Benefits of Article Marketing

Article marketing provides a number of benefits for savvy business owners who choose to use this marketing technique. From better search engine rankings to increased visibility online, article marketing is one of the best ways to promote products, services, and programs for business owners who have a small marketing budget.

Positive SEO Effect

Search engine optimization is the process of making a Web site more accessible for the search engines so that the site can be found, indexed, and displayed when users search for specific keywords. Search engine optimization (SEO) involves a number of on-page and off-page techniques like building links to the site being optimized, submitting the site to search engines for indexing, and using keyword-rich content to increase rankings.

Article marketing is an excellent SEO tool because it allows you to combine the use of keywords and link building to help you increase your Web site rankings. When you submit an article to an online directory, you are given the option of including a resource box, or author biography, with each article you submit. Within that resource box, you have the opportunity to include a link to your Web site. These links will point readers to your Web site and increase your overall traffic. You can also incorporate your selected keywords into your links so that you have a positive effect on your search engine rankings. For example, you can use HTML to format your links so that they include your keywords. If your keyword is “Las Vegas wedding planner,” you can format your link to read Las Vegas wedding planner instead of simply saying http://www.site.com.

Using your keywords in your links can help you to boost your search engine rankings for those particular keywords.

Building Credibility & Expert Reputation

Article marketing can also serve as a way to boost your credibility and your reputation as an expert in your field. Think about the last time you bought a product or service and had to choose between two or more vendors. Wouldn’t you be more likely to buy from someone who had published several high quality articles than someone you’ve never heard of before? If your articles are high in quality and give readers the information they’re looking for, your credibility will improve and you will be able to develop a reputation as an expert in your field.

Building Goodwill Among Prospects

Some business owners keep all of their knowledge to themselves because they’re afraid that giving it away will reduce the need for their products and services. In fact, the opposite is true. If you write articles and give your prospects the information they need, they’ll be more likely to buy from you if they find a need for the products and services you offer. Writing high quality articles that arm your prospects with the information they need to improve their businesses or personal lives is a great way to build a rapport and show how your products and services can help them.

Building a Profitable Mailing List

Article marketing is an excellent technique to use if you want members of your target audience to sign up for your newsletter, e-zine, or e-mail list. Instead of including a link to your Web site in your resource box, link to the subscription page you use to get subscribers for your list. You can make an offer for a free special report or e-book in your resource box so that readers are convinced to click your link and subscribe for your list. As you build your list, you can continue to market your products and services to subscribers to help further increase your sales.