52 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
52 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

I've disciplined myself to write articles consistently, so now, how do you write a GOOD article?

by ikelove
45 replies
Okay, I've posted before that I've written 40 articles in the past month and posted them to EZA. I've taken a break from writing articles in order to catch up with posting these articles to 6-8 other marketing sites (which, I had no idea of how time consuming that is).

On EZA, my stats as of today are:
40 Articles
487 Article Views
14.4% Click Rate

This is all since I've posted my first article on 4/26/10. I've also placed on page 1 of Yahoo!, seventh place, for my keyword, and went from page 31, to page 4 last week, to then totally disappearing off the map on the Google search engine.

So far, I've made no sales yet which I guess is to be expected.

Now that I've been able to discipline myself to write articles consistently (2 per day, 5 days/week), I realize that the next step is to learn how to write BETTER articles that can convert more readers into clicks.

What are the mechanics of a good article? From my own objective view, it seems as if I give to much info, as if I'm writing a term paper. What does an EFFECTIVE article look like?
#article #articles #consistently #disciplined #good #write
  • Profile picture of the author Mike Murphy
    Hey ikelove,

    This took my a while to wrap my head around as well. For me it turned out that I was actually over thinking the writing process.

    I was trying too hard to get the reader to do what I wanted to do.

    Now don't get me wrong...I love persuasive writing and salescopy and am fascinated by writers like Claude Hopkins, Gary Halbert, Frank Kern, Michel Fortin etc. but the most important change I made was to smooth out the articles and make them conversational like I was talking to a friend.

    That doesn't mean making them goofy and not serious, it simply means letting teh information flow and not being too pushy.

    Sure you can structure the articles a certain way like the tried and true:

    introduce problem
    aggravate problem
    make hint to solution
    idenitfy with readers problem
    offer solution
    give out link

    ...but it still has to flow nicely. Also, offering the solution and actually solving the issue are two entirely different things. If you solve the problem in the article, why would they buy the product?

    Don't laugh....I've seen it many times!

    Your discipline in writing the articles is awesome. Do you write say 10 on the same topic but give each one a little twist and see which one converts better?

    That's a great test....

    Best of luck!
    Mike
    Signature
    Guitar PLR - New MONSTER Guitar Video PLR Pack![LIMITED]
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114659].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Mike:

      Thanks for the response! Yea, before I got back into the flow of writing articles again, I wanted to at least know how to make them better.

      As for my articles, I write different subjects related to my keyword. Just as if someone had a keyword in the dating niche, they may write one article on how to dress properly, and another on how to properly approach a woman. I brainstorm about different subjects that I can write relating to my keywords and write articles about them, hoping they'd interest the reader. Though now, as I commit to my next 40, it's going to be a bit harder thinking about what to actually write.

      Now, my next question is: the format that you just gave me, has that resulted in a higher conversion rate for you? How many articles do you typically write for a specific keyword?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114691].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author GCostanza
    May I also recommend Dragon Naturally Speaking if you want to do less typing.
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114673].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Originally Posted by GCostanza View Post

      May I also recommend Dragon Naturally Speaking if you want to do less typing.
      Is Dragon Naturally Speaking the software that transcribes the words you speak into the computer?

      If so, I've not yet understood the sense in using this unless you really hate or suck at typing. I'm pretty quick typer so it doesn't bother me. Is the purpose for software like this to make your articles appear more "personable" because your own words are converted into the typed word? I was of the opinion that the software makes things more tedious especially if you're not sure what to write.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114708].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Ishan Soni
    To put it in simple words, use AIDA.

    A = Attention

    Grab their eyeballs.

    I = Interest

    Get their interest

    D = Desire

    Build the desire for them to get what you have.

    A = Action

    Call to action. Tell them to visit your site NOW.

    The best way to write call to action is to rip off the headline of your landing page (squeeze page/sales page/whatever!). This will get you the most targeted traffic there is.

    Most people use these things for sales letters but what they don't understand is that they work even better for preselling your prospects through article marketing.

    - Ishan
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114796].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author RashellR
      Naturally Speaking is transcription software for those who...
      1. suck at typing (as you've mentioned)
      2. want to avoid carpal tunnel
      3. multi-task (you can record your message while driving or whatever and have it transcribed later)
      4. just don't wanna type
      ...and the technology behind it is used to assist the hearing impaired at live events.

      Rashell
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114862].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Originally Posted by Ishan Soni View Post

      To put it in simple words, use AIDA.

      A = Attention

      Grab their eyeballs.

      I = Interest

      Get their interest

      D = Desire

      Build the desire for them to get what you have.

      A = Action

      Call to action. Tell them to visit your site NOW.

      The best way to write call to action is to rip off the headline of your landing page (squeeze page/sales page/whatever!). This will get you the most targeted traffic there is.

      Most people use these things for sales letters but what they don't understand is that they work even better for preselling your prospects through article marketing.

      - Ishan
      Ishan:

      Ummm...don't you have to be careful about the type of article you write because if they appear too "salesy", a site like EZA will reject them?

