Almost all of us have a list of things we know we ought to do, that would actually improve our lives, if we could just stop making darned excuses: exercise more often, lay off the doughnuts, keep a budget (and stick to it).
And if you have any kind of business, there's one more "good-for-you" thing you want to be doing, and that's writing articles.
Not just any old articles mind you, but useful information pieces as part of an article marketing campaign.
Alas, many business owners view article writing the same way most people view those other "good-for-you" habits.
The lack of instant gratification makes them seem not worth their while.
Or at best, postpone-able.
After reading this piece though, you'll likely realize that you're leaving piles of money on the table by not marketing your expertise through articles.
Consider these three reasons to get writing (right now!): 1.
Published Articles Create Back Links to Your Web Site One of the most valuable variables that search engines use to rank your Web site is the number of "back links" it has.
That is, how many domains, other than your own, have links that point back to your site? The bigger the number, the better for you.
Without getting too deep into search-engine alchemy, having lots of back links serves as a sort of "third-party validation" that your site is useful to people browsing the Web.
Articles that you write, in which you include your Web site, can circulate far and wide across the Internet and get sniffed out by search engine robots (or "spiders," if you prefer).
2.
Published Articles Establish You as an Expert If you've read three- to five books on a subject or have studied it for any appreciable length of time, chances are you're more knowledgeable about it than 90 percent of the general population.
You may even qualify as a "guru.
" But that does you no good if nobody knows about it! Writing and publishing articles, both in print and online, get your name, company, and Web site out there as go-to experts in your category.
Of course, your information needs to be timely, relevant, and accurate (but you knew that).
3.
Published Articles Serve as a Foundation for Your For-Profit Content Once you've finished with that article, well, you're not really finished with it.
It's now an intellectual asset, and as a smart business person, you'll keep that asset producing for you.
You can re-purpose your articles as blog posts, content for your own Web site, book, speech, or audio material, and much more.
Use your imagination.
Once you've produced the content, think of ways that you could incorporate it into a product that someone will find useful.