Don't Just Write Articles. Write Them Right!‏

by Chris Crum

You may have a writer inside you even if you didn't know it. If you own your own business, you have to be savvy in some areas, so why not share things you have learned along the way with others?

The best reason to do this is to help you brand yourself as an expert in your field. Share your thoughts on article writing.

Syndication and Your Agenda

When you write articles to have syndicated at other web sites, what you don't want to do is write ones that are too self-serving, promoting your products heavily.

This may be fine for your own business blog, but that's what press releases are for. If you want people to take you seriously, it's better to produce good quality articles that could actually help people rather than just some filler sales pitch content disguised as an article.

Promotion from a Bio

The beauty of the author bio is that it allows you to promote your business and/or product without being so tacky about it. You have it there on every article you write, yet you don't come off as just another pitch. Basically, you're giving them the content they want and providing them with an opportunity to look into your business if you offer something that they are interested in, which if you are writing relevant content to what you do, there is a good chance that they will be.

Pictures and Humanization

Whenever possible, try to include a photo of yourself with your articles. You may be self-conscious about posting images of yourself, but it is a lot easier for someone to trust what they are reading if they can put a face to it.

There's just something humanizing about being able to see whose words you are reading, and it makes the content seem more credible, even if only on a subconscious level.

Unique Content

I know. Creating unique content is easier said than done (believe me, I struggle with it everyday). There are so many good and bad articles posted on the Internet that most likely whatever you have to say has been said before.

Still, that doesn't mean that you can't put a fresh perspective to any given subject. Even if it's been said before, it hasn't been said by your voice. And maybe it hasn't even been said to your audience.

Readability

When you've dealt with as many articles as I have, it becomes apparent that not everyone should be writing. I'm not saying that I'm Mark Twain, but I've seen so many articles that are just borderline unintelligible that it makes me question what inspired the authors to ever put their fingers on the keyboard. The point I'm trying to make here is that if you're going to take the plunge into the writing pool, make sure your articles are readable. Let someone else read over them before you post them online if you are not sure about them.

Posting a bunch of articles full of unreadable malarkey is a good way to get your online reputation to sink. Typos happen, but there is a difference between typos and nonsense.

If you can pull off all of the above, you should be on the right track to promoting your business through articles the right way. How has promotion through articles worked for you? Share your story in the comments.

About the Author:
Chris is a content coordinator and staff writer for SmallBusinessNewz and the iEntry Network. Subscribe to SmallBusinessNewz RSS Feeds.