      I'm thinking that attention grabbers are trial and error, as I've written headlines that I thought were headliners, but got a pitiful amount of clicks. What should a person be thinking when he/she is trying to come up with a good headliner?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114893].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author rapidscc
    As I was reading Ishan's AIDA. I realized something. You could actually do it this way.

    Attention:

    Date and Seduce Any Women Even If You're a Complete Idiot

    Interest:

    Are you shy? Fat? An introvert? Or Worse a complete idiot when it comes
    to women. Let me get you in a small secret. You can actually date, seduce
    and get into bed any women you choose if you learn these simple tactics
    that I'm going to teach you.

    Desire:

    Yes, you can get the hottest girl even if you're fat, lack self-confidence,
    bad dresser, a complete idiot. In fact I was once like you. I was overweight,
    my confidence was on the negative side of the scale and worse I can't talk or
    approach any girl even if my life depended on it. That was until I learned 5 simple
    yet underground tactics that allowed me to play with any women I set my eyes
    on.

    The tactics allowed me to seduce 27 women in just a month. Now, they're practically eating from the palm of my hands and treats me like their long lost Prince Charming.

    The funny thing is I learned and mastered these tactics in 5 minutes flat using a
    a highly classified memory technique called "mnemonics", which are targeted visualizations secrets used by psychologist and behavior experts in creating lasting change in people.

    Now, for the first time. I'll release these tactics into the public and
    allow people to use it to improve their lives, get what you want
    and build more relationships.

    Action:

    If you want to change your life. Get any women you desire right now, then get this 5 minute tactics to Date and seduce any women. I'll only release these secret underground tactics to 30 people. I don't want these powerful tactics exploited.
    click here to get it now.

    ----------------------------------

    LOL, now this looked more like a sales page rather than an article.

    All the best,
    Signature
    Medical Billing and Coding
    Petition Against RA 10175
    http://www.change.org/petitions/junk...prevention-law
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114881].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Originally Posted by rapidscc View Post

      As I was reading Ishan's AIDA. I realized something. You could actually do it this way.

      Attention:

      Date and Seduce Any Women Even If You're a Complete Idiot

      Interest:

      Are you shy? Fat? An introvert? Or Worse a complete idiot when it comes
      to women. Let me get you in a small secret. You can actually date, seduce
      and get into bed any women you choose if you learn these simple tactics
      that I'm going to teach you.

      Desire:

      Yes, you can get the hottest girl even if you're fat, lack self-confidence,
      bad dresser, a complete idiot. In fact I was once like you. I was overweight,
      my confidence was on the negative side of the scale and worse I can't talk or
      approach any girl even if my life depended on it. That was until I learned 5 simple
      yet underground tactics that allowed me to play with any women I set my eyes
      on.

      The tactics allowed me to seduce 27 women in just a month. Now, they're practically eating from the palm of my hands and treats me like their long lost Prince Charming.

      The funny thing is I learned and mastered these tactics in 5 minutes flat using a
      a highly classified memory technique called "mnemonics", which are targeted visualizations secrets used by psychologist and behavior experts in creating lasting change in people.

      Now, for the first time. I'll release these tactics into the public and
      allow people to use it to improve their lives, get what you want
      and build more relationships.

      Action:

      If you want to change your life. Get any women you desire right now, then get this 5 minute tactics to Date and seduce any women. I'll only release these secret underground tactics to 30 people. I don't want these powerful tactics exploited.
      click here to get it now.

      ----------------------------------

      LOL, now this looked more like a sales page rather than an article.

      All the best,
      Wow, EXCELLENT. This has given me a better idea, but how would you edit something like this so it won't be rejected by EZA, because I know they'll say that this is too "promotional" or something like that?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114902].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author rapidscc
        Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

        Wow, EXCELLENT. This has given me a better idea, but how would you edit something like this so it won't be rejected by EZA, because I know they'll say that this is too "promotional" or something like that?
        Well, if you are giving away 10 tactics, then giveaway in the article the first 3. That way you'll be giving away value and hooking people up to get the remaining 7 tactics. Your article won't be too salesy either.

        All the best,
        Signature
        Medical Billing and Coding
        Petition Against RA 10175
        http://www.change.org/petitions/junk...prevention-law
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114913].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author frankstar
    Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

    Okay, I've posted before that I've written 40 articles in the past month and posted them to EZA. I've taken a break from writing articles in order to catch up with posting these articles to 6-8 other marketing sites (which, I had no idea of how time consuming that is).

    On EZA, my stats as of today are:
    40 Articles
    487 Article Views
    14.4% Click Rate

    This is all since I've posted my first article on 4/26/10. I've also placed on page 1 of Yahoo!, seventh place, for my keyword, and went from page 31, to page 4 last week, to then totally disappearing off the map on the Google search engine.

    So far, I've made no sales yet which I guess is to be expected.

    Now that I've been able to discipline myself to write articles consistently (2 per day, 5 days/week), I realize that the next step is to learn how to write BETTER articles that can convert more readers into clicks.

