Article marketing is one of the oldest online marketing tools around. Because it’s been around for so long, some claim that article marketing is no longer effective. They believe online marketing efforts are better focused on social media marketing and other newer techniques.
While I’m certainly not going to argue against the importance of social media marketing, I still believe article marketing is a powerful tool that all businesses looking to grow an online presence should take advantage of.
Why?
Here are just some of the benefits of article marketing:
- Build links back to your website – Along with guest blogging, article marketing is one of my favorite techniques for building links back to my website. Most article directories allow you to include a few links in the body of your article and in your author’s resource box. By publishing high-quality articles to trusted directories consistently over time, you’ll start to build an impressive collection of links. This can help you gain trust with the search engines and improve your rankings.
- Position yourself as an expert – To overcome the fact that new customers just don’t trust you, it’s important to position yourself as an expert. Article marketing is one way to do this. Write informative articles that showcase your knowledge so your target audience will see you as trustworthy and knowledgeable.
- Improve your search engine presence – In addition to the link building benefits of article marketing, you have to also remember that the articles themselves can rank well if optimized properly. This allows you to snag up even more of the top spots in the search results, flushing your competitors down in the rankings.
Tips for Article Marketing Success
Of course, to get the most from your article marketing campaign, you need to make sure you’re doing it right. Too many marketers aren’t doing it right, and that’s why article marketing has earned such a negative reputation lately.
Here are a few tips for article marketing success:
- Focus on quality and quantity – The perfect article marketing formula is a good quantity of high quality articles. Too many marketers only focus on the quantity part of the equation, pumping out high volumes of poorly-written content. Remember, your name is attached to these articles, so make sure they’re good.
- Use keyword-rich backlinks – I mentioned earlier that you can usually include links in the body of your article and in the author’s resource box. Make these links count by using keyword-rich anchor text. For example, if you’re link to a page on your website that’s about the V-neck sweaters you sell, you’d want to use something like “V-neck sweaters” as the anchor text for that link. This helps the search engines know what your pages are about so you can rank better for the targeted keywords.
- Don’t try to sell – Articles should never be written like advertisements. In fact, most sales-y articles will get rejected by the publishing directory. Instead of trying to sell, focus on providing useful information that highlights your expertise. This will increase your credibility and ensure your articles actually get published.
What do you think: Does article marketing still work?
This article is written by Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases (https://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. Download your free copy of 7 Cheap PR Tactics for Success in Any Economy here: https://www.ereleases.com/free-offer/cheap-pr-tactics/