Planning Articles Submissions

When I first started writing this lens - and THIS module in particular, I wrote: "Because I enjoy writing, there's not much of a chance that I'll be farming out my writing."

Since then, I have MODIFIED my opinion.

First, let me say that I absolutely 100% understand that not everyone loves writing the way I do. And, since there are a lot of people out there in the ether who will freelance, it makes some sense to aspiring internet marketers to hire out the writing of their content.

Again, there is a right way and a wrong way to do this.

It is far too easy for a frustrated marketer to put an ad out on CraigsList or on some freelance site and say, "Hi folks... I need help writing my marketing copy. Who is willing to write 10 articles for me?"

Please don't do this. I'm not saying that you won't find a competent writer. I AM saying that without some due diligence on YOUR part, you might get burned.

Now, here's why I have modified my original stance on outsourcing.

The longer you are in this business, the more websites you are going to build, the more blogs you are going to be interacting with, and the more - well, sheer workload you're going to find that you need to deal with.

Let's say you have 10 websites that all need content written on a regular basis. Of course you know your topic and your passion very well, but if you find that you are unable to keep up with adding some important content, then you may be a candidate for outsourcing.

This is why I have modified my original opinion. I DO love writing. I love making Squidoo lenses, and I love adding content to my websites - and I have a number of them.

I also have to build backlinks to these sites, and monitor their performance.

So, I began thinking, "Wow, if I could find a GOOD writer who would be willing to help me research and write a dozen articles for next month, I could really stay on task..."

The PROS of outsourcing to a QUALITY writer are just that:
=> You can take a break from research and writing and concentrate on some other aspects of your marketing
=> You will see your topic through a fresh set of eyes. That is, your writer will not be as invested as you are in your topic, so he or she might see different angles or approaches that might be escaping you at the moment.

The CONS of outsourcing are:
=> You really need to budget for this - it WILL affect your bottom line since hiring a good writer isn't free.
=> Doing due diligence and checking references and portfolios is important - also a time consuming activity (but once you've found a good writer, you'll be all set!)

Depending on how many websites you need to write for, or how many articles you need to get "out there" the biggest key isn't so much "how many" but "consistency."

If you write and submit a dozen articles one month, and then no articles for the next three months, that is NOT consistent.

I'd rather you write just TWO articles EVERY month than see you go on submission binges.

This is just my opinion - but I believe it's important to "temper" all marketing activities through consistent, steady effort.

If a search engine like Google suddenly sees 100 articles appear in the search engine results for a keyword that you've targeted, and then sees absolutely NOTHING for months, you may not be seen as serious.

So, my first tip is that you would be well advised to look at a calendar, look at how much work you've got, and set some REALISTIC writing goals.

I suggest to start SLOW and get into a routine first. Is it realistic - TRULY REALISTIC - that you are going to be able to produce 1 article EVERY week? If so, try that.

If not, be honest with yourself and adjust it.

I once said "I'm gonna write an article every single day!" for one of my sites. HA HA HA HA HA!!!

I did it for 2 days and then I hit writer's block and didn't write another word for 2 weeks.

Reallistic Goals + Consistency = Better Results = More Success.

Write your plan in your "Daytimer" or other calendar - something you will actually CHECK every day, and then check it off when done.

What I mean by "writing ahead" is to do everything you can to get a jump on content.

When planning your article marketing campaign, remember what I mentioned above about trying to do too much in one blast, and then ignoring the task for months on end.

If you are able to get a "stash" of articles written and ready to submit ahead of time, that can ease your mind considerably.

Let's say you really want to submit a new article about your niche or topic once every week.

Well, we already know from the examples above, that the "best laid plans of mice and men aft gang aglee" (remember Robert Burns?)

One day, you write a couple of articles, and then for the next 3 days, Junior's scout troupe needs you to bake for their fundraising bake sale. Then, the car breaks down and you need to get it to the shop...

All of a sudden, you've lost your momentum. And THAT messes with that all-important CONSISTENCY.

How do I know this stuff happens? Because I'm a living example of it.

So, now - on the other hand - let's say one day you are just ON FIRE and you're a writing machine!

What an excellent opportunity to "bank" some content and articles so that you have it waiting in the wings for you to post and distribute on schedule!

I'm sure that there are some professional opinions and guidelines out there for how much you should have ready, but I don't think you can have too many.

Just don't let yourself get lazy! :)

This is really only something that could be important if you are targeting many niche markets. For example, let's say you have one website that's about Cake Decorating and another website about Dog Treats.

Now, let's say you are writing articles about both niches.

If someone comes to your author bio on a place like EzineArticles, as an example, and sees 250 articles - each one about a different niche, your reader might think, "Wow... I wonder why she/he is so spread out? Does he/she REALLY know about this stuff?"

Now, you may actually have that much knowledge about various niches, but if you use a pen name (pseudonym) for each niche, you might appear to be a little more, well, focused on your topic.

There is one other great reason for using pen names - they can help you remain organized within your niche. The folks at the article submission site that I personally use have this feature built into their product. They also have a great article management tool. You can check it out here: => Click Here to Explore my #1 Top Article Submission Site

I used to say "Content is King," but I have since revised my stance on that to say "HIGH QUALITY Content is King."

It never occurred to me that people would just swoop in and take my content from my websites and copy it into their own, and act as though it's their own.

But, there are unprofessional and unethical folks in every industry. We internet marketers are not immune.

Google do NOT like to see "duplicate content." They can and do penalize websites for having duplicate and irrelevant content.

That goes for the articles you submit as well.

If you write an article, and then submit that EXACT SAME article to 100 different article directories, you are just wasting your time. The backlinks that you are hoping to get as a result of the great info you've put into your "Author's Box" or "Bio Box" or "Resource Box" will be worthless.

So you must - in a sense - rewrite your article or "leverage" the content in your article in ways that will 1) be unique and 2) still make sense.

I beg you to not use some ridiculous "article spinner" without adding your human touch.

The best article submission services know the importance of keeping your articles all sounding natural and readable while ensuring that each article directory receives a submission that is unique.

I know that, at first glance, this sounds like a lot of work. But it really isn't. The service that I personally use and recommend has a function called "Article Leverage" which helps you pinpoint areas where it's important to rephrase the passage. The function guides you through it.

In other words, it's not going to just say, "Change these words: blah blah blah" without making sure you have the whole thing in context.

Once you have written a paragraph, for example, you can choose to make a totally new paragraph that still gets the original point across, or you can choose specific lines or facts to vary.

For example, let's say your original article read: "For example, many ingredients labels show 'annatto' as the source of the yellow colorant..."

Using "Article Leverage," (in the example of the service I use), it may suggest that I rewrite that passage in several different ways.

So, in the spaces provided, I might write:
=> "As just one example, the 'yellow' coloring may be noted as a natural substance known as 'annatto.'"
=> "For example, 'annatto' and 'turmeric' are sometimes used in the product to give it that yellow color."
=> "In an example from several ingredient labels, these companies tend to use 'turmeric' or 'annatto' in order to keep the yellowish tint."

All those sentences say pretty much the same thing, but they are still different.

Does it take a little work to make sure your articles read well? Yes.

Is it worth the effort? Absolutely.