    What are the mechanics of a good article? From my own objective view, it seems as if I give to much info, as if I'm writing a term paper. What does an EFFECTIVE article look like?

    40 articles in a month is great work!

    Are you writing articles for backlinks or to get traffic? Its just that 487 views between 40 articles is only about 12/13 views an article.

    Are you marketing your articles much? If you do some promotional work on them you'll get more traffic, and so more return for your efforts. Some single articles get thousands of hits a month.

    When writing articles I find it effective bear in mind what the person is searching for, and then point out how the product your selling can help them.

    Good luck with your next 40 articles!!


    Francis
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2114979].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
    Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

    What are the mechanics of a good article?
    Engage the reader's emotions.
    Signature
    "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115025].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ryanbiddulph
    My advice is to continue to write daily. 40 in a month is a solid number. Challenge yourself by doing something radically different. Try penning 10-20 in a day when you have nothing else to do. This stimulates the creative juices which promotes your own unique writing style. You will improve as you continue to churn out article after article.

    Another practice is to read articles to yourself out loud after writing them. See how they sound: smooth or awkward. I've improved quite a bit since sticking to this exercise.
    Signature
    Ryan Biddulph helps you to be a successful blogger with his courses, manuals and blog at Blogging From Paradise
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115026].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Originally Posted by frankstar View Post

      40 articles in a month is great work!

      Are you writing articles for backlinks or to get traffic? Its just that 487 views between 40 articles is only about 12/13 views an article.

      Are you marketing your articles much? If you do some promotional work on them you'll get more traffic, and so more return for your efforts. Some single articles get thousands of hits a month.

      When writing articles I find it effective bear in mind what the person is searching for, and then point out how the product your selling can help them.

      Good luck with your next 40 articles!!


      Francis
      Francis, thanks for the encouragement, believe me, I need it, especially in these "early days" when you're putting in all this effort and not seeing any "results" (i.e. money ). I wrote those articles for SEO purposes, which encompasses getting backlinks for my site and traffic to my site.

      For "promotional work" I am currently posting my sites on 6 - 8 other article sites other than EZA, I then link these article back to my original article on EZA. I haven't put them on any social bookmarking sites yet as I don't know too much about them, and I haven't yet been able to buy any social bookmarking software. Are there other methods? If so, please enlighten me, I would love to know.

      Are there a certain number of articles I should stop at or should I keep writing until I get on the first page of google?

      Originally Posted by ryanbiddulph View Post

      My advice is to continue to write daily. 40 in a month is a solid number. Challenge yourself by doing something radically different. Try penning 10-20 in a day when you have nothing else to do. This stimulates the creative juices which promotes your own unique writing style. You will improve as you continue to churn out article after article.

      Another practice is to read articles to yourself out loud after writing them. See how they sound: smooth or awkward. I've improved quite a bit since sticking to this exercise.
      Ryan:

      10 - 12? Wow, you're giving me a headache lol.. When I started to take things seriously and decided I needed to take consistent action, to get any type of results, I decided the best way to motivate myself was to start off at 2 articles per day, and not scare myself out of taking any action by biting off more than I can chew. I've learned in life many of us don't take any action because we make the task so enormously momentous that we procrastinate and procrastinate to the point that the task doesn't get done. I know myself and I tend to stress myself out unnecessarily, so I decided to go with rather than fight against "the flow" and do what was challenging but not too "scary". I did this with the understanding that after getting the hang of writing 2 articles per day, I can eventually move to 3, 4, etc as I felt comfortable.

      That being said, please share with me, how do you keep on coming up with ideas of what to write when you choose to write 10 articles? There were quite a few days when just writing two was a struggle, and I am now wondering if it is truly possible for me to write another 2 articles/day for the next month.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115169].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author JAIDEEP2959
        Are you writing review articles?

        Make strong call of action at the end of the article.

        You can also build a list from article marketing giving away free gift.

        Good Luck.
        Signature
        FREE: Make Money from Untapped Market of using PC Speakers for TV
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115338].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author ikelove
          Originally Posted by JAIDEEP2959 View Post

          Are you writing review articles?

          Make strong call of action at the end of the article.

          You can also build a list from article marketing giving away free gift.

          Good Luck.
          Thanks, that's actually been my next "headache" so to speak. I decided to finally dive into this whole thing a month ago after months of research, reasoning that I'll learn things as I go along. Well, come to find out, everyone here worth their salt have been talking about the importance of building lists.

          My question is, how on earth do I build one when I don't have any product to offer? My keyword lies in the "wealth attraction" niche (not my keyword, but related to that category) and I'm still working on getting wealth in my life, so can I hope to make a free product?
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115372].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author Entreprenette
            Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

            Thanks, that's actually been my next "headache" so to speak. I decided to finally dive into this whole thing a month ago after months of research, reasoning that I'll learn things as I go along. Well, come to find out, everyone here worth their salt have been talking about the importance of building lists.

