Web Marketing Therapy

Ezine Article Marketing- What on Earth Is It & Why Should We Care?

December 15th, 2008
by Amy Dunn

Lately I have been spending a lot of my time encouraging my clients to write more content. My theory is anyone who owns or operates a business is likely to be considered an expert in his or her field. Ezine articles (short for electronic magazine) are ideal to introduce your brand and contribute your expertise to the Web. What many people do not realize is there are tons of article directories out there that online publishers go to so they can find fresh material for their sites. These directories are called “Ezine Article Directories” and have become a very effective way for Web marketers to promote their clients and find new places to publish their links.

It takes a bit of planning, research and creativity- but it is likely you will be able to come up with an effective strategy to help your client build their brand. Thought it could be argued, I firmly believe that ezine article marketing most certainly falls under the giant umbrella that is Social Media Marketing. The point of utilizing social media channels is to contribute to the conversation. While business owners may not have lots of time to make this contribution, they are a great resource of information in their field and what a shame to miss this opportunity to announce to the Web about their expertise.

Here are some tips to do effective ezine article marketing:

Be Brief & to the Point.
This is not the place to post a Masters thesis or novel. Remember, those of us who get our content online are usually busy and lets face it, have pretty short attention spans. Most article sites require that your piece is at least 250 words but no more than 5000. If you have a lot to contribute- break them up into a series of articles- you will get much more of a punch doing this and more hits to your site.

Write What You are Passionate & Knowledgeable About.
If you running a business; you are probably doing so because you are so passionate about that industry and field that you felt the need to go out on a limb and create your business! Let that same passion fuel your articles, and supplement it with useful content and relevant facts. You have the ability to teach your readers something they did not already know- use it!

Articles Should Contain Useful, Legitimate Facts & Content- NOT SALES PITCHES! Yes, it is true- your ultimate goal is to drive traffic to your site (will get to that in a minute). However, ezine article readers are not looking for advertisements. They want information. They want tips. They want to be enriched by your expertise. Make this your goal as you write these articles. There is a time and a place to sell your brand. Do not insult your reader’s intelligence by sneaking in salesy pitches. This is a major turn off and you have missed an opportunity to make a new connection. Besides- the admins of the good ezine directories will probably suspend your author account if you use them to produce blatant sales pitches.

Utilize the Resource Box.
Ok- so as a Web marketer, you need to understand WHY you are doing these wonderful articles? There is a place to sell your brand in the Author Resource Box. This is the place to say who you are and the company you own or operate. Most of these boxes allow you to include a few sentences- so be brief, to the point, and post your link to your site! If the article is well received, there is a good chance readers will want to learn more- and where else would they turn than to your site and/or blog?

While there are many more steps to follow; this will get your started on the path to a successful ezine marketing campaign!

Here are some of my favorite sites to get you started:
Ezine Articles- http://www.ezinearticles.com
Amazines- http://www.amazines.com
Idea Marketers- http://www.ideamarketers.com

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