It's no secret that writing and publishing helpful articles is one of the best ways to promote your business. Writing articles can:
Writing articles for local business publications, trade magazines, newsletters, and Web sites that reach your target audience can be a powerful piece of your marketing plan. But following through can be more difficult than it sounds, as many people hate writing or have a hard time just figuring out where to begin. Plenty of business owners and marketers hire outside firms or freelance writers (like The WriteShop, www.writeshoponline.com) to write articles for them, which can be a time-saving solution. But if you want to write your own articles, it can be tough to know where to begin. These five tips may help you stay focused and get the job done.
1. Narrow your topic. In each article, be sure to address only one main idea -maybe you focus on one problem your readers have, or one solution that may work for them. Trying to cover too many topics in one article just causes confusion. Whenever you find yourself going off on an unrelated tangent, turn that tangent into another, separate article for future use.
2. Write in conversational style. Keep your audience in mind and try to write for them the way you'd speak to them. For most business writing, an informal, conversational style is preferable, especially if your article will be published on the Web. Remember that you want your article to be accessible and understandable for your target audience. Shorter sentences and language that is easy to grasp quickly will have better results than long diatribes full of words that require a dictionary.
3. Offer genuine, helpful information. While your articles are tools to help market your business, they are not advertisements. Don't fill your articles with promotional material about your company, or your readers will quickly lose interest. Instead, offer them real insight, tips, or advice that shows them you know what you're talking about. Their interest in your company and what you can do for them will come; but for the sake of your article, focus on providing information they can use.
4. Be brief. Especially when writing for the Web, brevity is crucial. Before sending any article for publication, read through it several times and cut out any unnecessary words. For instance, the word "that" can be eliminated in most cases. Make sure every word counts, and every sentence is meaningful and helpful for communicating your main idea.
5. Distribute, distribute, distribute. Finally, writing an article doesn't do any good unless you get it in front of your target audience. In addition to publishing your articles on your own Web site or in your newsletter, consider sending them to publishers of print and electronic newsletters, and submit them to Web sites that publish articles on your topic. See the Resource Box below for ideas of specific Web sites where you may want to submit your articles. And remember to always include your contact information so that readers will know how to reach you.
Hopefully, these tips will get you on your way to publishing plenty of articles that will get noticed and yield results. But if you'd like even more direction to get you started, contact The WriteShop for information about our inexpensive special report, "Article Starter: A Resource Guide to Writing Business Articles That Get Results." E-mail us today at info@writeshoponline.com.
Nancy Jackson, owner of The WriteShop, helps companies better market their products and services with powerful written communications including Web content, newsletters, brochures and publications. Subscribe to her free monthly newsletter at info@writeshoponline.com.
quick home cleaning Glenview ..Anyone who's been in the business for 2 or 3... Read More
It has become common knowledge that the smartest and most... Read More
A Consultant could be an expert about absolutely anything.Calling yourself... Read More
Have ever wished that there were a formula for crafting... Read More
Writing articles that are available for reprint is an excellent... Read More
Yesterday I met a 13-year old boy with a devilish... Read More
It's stunning sometimes how far article marketing has come over... Read More
You say, I can't write an article, I have no... Read More
Feeling uninspired? Like you're stuck in a rut with your... Read More
Writing for web content is one of the easiest ways... Read More
You may be wondering what persuasive writing has to do... Read More
The first twenty-five words of your article are the most... Read More
IntroductionThere are two ways to submit to magazine editors.One is... Read More
Online writing is really self-publishing made easier and potentially much... Read More
Article marketing works like this. The majority of webmasters are... Read More
Did you realize that writing and publishing articles online represents... Read More
Writing a letter to your newspaper's editor is a privilege... Read More
Frequently when I am communicating with other webmasters and I... Read More
A true test for many writers that will require your... Read More
Knowing exactly what an editor wants.Unfortunately, many new writers struggle... Read More
Most authors are wasting their time producing dozens to hundreds... Read More
You pick a pen, grab a piece of paper and... Read More
You are running out of ideas, you sit down in... Read More
A revolutionary marketing device that I call article marketing I... Read More
All writers aspire to recognition, but are we dedicated? Ambition... Read More
scheduled maid service Winnetka ..Been reading up on SEO? If so, you know that... Read More
It is important for all webmasters to realize that if... Read More
It is amazing to see how much we all still... Read More
It's no secret that writing and publishing helpful articles is... Read More
It is not my intention to give you a 5... Read More
In today's busy world, whether your business is large or... Read More
Sometimes when I am communicating with other webmasters and I... Read More
Many people which in online business world find difficulties in... Read More
"But I've only been on the Internet 3 months! How... Read More
A few years ago as a webmaster with no money,... Read More
Do you wonder what easy, cheap, and fast way you... Read More
Sharing knowledge on the web can be a very powerful... Read More
Hey! Who's that I see, typing feverishly as brilliant ideas... Read More
Don't let overwhelm hold you back- follow this expert advice... Read More
Everyone focuses their web marketing efforts on search engines, and... Read More
Getting people to join your company can be hard work.... Read More
One of the best things you can do for your... Read More
I've been blogging occasionally over the last two months about... Read More
You submit it, that's what you do! And submit it... Read More
IntroductionThere are two ways to submit to magazine editors.One is... Read More
I have seen the question asked so many times. How... Read More
In order to sell your article must do three things:1.... Read More
Ever read one of those web articles written by an... Read More
Online PR in the form of website and ezine article... Read More
Article marketing-the simple act of writing one 400 word article... Read More
Article Writing |