            My question is, how on earth do I build one when I don't have any product to offer? My keyword lies in the "wealth attraction" niche (not my keyword, but related to that category) and I'm still working on getting wealth in my life, so can I hope to make a free product?
            Hi Ikelove,

            I'm new to this game also, I started creating my product 2 months ago and have been live less than a week. So far I've had 111 subscribers in 5 days. I'm not sure how that compares for a beginner, but I'm really pleased especially as I haven't really done any marketing yet.

            I don't know much about internet marketing yet, but I do know something about business and any business whether offline or online is about what value and benefits you can offer your customer before you start building your customer base.

            I've been reading these forums for weeks now and I've read too many posts about people who've been at it for 12, 16, 18 months and haven't made a bean yet, and as far as I can see its because they're focused on the quickest way to make money rather than the best way to add value.

            It seems to me, the guys that are really successful all started with a passion. For most of them that we read about (Kern, Walker, Meyerson etc), it was a passion for the internet, what could be done on the internet and coaching. In interviews Jeff Walker talks about creating entrepreneurs - not building lists!

            So whilst building a list is clearly important for long term sustainable income, the first thought surely has got to be, what do you know, what do you love and how can you share that with people to their benefit. If you start writing articles on your passion they will just flow, then I don't believe you'll need to be concerned about whether they convert because they'll be exactly what your audience are looking for and they absolutely will.

            See this as a long term game, focus on what you can offer, the best way you can offer it and how much 'value' it will give to your customers and they will start coming to you in droves!

            I hope this helps!

            Jo x
            Signature
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115482].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author ikelove
              Originally Posted by Entreprenette View Post

              Hi Ikelove,

              I'm new to this game also, I started creating my product 2 months ago and have been live less than a week. So far I've had 111 subscribers in 5 days. I'm not sure how that compares for a beginner, but I'm really pleased especially as I haven't really done any marketing yet.

              I don't know much about internet marketing yet, but I do know something about business and any business whether offline or online is about what value and benefits you can offer your customer before you start building your customer base.

              I've been reading these forums for weeks now and I've read too many posts about people who've been at it for 12, 16, 18 months and haven't made a bean yet, and as far as I can see its because they're focused on the quickest way to make money rather than the best way to add value.

              It seems to me, the guys that are really successful all started with a passion. For most of them that we read about (Kern, Walker, Meyerson etc), it was a passion for the internet, what could be done on the internet and coaching. In interviews Jeff Walker talks about creating entrepreneurs - not building lists!

              So whilst building a list is clearly important for long term sustainable income, the first thought surely has got to be, what do you know, what do you love and how can you share that with people to their benefit. If you start writing articles on your passion they will just flow, then I don't believe you'll need to be concerned about whether they convert because they'll be exactly what your audience are looking for and they absolutely will.

              See this as a long term game, focus on what you can offer, the best way you can offer it and how much 'value' it will give to your customers and they will start coming to you in droves!

              I hope this helps!

              Jo x
              Jo:

              Yes, it does help. If I had 111 subscribers in 5 days, (I don't have an opt-in or squeeze page for my site) I'd be completely, freaking ecstatic.

              I chose the self improvement niche because I'm a recovering self-improvement junkie who read books, listened to CDs/podcasts and attended seminars for YEARS. There were years where despite all the money spend I made little out if any "self improvement". It's with this experience that I feel I have value to give, and I can sense the frustration of people who use product after product and feel they're getting nowhere.

              That being said, how did you manage to get so many subscribers in such a short time?

              Ike
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115499].message }}
              • Profile picture of the author Entreprenette
                Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

                Jo:

                Yes, it does help. If I had 111 subscribers in 5 days, (I don't have an opt-in or squeeze page for my site) I'd be completely, freaking ecstatic.

                I chose the self improvement niche because I'm a recovering self-improvement junkie who read books, listened to CDs/podcasts and attended seminars for YEARS. There were years where despite all the money spend I made little out if any "self improvement". It's with this experience that I feel I have value to give, and I can sense the frustration of people who use product after product and feel they're getting nowhere.

                That being said, how did you manage to get so many subscribers in such a short time?

                Ike
                Firstly the self improvement niche is a GREAT niche to get into, there are still so many people out there who haven't heard of Tony Robbins, Jim Rohn, Brian Tracy etc etc etc. Plus all the information is there for you (as with pretty much every niche to be fair).

                You could take some of your top learnings, decide what your niche is within your niche to start with - ie, personal development for wealth or health or relationships or whatever floats your boat and create free videos, a newsletter, an ebook, there's absolutely loads of free products you could create!

                Regards my subscribers I can't believe it! I'm on a couple of forums, which is where most of my traffic is coming from (not from this one I hasten to add - because I haven't been hugely active on here yet).

                I sent some emails out to some old colleagues and that's it!

                I've had just over 400 visits to my site, so it's converting really well. But I have put 10 - 15 hours a day for 10 weeks into producing the content, the videos, and building the page etc. So it's not been easy!

