The Power of Articles

There's just something about articles. They're a versatile form of content that can educate and entertain readers, build your brand, and help you rank in search engines. In this post, we'll cover the following topics:

The best SEO practices for increasing article ranking

How to generate traffic from article marketing

And how to format an engaging introduction for a long-form article

1) The Best SEO Practices for Increasing Article Ranking: Include keywords in the title tag and meta description; use bold tags on select words; link out to other relevant posts; use popular keywords strategically throughout the piece.

2) How to Generate Traffic from Article Marketing: Write articles for sites like EzineArticles.com and articlePros.com. Target readers who are interested in your topic, and then offer to submit your work to them for publishing. Email this article to friends, family members and social media contacts (note: you can't post your own article anywhere).

3) Format an Inpiriting Introduction for a Long-Form Article:

--Start with a strong headline: " If it's not broke, don't fix it ." Or, " If it ain't broke, don't fix it ." Keep the body of the article fact-rich and devoid of fluff. [editors note: this is almost exactly what we do with every post here on ATH ]. Your goal is to pack as much information into 3-4 paragraphs as you can–think two-columns wide and one column deep. Then repeat with your next article. --Tell a story. Include anecdotes and examples throughout your piece. A strong conclusion, with a strong "call to action," will keep readers coming back for more. --Keep your writing style conversational. Write in an informal but informative tone. --Quote experts in the field. Use their commentary and statistics to bolster your argument. Make sure to include links to these experts' sites, so they'll be more likely to share your article with others.   --Edit, edit and edit some more. Remember, you're competing against writers who have had years of practice honing their craft–many of them have journalism degrees or have been published before .  Don't try to be a professional writer at first–just save one article per week for a year, and see where you are then.   --Finally, use a tool like HemingwayApp.com to check your writing for clarity and ease-of-reading.

Let's be honest, though: if you ask any writer to sum up their approach in just a few sentences, you're going to get a bunch of clichés. It takes years (or even decades) of practice to master the craft . But that doesn't mean you should just give up and wait until your talent magically improves. To be successful with content marketing , you don't need to write like Louisa May Alcott (although that would be pretty cool).

Conclusion: If you want to make the most of article marketing, remember that it's not just about writing good content. It's about getting your name out there, getting expert opinions to back up your opinions, and offering free information to people who are likely to share it with their friends. More than any other piece of content you can create (with the possible exception of a podcast), articles have the potential to take you from virtual anonymity straight into Internet stardom.   This is how some marketers I know are capitalizing on this strategy:

9) Frame Your Story – Let your audience and industry know why this matters to them. Tell us a story that will explain why we should care about what you have created for us.