities (IV)

How does a writing agency market itself effectively in a cyber reality that's bursting with free content? Writers these days are having a tough time competing for business. The game is complicated and the rules are changing.

The mini culture of ezine publishing is quite representative of the wider internet; if you write an article about your very own writing boutique, you generally are expected to submit it in the category labeled 'writing'. But the difference between this and other categories is that writers selling their skills as a product are virtually talking into empty space. Where other categories have a tangible target market directly at hand, writers submit articles about writing.

Writing about writing in order to purposefully market yourself is okay if you want to give advice to newcomers to the trade, but you don't attract any immediate clients this way.

In contrast to all the other categories that have real, often tangible, goods to sell to people who need them, writers market themselves to website developers by directly addressing the issues that concern them, and tend to just ramble on and on about the art of writing instead. A rather pointless exercise unless you've already missed your vocation and confuse sound writing with teaching.

A writer likes just to write about reality in all its facets and I can hardly imagine there's anything more tedious than to write about writing. Unless you have a psychological defect which forces you to continue to talk in metacommunicative terms ad infinitum, but there are not many such people around. I wonder what the defect is and am already itching to research the topic, and write something about it and ? yes, what? Publish it for free, hoping someone will read the byline and say; 'one more please', or, in a wilder dream: 'We'll put you on a monthly retainer if you write a few?' It happens this way, but you have to be lucky. Yet, our traffic numbers simply dictate we flush the 'net with more free articles we believe is an illogical waste-your-brain exercise.

What is the right path for someone to still sell writing skills?

These are the options:

a- Create RSS, XML feeds and syndicate to news services;

b- Prop up the output by including extra resources on existing topics that get good traffic;

c- Regard incoming links as search engine rank boosters rather than direct mega traffic generators;

d- Expand the online presence to include direct marketing, job bulletin boards, forums;

e- Invent something ludicrously insane to get attention and then capitalise on it like crazy.

Ad a- In the time frame of the last six months, I have cringed, bit my teeth and published articles for free on real topics including politics, culture, features, health. They have been posted in a host of freebie ezines, a few highly reputable professional special interest publications and our own ezine which is already RSS compatible. We also publish a ranting and raving blog which is a highly contrarian piece of mostly political fabric that is truly optimised for all outlets in the blogosphere too. It's worked miracles for our traffic.

Ad b- The output is however still too low to attract continuous traffic. It makes sense to see what the most popular topics have been and expand the coverage by including RSS feeds from other sources and create boutique style news packages out of them that are so specialised they beat the news aggregators. Read our other article The Grassroots of Publishing ? And the Beyond.

Ad c- Targeting the market for content writing by producing solid examples honing the trade remains key, especially because it creates incoming backlinks. These are the so-called non reciprical backlinks which are famous for propping up your rankings in search engines.

Ad d- Small agencies can mimick the news industry without too much trouble and provide better, tailormade, products. They have to ride a fine line however by not abandoning their natural target market (for tailor made hand crafted content, someone's gotta do it) or by excluding the outside world that's exploiting the same turf.

Ad e- Instead, making your weak point your strongest is best. If in the jungle, the life saving maxim is 'if you are not strong, be quick', in today's internet jungle the writer's should be 'if you are not big, be different'. Strong conceptual thinking is key in getting visitors to come back. Casting a human eye over aggregator news output and including extra sources as well as some home made articles are the ingredients to create content that's different and better.

Angelique van Engelen is a freelance writer based in Amsterdam the Netherlands. She runs http://www.contentclix.com and writes tailormade articles and content.

shuttle from Midway Glen Ellyn ..

In The News:

Technology expert Kim Komando gives her tips and tricks on enhancing your user experience a smartphone and other devices you use everyday.

A new camera called NUCA uses artificial intelligence to create deepfake photos of subjects by stripping away clothing in close to real time.

The Kimberley Kube trail-ready camper has a compact but spacious design and combines luxury, functionality and ruggedness for a weekend getaway.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Emails instructing you to reset your password for an account may be legitimate, or they may be scams. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains.

Northrop Grumman's Manta Ray uncrewed underwater vehicle aims to revolutionize undersea missions — it glides through the ocean without human assistance.

Learn how to work Google's calendar application to streamline and organize your daily tasks from technology expert Kim Komando.

If you do not want Facebook to have automatic access to your private photos, follow our tips to protect yourself. Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson shows you how.

Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson goes into detail about Apple’s recent iOS update that allows iPhone users to instantly translate spoken language simply by using the Action Button.

Safeguarding your digital life with a reliable physical backup isn't just a precaution, it's a necessity. Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson provides the essential backup checklist.

Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals how a Redditor exposed false recycling claims at their apartment, highlighting a report that only 21% of U.S. recyclables are processed.

Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson offers a travel toolkit featuring five technology tools to help you with booking flights and hotels for your summer vacation.

The bubble behind the clock on your iPhone can appear in different colors. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains what each of those colors mean.

Scammers are using the power of artificial intelligence to mimic voices of people and are using the fake voices to commit crimes, like kidnappings.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Tech guru Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains the science behind the Invisibility Shield, a 6-foot shield that makes people become invisible.

The International Olympic Committee on Friday announced plans to use AI in various Olympic aspects, including athlete identification, training and judging.

Tech guru Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains an easy trick to avoid squinting while working or surfing the web by zooming in on your personal computer.

Streaming giant Roku has recently been targeted by a pair of cyberattacks, and the company confirmed over a half million Roku accounts were compromised.

The Land Aircraft Carrier combines an all-terrain, six-wheeled vehicle with a two-seat aircraft, which features electric vertical takeoff and landing.

The European Union has sent TikTok a "request for information" on the video sharing platform's newest app, TikTok Lite, under the Digital Services Act, with the aim to clean up social media.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

The FBI is warning the public about a recent phishing scam via text that claims its targets owe money in Pennsylvania for unpaid road toll charges.

Your Apple Music settings may be revealing to your contacts what you're listening to. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains the process to change those settings.

Learn how to secure social media accounts, implement legacy contacts, and create a digital estate plan to protect your online assets from 'ghost hackers' after your death.

Publishing: changing realities (IV)

Article Writing