                Thanks so much for posting this thread as firstly it's great to meet new people who are in the same boat and also I would never have found that incredible information posted by TimG! That's just priceless info!

                Good Luck with it Ike and stay in touch!

                Jo x
                Signature
                {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115603].message }}
                • Profile picture of the author ikelove
                  Originally Posted by Entreprenette View Post

                  Firstly the self improvement niche is a GREAT niche to get into, there are still so many people out there who haven't heard of Tony Robbins, Jim Rohn, Brian Tracy etc etc etc. Plus all the information is there for you (as with pretty much every niche to be fair).

                  You could take some of your top learnings, decide what your niche is within your niche to start with - ie, personal development for wealth or health or relationships or whatever floats your boat and create free videos, a newsletter, an ebook, there's absolutely loads of free products you could create!

                  Regards my subscribers I can't believe it! I'm on a couple of forums, which is where most of my traffic is coming from (not from this one I hasten to add - because I haven't been hugely active on here yet).

                  I sent some emails out to some old colleagues and that's it!

                  I've had just over 400 visits to my site, so it's converting really well. But I have put 10 - 15 hours a day for 10 weeks into producing the content, the videos, and building the page etc. So it's not been easy!

                  Thanks so much for posting this thread as firstly it's great to meet new people who are in the same boat and also I would never have found that incredible information posted by TimG! That's just priceless info!

                  Good Luck with it Ike and stay in touch!

                  Jo x

                  Jo:

                  Wow, your site is quite intimidating (in a good way ). I can see why you've gotten so many subscribers, I mean it obvious you put A LOT of work into it. Also, you do have a great deal of business acumen that is directly transferable to running a successful internet business.

                  I'm just still trying to wrap my head around having an internet business, starting first with writing proper articles.

                  Ike
                  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115632].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author TimG
    I started this thread many, many months ago but it still has some very valuable article writing tips/info in it:

    http://www.warriorforum.com/mind-war...ges-again.html

    Respectfully,
    Tim
    Signature
    Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

    Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115149].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author TimG
      Originally Posted by article_ghostwriter View Post

      Wow. That is, hands down, thee best thread I've read on WF. There is pure gold in dem hills and I've printed out the whole thing like the keen student I am.

      Tim, that is some heftily generous (not to mention invaluable) information you shared. I salute you! Just curious... did Part 5 ever appear (perhaps in a blog, or elsewhere)?
      Unfortunately I never posted anything else to that particular thread after it was sent to a nether-region of this forum for no reason.

      Appreciate your positive comments about the information and figured it would help the OP out and anyone else wanting to get more out of their article marketing efforts.

      Respectfully,
      Tim
      Signature
      Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

      Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115556].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author ikelove
        Originally Posted by tylerdrun View Post

        100 subscribers is possible within a day at EZA with my simple article formula... I can claim myself to be the best article writer on ezinearticles because my articles always produce results better than the competition. Although i'm fighting with the top 3 now. The other 2 have over 1000s of articles. Still my results exceeds them...

        It's been implemented by a friend who got similar results too... And you can gain that skill once you observe and begin to write more... That's all I can say.

        If I just learnt story telling for another six months, by going out to night clubs and practicing mystery method... it'll be a whole lot different. I'll be having high converting pages done in no time...

        My secret to mastery : practice, observe, practice more. accept everything and everyone.

        I was devestated when people told me that my own email copy was better than the one's I was using. And the guy claims himself to be the God of bums or something. THe worst part was, I used his email copy instead of mine and just made $1 per subscriber.

        I'm better. But I am not gloating here. It's the truth and I accept it. And I'm not gonna release a super duper product for it either. I am still in the process of mastering sales funnels. I've found poor conversions a problem.

        Traffic getting has been mastered at EZA/ But aff sales, email sales, presell sales... It'll all change once I get his done.

        - Write, write and write more. Observe, write more. Books to read and practice:
        - Mystery Method(i still haven't implemented. but has a lot of sales framework within it)
        - For conversational comedy, comedy writing secrets

        But forget all that. If you're good with chicks - it means you have good social skills. Have that and use your observing ego, it'll help you.

        If you want discipline and stuff, I urge you to check out:
        - The Man Transformation David DeAngelo
        - Wake Up Productive Eben Pagan
        - Think and Grow Rich
        - Influence
        Tyler:

        Haha...I'm currently watching Man Transformation for a second time, funny you should bring it up.

        I have to ask, when you tell me to "observe", what do you mean? Observe top articles in EZA? What am I to specifically observe.


        Originally Posted by TimG View Post

        Unfortunately I never posted anything else to that particular thread after it was sent to a nether-region of this forum for no reason.

        Appreciate your positive comments about the information and figured it would help the OP out and anyone else wanting to get more out of their article marketing efforts.

        Respectfully,
        Tim
        Tim:

        You did provide a lot of value in that thread. I'm still reading it, and will finish the rest of it tomorrow.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115563].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author tylerdrun
          Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

          Tyler:

          Haha...I'm currently watching Man Transformation for a second time, funny you should bring it up.

