One way that a marketer by attraction can get started with no cost is by submitting ezine articles to sites like EzineArticles.com  and content sharing sites like Squidoo and Hubpages. There a  number of others as well, each with its own style and requirements.

Some sites such as Ezine Articles are intended more for editorial and technical type content and have a higher standard for submission.  It’s thrust is less tolerant of “marketing” type of content but if the material is good it may get picked up by Editors looking for content for their ezines, and you gain the exposure with your “resource box”, that is the spot reserved for you to share about yourself and your website.

Some of the content sharing such as Squidoo, for example, you can do more of a “marketing pitch” with embeded links etc., however you still want to provide content of value.

The (3) Keys to Article Marketing:

 1.  Create great, original content to
     position you as an expert in your niche.

 2.  Create great, original content that
     does not “sell” or promote in your
     article body content, but provides
     useful information for your reader.

 3.  Submit your best original content
     frequently to build a steady stream of traffic
     back to your website.

Each article you submit contains different components and sections. While some sections carry more weight than others; each section must be crafted with care and foresight. A truly great article can increase traffic to your website. 

 1.  Proof your Work: Credibility and expertise in
     your article subject matter can be diminished by
     typos or grammatical errors in any part of your
     article. Here’s a proof-reading tip: Read your
     work out loud. Often times this will help you
     catch mistakes you missed while reading the
     article to yourself silently.

 2.  Keep Your Audience in Mind: If you are writing
     an article on a technical topic, it’s fine to
     use technical terms, but be wary of alienating
     a wider target of readers with information they
     may not be ready to understand or digest.

 3.  Keep An Ace Up Your Sleeve: Always keep a tidbit
     of important information in reserve to make your
     readers want more. Remember, your article can
     generate traffic, so use the Resource Box to
     entice your readers to click on your website
     link.

 4.  Be Clear and Concise in Your Writing: A 500 word
     article will always out-perform a 1000 word
     article. You are writing for a medium that
     embraces instant gratification: the Internet.
     Keep your articles clear and concise, so the
     reader can quickly comprehend the quality
     content you are sharing.

Each of the sites have good training and tips as well as blogs written by those with experinec on writing articles that can really help.  As well, Renegade University provides excellent step by step video tutorials on how to register and submit articles at some of these sites.  The video tutorials are great because you can see exactly where to click and what to enter as well as numerous tips for improving your results in attracting a large list of customers or prospects.

I am a baby boomer.  I can remember black and white TV, no computers or even calculators (fingers worked good).  I remember stories trying to explain to children what it would be like to go to the moon “it would take xxx months or years on a train” just to get there never mind coming back.

Speaking of trains.  We were living near Edmonton Alberta when we moved to Ft. McMurray.  The only way in was by train over the swamp.  It was a steam engine and because of the swamps had to go very slow.  It took us 6 days to make that trip which can be made now with cars over the road in 3 to 4 hours.  And Ft. McMurray?  Now that was another story.  At that time it wasn’t much more than a trading post on the river (okay a bit more but not much!).  Today it is a busy little city, the home of the Alberta tar sands having world wide impact.  Who would have thought back then that it would become what it did.

 We moved to Ft. McMurray just when Network Marketing or MLM was getting its start, the beginnings.  Since then Networking has gone through its metamorphasis, going through tremendous changes since its early days and now entering into what Dr. Charles King refers to as “The New Professionals”. I will not take the time to go through those stages but the advent of the personal computer and FedEx have had a huge impact on how business is done.  Those that have changed with the times are reaping the benefits, Network Marketing and Direct Sales have gone on to become something of a major impact on the world.

The style of marketing is changing.  Moving from trying to beg or coerce family, friends, neighbors and any one within 3 feet to attracting new friends and building relationships. The methods of attracting customers or partners is changing.  WEB 2.0, the next wave or phase of the internet is here.  This has tremendous potential for what we can do to grow our businesses.

The sudden and fast rise of Social Networking is one of the key drivers (at least relative to what we are doing) in this change.  In a recent webinar at The Renegade University  we learned that 33% of internet users visit MySpace or have a page there, 29% either are on or go to FaceBook, 35% use YouTube. There are lots of Social Networking sites in cyber land with the number of users doubling every month. The top keyword searches bring up a social site.  Social buyers make 20% more and also spend 25% more of their income.  Some feel that over the next 2 years this is where the action is going to be and if we are going to take advantage of these trends now is the time to do it. 

Social Networking is comprised of a lot of methods:

- Social Networking sites like Facebook, MySpace

- Social Bookmarking sites likeSocialMarker.com

- Content sharing like Squidoo and HubPages

-Video, Photo and Music Sharing Sites like YouTube, MetaCalfe, Flickr

- Blogging sites like SquareSpace,Wordpress or Blogger

- Adapters like Ezine Articles

If we are going to succeed in our business we are going to need to grow and develope in the relatively new art of attracting our customers not attacking.  Not really new, I recommend reading “How to Win Friends and Influence People” originally written in 1937.  (Okay – I guess some things never change). We need to be adapting to new methods using the tools of Social Networking to develope friendships and relationships so that people get to know, like and trust us.