Thirty-Two Tips in Writing Articles for the WWW

"We share what we know, so that others may grow."

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Thirty-Two Tips in Writing Articles for the WWW

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man
to use the Internet and he won't bother you for months...or
perhaps even years! (Sorry men... however, I presume this
principle also applies to our women-folk!)."

Articles are an incredible source of traffic and free advertising for your online business, as they create LINKS (which are a vital criteria for the major search engines in their rankings of your web-site). Writing articles can provide you with enormous amount of
exposure on the Web (sounds "rude, that). You are branding yourself on a shoestring budget - it hasn't cost you a cent, but a little time and effort.

People want quality content for their ezines and their web
sites; however, the competition for content is fierce. Every
Web site owner wants content and hundreds of writers want
their content visible on the Web. It's FREE promotion
through your signature file at the end of your article*.

If you can write an article about
your business, you can increase your links in 24 hours!
As the internet adress in your resource box at the end of your articles gets picked up by the main search engine spiders, like Google and Yahoo.

Writing a free content article is simple and follows a similar professional approach as an article for a standard, paying market. Here are some pointers in writing articles for the www:

Firstly,

1. Offer Something of Value, a Real Benefit to people. Articles that give good helpful information or explain how to accomplish something are usually best, and will be read most often.

2. Try to get into the publishers mind. See things from their point of view -
why should they publish your article? In what way will it benefit their readers?

3. Accept that writing for the web is different to writing
for the off-line world. People tend to skim and scan (note
alliteration) when reading online. They read quickly
scrolling down the page.

4. Identify your target audience.

5. Give your article a catchy title that will grab attention
and make people want to read.

6. Keep your title reasonably short. Put some thought and
effort into your heading - again to get your reader's
immediate attention.

7. Be professional and take your article writing seriously.
Write about something you know professionally. Don't be
overly casual in your writing (ie. don't write exactly as
you speak)

8. Keep your paragraphs short.

9. Be Clear and Concise. Get to the point quickly (enough waffle with maple syrup, Craig!).

10. Target your article to your audience with "focused
information".

11. Be brief, if you are a "waffler", like this writer.
People want immediate information online and have
limited time usually - it's the "instant coffee, sorry
generation.

12. Write briefly and concisely (redundant words, meaning
the same thing, Craig!) Try to keep your article under 1,500
words. Most paying markets usually only accept between 500
and 2,000 words... and with a bit of luck they may even
"pick up" your great article. Try to be concise in your
wording. Brevity is the hall-mark of good writing...or so
say many of the teachers of writing!

13.. Use the OCCASIONAL exclamation mark (!) to get your
readers attention. Forget the ALL CAPITAL LETTERS and
exclamation points!!!

14. Be credible (big word, eh?) at all times.I try to write
my articles in a "conversational style with dashes of my
funny humour".

15.. Use HUMOUR. People like to have a bit of fun with the
occasional laugh, whilst being informed on a serious
subject. At least I believe so!

16. Write from "your heart", so that you come across as a
REAL person. Just write what comes naturally with
INTEGRITY...and BE YOURSELF.

17. Be totally honest in your writing and don't "borrow" too
much from others content. It's so easy to "steal" on the www
- so do your own work and if you "borrow ideas or material,
ACKNOWLEDGE. "Incidentally, I have borrowed some ideas in
this article from some good writers and well-known internet
marketers - thanks a lot, David, Michael, John, Meredith,
Joe, Edward, Ken and Mark).

18. Be humble.and don't talk down to your readers.

19. Use bullets (not live, please, oops er sorry, bad taste)
in your articles - it makes the points easy to follow.

20.. Don't forget your byline ...or your "business card".
Make sure that you resource box at the end of the article
provides enough information to identify yourself and provide
contact information. It's FREE advertising.

21. Offer a free report with your article - this is an easy
way to collect a list of adresses for marketing your
product(s). An instant target market.

22. Check all the links in your article before submitting it.

23. Offer your articles by autoresponder

24. Conclude with a strong message. Your final point (and
paragraph) should be a message that summarises your article
or gets your reader to take further action, like "GET
STARTED" (as I've done in this article).

25. Pay attention to feedback you get for your articles.
Getting constructive feedback about your articles
can help you to write better through encouragement. A very powerful motivator to write more articles..

26. Finally, make sure your layout is good (not one of my
strong points!), as this greatly enhances your prospects of
getting published Use plenty of white spaces, as this makes your piece more easily read.

27. Proof-read. Double check your articles for errors: spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Use a spell-check. Go over your article
carefully and be an editor yourself.

28. Make sure your article flows properly.

29. Re-read and re-read, until you get it "just right."

30. Keep a file of articles you've written or ones that lie
unfinished. You may have many new ideas since then.
Set aside time to work on them. You may even put them in the form of
an ebook, as my "techno-friend", Stefan has done.

and finally...and most importantly

31. Remember the "kiss" principle: Write simply and keep your meaning (message) clear (As Ernest Hemingway advised). Never use a big word, when a dimunitive will do (get it)!

Self discipline is the key to writing success.
"Aim for perfection, but settle for excellence" in your article writing...
then just "give it a full go with all you've got".

and finally (and most importantly)

32. Don't treat writing articles for the www. as a loborious and necessary chore of internet marketing, but some FUN in your writing (as I have done in this article)

SUMMARY:

The internet is such an amazing medium for communication and
SHARING information. I've just submitted this article and
it's been published almost instaneously (big word!) in a few
places. So YOU TOO can write articles on your chosen subject
in your internet marketing efforts, as the more articles you write and submit, the more you will find web sites LINKING to yours (as many of the major search engines use the number of links as a factor in placing your web site in their rankings).

It's a "numbers game":
MORE TRAFFIC = INCREASED SALES ("the more you tell, the more you sell")

Share YOUR unique knowledge and skills to help others "out
there in cyberspace."

Writers and internet marketers - Grab this moment in history
well. "Carpe diem" (seize the moment!).

Why not start writing articles for the www in your unique
area of interest, knowledge and or expertise?

YOU CAN DO IT by writing articles for the www ...
and so and "by giving, you receive" (far more).

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."
- Johan Wolfgang Von Goethe (German philosopher)

Happy writing in 2007 and beyond

Craig Lock

P.S:

We hope that these tips help in your article writing.
In my opinion it's the best internet marketing strategy.To
your internet marketing dreams in 2007...and beyond.

As the ancient Chinese philosopher said so well, "A journey
of a thousand miles starts with a ... broken fan belt and a flat
tyre"... er sorry... a single step.

About the author:
Craig's mission is to encourage people to believe in themselves and
help inspire people around the world to achieve their goals and dreams in life.
http://www.craiglockbooks.com
http://www2.webng.com/writernz/creative.html
The "original" online creative writing course

All proceeds go to needy and underprivilileged children - MINE!

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