          I have to ask, when you tell me to "observe", what do you mean? Observe top articles in EZA? What am I to specifically observe.




          Tim:

          You did provide a lot of value in that thread. I'm still reading it, and will finish the rest of it tomorrow.
          Yes observing top articles..
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2116141].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author TimG
        Originally Posted by article_ghostwriter View Post

        Well that's a crying shame.

        The fact that you have not cynically deleted all your posts within that thread and bundled it all up into a WSO (with Part 5 for all of those, like me!, who are salivating for it) is evidence that you are a genuinely upright individual who truly just wanted to help your fellow Warriors. Once again, I salute you.

        And to anyone who is reading THIS but hasn't read Tim's thread that I'm referring to, stop what you're doing and head over to said 'nether region' where there are three pages of bona-fide gold from Tim and three more Masters on the science of Article Writing and Marketing.
        Really appreciate those comments and I'm sure everyone that provided info in that particular thread also appreciates that you found some value in it.

        I'm sure you will see a more refined and final version of that entire thread plus the unreleased portions of it at some point in the near future -

        Respectfully,
        Tim
        Signature
        Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

        Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115774].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Entreprenette
      Originally Posted by TimG View Post

      I started this thread many, many months ago but it still has some very valuable article writing tips/info in it:

      http://www.warriorforum.com/mind-war...ges-again.html

      Respectfully,
      Tim
      Wow, Tim I've just read through this also and as a beginner this is a fantastic resource for me!!! Thank you so much.

      Where can I find Part 5?

      Jo
      Signature
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115567].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author TimG
        Originally Posted by Entreprenette View Post

        Wow, Tim I've just read through this also and as a beginner this is a fantastic resource for me!!! Thank you so much.

        Where can I find Part 5?

        Jo
        Jo,
        At some point I reckon I'll release that information but I've gotten a bit sidetracked with a few other projects. I believe I finished it up as part of a module in my upcoming Article Marketing Soldiers course.

        Question for you regarding your business site - Love the opt-in page. Did you build it yourself or outsource it? Also, is the content stuff you've created or was it outsourced?

        I just signed up for your list so I can see how your content delivery funnel works (we can never learn to much from anyone) .

        Respectfully,
        Tim
        Signature
        Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

        Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115761].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author TimG
        Originally Posted by Entreprenette View Post

        Wow, Tim I've just read through this also and as a beginner this is a fantastic resource for me!!! Thank you so much.

        Where can I find Part 5?

        Jo
        Jo,
        After giving it some thought late last night and early this morning (plus the many request to do so), I'm looking at putting some time aside this weekend to go revisit that thread and properly close it out with Part 5.

        Respectfully,
        Tim
        Signature
        Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

        Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117089].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Entreprenette
          Originally Posted by TimG View Post

          Jo,
          After giving it some thought late last night and early this morning (plus the many request to do so), I'm looking at putting some time aside this weekend to go revisit that thread and properly close it out with Part 5.

          Respectfully,
          Tim
          Hi Tim,

          I'm ever so glad about that and really chuffed you've signed up to my site! I'd appreciate any feedback you have.

          I actually mentioned you and your posts in one of my videos today and wanted to have a quick discussion with you (I haven't posted enough yet to PM on here)

          I'll be in touch directly!

          Thanks Tim!
          Signature
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117471].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author TimG
            Originally Posted by Entreprenette View Post

            Hi Tim,

            I'm ever so glad about that and really chuffed you've signed up to my site! I'd appreciate any feedback you have.

            I actually mentioned you and your posts in one of my videos today and wanted to have a quick discussion with you (I haven't posted enough yet to PM on here)

            I'll be in touch directly!

            Thanks Tim!
            Sounds good - look forward to hearing from you!!

            Tim
            Signature
            Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

            Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117675].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author tylerdrun
    100 subscribers is possible within a day at EZA with my simple article formula... I can claim myself to be the best article writer on ezinearticles because my articles always produce results better than the competition. Although i'm fighting with the top 3 now. The other 2 have over 1000s of articles. Still my results exceeds them...

    It's been implemented by a friend who got similar results too... And you can gain that skill once you observe and begin to write more... That's all I can say.

    If I just learnt story telling for another six months, by going out to night clubs and practicing mystery method... it'll be a whole lot different. I'll be having high converting pages done in no time...

    My secret to mastery : practice, observe, practice more. accept everything and everyone.

    I was devestated when people told me that my own email copy was better than the one's I was using. And the guy claims himself to be the God of bums or something. THe worst part was, I used his email copy instead of mine and just made $1 per subscriber.

    I'm better. But I am not gloating here. It's the truth and I accept it. And I'm not gonna release a super duper product for it either. I am still in the process of mastering sales funnels. I've found poor conversions a problem.

    Traffic getting has been mastered at EZA/ But aff sales, email sales, presell sales... It'll all change once I get his done.

