Article Writing as a Traffic Generator

Article writing can be a scary prospect if you are new to internet marketing and maybe never thought of yourself much as being someone who could write an article and have it published. Something else that many people allow themselves to be put off by is that there are so many methods of promoting products, these days, that it may seem like the most time consuming and yet least likely to be noticed. This perception is false, don?t allow yourself to be misled by it.

For example, think of a more conventional advertising method, like a magazine. Maybe even pick up a magazine rather than just thinking about it, scan its pages and before long you?ll find an article of some kind that highlights a certain product or problem that needs a product to resolve it, and lo and behold, right nearby you?ll also find an advert for the product that will meet your needs in relation to the article you just read!

Just think of how TV advertising is set up to tell a short story about how the product being advertised can benefit the people using it. This again is the equivalent of article writing for the internet. As you can see there are several reasons why article writing is an essential part of your internet marketing:

- A well written article will highlight your business. If your business is new, this can be a great way to introduce yourself to potential customers. An article can tell people what they need to know about you in order to build a rapport with them, what you do, why and how you do it. It will also inform people about your products.

- Article writing, although time consuming, is cheap. Unlike the use of more conventional advertising methods, article writing does not require spending a lot of money to promote your site or product. In fact, if you do have writing skills article writing is free. You can get your article published on websites and not be charged a single cent despite the fact that you will have a one way link back to your site and your product within that article or the resource box that accompanies it.

- A well-written article can generate traffic to your site. Unlike when using banners and classified ads, if people choose to visit your site after reading your article you know that they actually liked what they read and they are already warmed up to your product before they reach the sales page. Articles create a way for people to find your site without having to know your domain name or see your site within the first 10 listed on a search engines results page.

- An article really can prompt a sale, if it was written to explain how your product can solve a problem or meet a need. Sometimes it?s just not enough to put a picture of your product along with a few lines of copy that describe it. This won?t always be enough to get people to visit your sales page.

The best way to use articles to get people to visit your site include:

- Write about niche topics. There are a whole lot of general topic articles already out there on the internet. This leaves a high possibility that your reader might have encountered these before, if your article covers the same points, they may not stay long to read it through and more importantly, may not be interested enough to click through on the links to your site. Your article should have a specific target.

- A good way to grab peoples interest is through story telling, try to talk about your product or service in relation to an anecdote or an incident that really happened to you or to someone you know, (if you are going to do this, be sure to observe the necessary anonymity rules to respect the individuals? privacy). This type of approach will give more credibility to your article and also will give it more emotional impact.

- Use appropriate tone and language when writing, consider your main target group and then ?talk? to them, through your article, the way you would if you were face-to-face with them. Use the language associated with this group. For example, if you?re targeting highly technical individuals, don?t be afraid to talk in technical terms which may be unique in your field of study. Alternatively, if you?re a technical person targeting laymen, make sure you don?t use the technical terms, explain things clearly and simply so as not to bore people because they don?t understand the terminology.

- Submit your articles to the well known. reliable ezine sites where you know that the traffic is heavy. Ezines split their submitted articles into categories and they like you to submit to the one which best suits the nature of your article. Most ezine sites are free, they do not pay you for your writing, neither do they charge you to publish your article and relevant links. Once your article is published and given exposure to the regular clients of that site, if your article is of interest, they become almost like a captive market.

- Ensure that your articles are useful. Remember that people browse the internet for information and that?s the goal of your article, to provide them with good, reliable information. Some of the most successful articles are the easy to follow how-to ones or those that provide easy to follow, yet detailed guides to a particular hobby or resource. If your article is easy to read and understand, people are more likely to read it through (and then be interested enough to click on your links to find out more.

- Sometimes it is a good idea to offer something for free and mention this in your article. Your article should always promote your website?s benefits but not in a sales letter like way. You want to subtly inform people what they?ll get through your website that they won?t get anywhere else. Think about what makes your web-site different so that it stands out from all the rest and then promote that factor.

- As well as including a link to your website, you can encourage readers to email you with their comments and suggestions, if you have written an interesting and stimulating article, people are likely to contact you.

In summary then, I hope to have shown that article writing is an important weapon to add to your internet marketing arsenal. It? cheap, relatively easy to do and it can generate already warm lead traffic to your website. Don?t ignore this.

The author, Debbie is an ex psych. nurse now into internet marketing, as well as various health & lifestyle issues. Web-sites include:
Ace Wealth Builder
A-Z Health Club
Ace 4 Life Info