Now that you have written those helpful articles to bring more business to your business, they’ll need to find a home. Good articles can find plenty of homes at article submissions websites. Here are the basics for getting that article ready and submitting it to an article site.

1. Write about what you know. This goes for anyone who wants to write articles and have them accepted by a submission site. For the business owner looking to increase traffic and revenue, the topics will pertain to your business in general, business products that you sell, and/or business services that you provide.

2. Aim for an article length of at least 400 words. Some sites will accept articles with as few as 250 words, but it will take at least 400 words to flesh out an idea and gain the interest of the reader. Check with the sites you will submit to for word count requirements.

3. Proofread the article. There is nothing worse than an article with typos and grammatical errors. Good articles have been rejected because of simple errors that could have been avoided. Use spell checker or a second pair of eyes to be sure the article is ready to go to a submission site. Even if you use a ghostwriter for the articles, give the work a once over to be sure it says exactly what you are trying to convey to the reader. Don’t forget to use keywords for a more SEO-friendly piece.

4. Check out the sites where your article will get the most coverage. Popular article submissions sites with high marks will work the best. If you don’t want to put all of your eggs into one basket or even a few baskets, use an article submission service. They submit good quality articles to hundreds of sites for you depending on the subject matter of your articles. You submit once on their site and that’s that. Be aware that there are sites that don’t accept submissions from article services. For those you will have to submit one by one.

5. Some sites require registration. Even for the free ones, the registration comes with a profile page. This is where you will post links to your business and talk about it.

6. Keep a running list of article submission for your records. This way, you can track when the articles are published, the upfront payment, and how business traffic and sales change as a result of the articles.

7. Wait for news that the articles have been published and are being viewed. Submit more articles as you have time. It is a good idea to keep making regular submissions. If you gain a following you don’t want to lose them.

Becki Noles is the virtual business manager and online marketing dynamo of the Virtual Accuracy Companies. She and her associates work with the top business and marketing coaches in the United States and the world over providing SEO, Pay Per Click, website development and technical virtual assistant services. Get the free 9 part series “How to Market Your Business” by visiting The Selon Group (a division of the Virtual Accuracy Companies).

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June 10, 2008 at 9:00 p.m. ET (New York USA)

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Well whilst each of these are perfectly valid marketing routes and one’s any forward thinking company should at least test the very best type of marketing for all types of business is the type that is free. That’s right Ladies and Gentlemen, if you’re working with a tight marketing budget (or indeed with no set marketing budget at all) then you can now get exposure for your product, service or company in the form of PR (or Public Relations).

For large companies PR is big business. They will think nothing of employing staff with the sole intention of getting the name of their company in the media (be it written press, television, radio or online). And because the PR market is seemingly dominated by the larger companies small companies shy away from using PR in their marketing mix.

If this applies to you then good times could well be ahead as PR is a vital part of the marketing mix for smaller companies in particular as they often don’t have the time or money to spend on often expensive advertising or other marketing.

Business Marketing and Small Business Marketing often share many of the same functions but successful businesses of all sizes use PR to promote their business, build their reputation and become a recognised expert in their particular field. And the beauty of PR is that everyone is an expert in something. And by passing on your expertise in a particular subject in the right way you become newsworthy.

And that is the real secret when it comes to good PR. It has to be interesting and newsworthy. Nobody cares that you’ve just launched a new website or that Mrs Jones in Accounts has just become a Grandmother for the second time (both subjects I’ve seen in press releases and both subjects I’ve seen in journalist’s bins!!). And if you’ve ever attempted PR only not to have it published then I wouldn’t worry too much about it as you’re amongst the 99% of companies who send out PR that isn’t newsworthy or interesting.

Over the course of the next few weeks and months I’ll be giving you tips and advice and how you (whatever business you’re in) can make sure you’re in the 1% of companies who do get PR published and who does get business as a result of it. Until then here are a few words on Why PR is important.

Communication lies at the heart of today’s modern society. Be it on the internet, television, pod casts or whatever medium you choose. And with so many firms competing for the same business as you, how do your customers differentiate between you and your competitors?

The answer lies not particularly in the size of your Yellow Pages advert but how you project yourself and what your firm has to offer.

PR has a huge sway in the minds of consumers as the perceived third party endorsement that comes from editorial coverage can be substantial, maybe even more so than advertising that can cost hundreds or thousands of pounds. This done well can result in increased exposure, increased business and increased profits. And if you want your business to be the best it can be then becoming good at PR is something you want to do.

And remember, it’s FREE!

About the Author
Mark Burdett is the owner of one of the UK’s Leading Marketing Consultancy firms, The Marketing Buzz.

With almost 2 decades of marketing experience Mark has worked on highly successful and profitable campaigns for companies including Norwich Union, Kia Motors and Zurich. Now based in Newcastle upon Tyne, The Marketing Buzz help small and medium sized UK businesses grow and increase their profits by using highly effective Marketing techniques. If you want to grow your business and increase your profits contact The Marketing Buzz at http://www.themarketingbuzz.co.uk