    - Write, write and write more. Observe, write more. Books to read and practice:
    - Mystery Method(i still haven't implemented. but has a lot of sales framework within it)
    - For conversational comedy, comedy writing secrets

    But forget all that. If you're good with chicks - it means you have good social skills. Have that and use your observing ego, it'll help you.

    If you want discipline and stuff, I urge you to check out:
    - The Man Transformation David DeAngelo
    - Wake Up Productive Eben Pagan
    - Think and Grow Rich
    - Influence
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115549].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Nicketas
    You need to be extremely informative.

    Understand the nature of valuable information and be extremely generous.
    Signature
    (Author. Artist. Social Media Maven. Life Coach.)
    {Free Yourself.}
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115677].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ydsimple
    Give to people what they want in your article.

    For example if your article title would be "3 Secret Tactics to Make your Website Flood in Traffic Easily and Simply" than show this 3 steps in this same article and also you can tell people where to go to start using those tactics.

    There is no special formula for writing articles. Just make sure your headline is eye-catching, your article is informative but not just fill in the blanks one, and make it unique, use your own unique words in it.

    And then test. Have a look what articles will get most views and CTR, make conclusions why is that so and then write articles with similar tactics that you have used in those that had most views and CTR.

    Nothing beats like testing in marketing.

    Hope that helped.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115818].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Christian York
    I think before you write another article you have to take a look at your keyword research...

    40 articles for 487 views is not very good. I understand that those results only came from the first month and that views will pick up but still I would expect higher.

    I recently added a new pen name and wrote 25 articles in 3 different niches. From that I received over 50,000 views in the first 4 months. And although traffic did pick up in month 2,3 and 4. Month 1 was still strong.



    So article marketing does work, but keyword research and promoting your articles are essential.

    In terms of creating good articles, these are my tips:

    1. Write good ones. Seriously. Spend the time and do some research. The more value you provide the better.

    2. Don't just copy somebody else's rehashed article.

    3. Don't give the reader everything they are looking for. Provide great value and give away good tips but at the same time give them a reason to check out your resource box.

    4. Write in a friendly style. As if you were talking to your customer in real life.

    5. Use good grammar and punctuation. People want to be able to understand what you are talking about. It also makes you sound more professional.

    6. Take a look at popular articles in your niche. What makes them so popular? Is it the topic? The way it's written etc

    7. Test your results. Which articles perform the best? Shorter ones? Longer, more in depth ones? Different resource box? Different titles? Consistently test and tweak.

    Hope this helps mate
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2115960].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author franamico
      Originally Posted by Christian York View Post

      I think before you write another article you have to take a look at your keyword research...

      40 articles for 487 views is not very good. I understand that those results only came from the first month and that views will pick up but still I would expect higher.

      I recently added a new pen name and wrote 25 articles in 3 different niches. From that I received over 50,000 views in the first 4 months. And although traffic did pick up in month 2,3 and 4. Month 1 was still strong.



      So article marketing does work, but keyword research and promoting your articles are essential.

      In terms of creating good articles, these are my tips:

      1. Write good ones. Seriously. Spend the time and do some research. The more value you provide the better.

      2. Don't just copy somebody else's rehashed article.

      3. Don't give the reader everything they are looking for. Provide great value and give away good tips but at the same time give them a reason to check out your resource box.

      4. Write in a friendly style. As if you were talking to your customer in real life.

      5. Use good grammar and punctuation. People want to be able to understand what you are talking about. It also makes you sound more professional.

      6. Take a look at popular articles in your niche. What makes them so popular? Is it the topic? The way it's written etc

      7. Test your results. Which articles perform the best? Shorter ones? Longer, more in depth ones? Different resource box? Different titles? Consistently test and tweak.

      Hope this helps mate

      Awesome man!
      I do write my own articles...in 2 different niches. Very tiring, but my writing is flying these days!!
      Signature
      FREE Video Reveals How to Make Money from Anywhere in the World with No Product of Your Own or Business Experience...
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117900].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Marketing Ignite
    If you have been writing so many articles with so little page views it will not matter much if you keep writing more..The problem may not be your writing but your exposure..remember that although you use ezinearticles which is the #1 out there, you need popular keywords in the top..if you only got about 400 views from 40 articles, then i tells me that the articles are only ranked for non popular keywords...Out of those 400 views there is only a fraction who continue clicking to your site...I would suggest you using other venues in submitting your article to get more results...
    Signature

    Digital Marketing Consultant since 1998. Contact me for a free consultation.
    https://www.marketingignite.com

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117198].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ikelove
      Originally Posted by Christian York View Post

      I think before you write another article you have to take a look at your keyword research...

      40 articles for 487 views is not very good. I understand that those results only came from the first month and that views will pick up but still I would expect higher.

      I recently added a new pen name and wrote 25 articles in 3 different niches. From that I received over 50,000 views in the first 4 months. And although traffic did pick up in month 2,3 and 4. Month 1 was still strong.



      So article marketing does work, but keyword research and promoting your articles are essential.

      In terms of creating good articles, these are my tips:

      1. Write good ones. Seriously. Spend the time and do some research. The more value you provide the better.

      2. Don't just copy somebody else's rehashed article.

      3. Don't give the reader everything they are looking for. Provide great value and give away good tips but at the same time give them a reason to check out your resource box.

      4. Write in a friendly style. As if you were talking to your customer in real life.

      5. Use good grammar and punctuation. People want to be able to understand what you are talking about. It also makes you sound more professional.

      6. Take a look at popular articles in your niche. What makes them so popular? Is it the topic? The way it's written etc

      7. Test your results. Which articles perform the best? Shorter ones? Longer, more in depth ones? Different resource box? Different titles? Consistently test and tweak.

      Hope this helps mate
      Originally Posted by Marketing Ignite View Post

      If you have been writing so many articles with so little page views it will not matter much if you keep writing more..The problem may not be your writing but your exposure..remember that although you use ezinearticles which is the #1 out there, you need popular keywords in the top..if you only got about 400 views from 40 articles, then i tells me that the articles are only ranked for non popular keywords...Out of those 400 views there is only a fraction who continue clicking to your site...I would suggest you using other venues in submitting your article to get more results...

      Could it really be my keywords as the reason why I only have 400 views out of 40 articles?? When I did my keyword research using the Google keyword tool a few months ago, my keyword phrase had 1,500 searches worldwide per month. I heard 1,500 is the bare minimum a person should go with, and since I was starting out, I figured I go with something that has little competition, and as I got better, I'd pick more competitive keywords.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117436].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author theperfectstrategy
    Originally Posted by ikelove View Post

    Okay, I've posted before that I've written 40 articles in the past month and posted them to EZA. I've taken a break from writing articles in order to catch up with posting these articles to 6-8 other marketing sites (which, I had no idea of how time consuming that is).

    On EZA, my stats as of today are:
    40 Articles
    487 Article Views
    14.4% Click Rate

    This is all since I've posted my first article on 4/26/10. I've also placed on page 1 of Yahoo!, seventh place, for my keyword, and went from page 31, to page 4 last week, to then totally disappearing off the map on the Google search engine.

    So far, I've made no sales yet which I guess is to be expected.

    Now that I've been able to discipline myself to write articles consistently (2 per day, 5 days/week), I realize that the next step is to learn how to write BETTER articles that can convert more readers into clicks.

    What are the mechanics of a good article? From my own objective view, it seems as if I give to much info, as if I'm writing a term paper. What does an EFFECTIVE article look like?
    Here are some of the important things what I think of while writing articles for directories -

    1. The most important thing while submitting your articles in the directories is to target the right keyword. Consider your keyword as the aim. Without a right keyword, it is like shooting in the dark.

    2. The title of the article is again a very important factor. This is the very first thing that a reader sees in your article. If it is not catchy and interesting, there are certain chances that reader looses the interest and switches.

    3. Next comes the structure of the article. Try following this structure -
    # Introduction
    # Main discussion
    # Conclusion

    4. Last comes the resource box. This is thing you can use to for your back links. Try use it in a smarter way. Don't use such language that reader considers you as the spammer. Use a normal and easy go tone.

    This is what I think of a good article. I think it helps you.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117668].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Nicola Lane
    I strongly suggest buying this WSO

    http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...g-service.html

    What you really want out of it is the education - the handbook and the newsletters!

    The article directories are brilliant too - so don't cancel - but for newish people who are serious about article marketing this is a must.
    Signature

    I like to keep an open mind, but not so open that my brains fall out

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117839].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author TimG
      Originally Posted by Nicola Lane View Post

      I strongly suggest buying this WSO

      http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...g-service.html

      What you really want out of it is the education - the handbook and the newsletters!

      The article directories are brilliant too - so don't cancel - but for newish people who are serious about article marketing this is a must.
      Concur with that recommendation - Allen is one of a few, true article marketers, that know the good and bad along with what does and does not work when it comes to article marketing.

      Respectfully,
      Tim
      Signature
      Article Marketing Soldiers - The Best Selling Article Marketing Product On The Warrior Forum Is Now Looking For Affiliates! Make Over $25 Per Sale With This High Converting Product.

      Make More Money And Spend More Time With Your Family By Becoming A Scentsy Consultant - I Provide Personal Assistance And Help With Growing Your Business.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2117939].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author ikelove
        Tim:

        I was finally able to read through the whole mega-post you created last year about the mechanics of article writing. I want to give you many thanks because you've pointed me in the right direction from the "ideal" length of the article (I never knew that ideally they should be 350-500 words), to keyword usage, proper title, etc.

        I echo everyone else who can't wait for you to post the 5th and final installment of that thread.

        Thanks again for providing value:

        Ike
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2136391].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author paul wolfe
          Thanks to Tim for closing out the series - great info.
          Signature
          One Spoon At A Time
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2136541].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author meganeven
            I find that breaking things down into three steps helps with article writing. Whatever the topic is, you can find three details to elaborate on.
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2146444].message }}

Trending Topics