54 replies to this topic

[msdetta]

I'm working on a series of articles on why it's best to hire a professional web designer. I'm hoping that I'm attempting this from a completely fresh angle - I'm comparing a website project to a desk of all things

The first one will compare a do-it-yourself desk to a do-it-yourself website, the second article will compare ready-made and template design, while the third one will compare amateur and professional design.

I actually have 2 questions:

(1) To whom should I submit it for publication? -- A trade organization newsletter, the local newspaper, a weekly local newspaper? I'm open to suggestions.

(2) Would it be permissible to post a link to my website so that forum members can critique the article?

I found it easier to design it for the net (trying to do it in Word - all I did was worry about how that could be formatted for the web! lol). I'm going to move it to Word before publication. Thanks!

[Jill]

There are article submission services out there that would make a great start. Our moderator Karon (Copywriter) has one such service you may want to check out:

Karon's article submission service.

As to posting a link here, yes, since you are an Active Forum member, feel free to ask for a review of your article in our "Articles" section of the forum.

Jill

[msdetta]

Thanks for the link Jill. I've bookmarked it for easy future reference.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to use this service for a few more weeks yet (have 2 clients that I'm waiting for final content to finish). In the interim, I'll hone and polish it a bit more

Heading to the Articles forum now. Thanks!

[anthonyparsons.com]

http://www.ezineannouncer.com

A little purchase goes a long way for article promotion. I use it and has done an amazing job for me. The major sites that it misses, you simply add yourself and let the software make your job much easier.

[msdetta]

Thanks for the link Anthony, I've bookmarked it.

[Michael]

I'm leary of using software to submit articles. Have you encountered any ill effects from using software? Can anyone recommend a service other than Karon's (she's not doing it anymore)?

Thanks.

[BobetteKyle]

Hi Michael -

I use ezineannouncer too...it isn't like a mass submit sort of thing. Basically, it includes a database and a "form fill" function. You still look at each one, manually submit the online forms, etc. I've been using it for about two years and haven't had any problems with submissions.

I don't know of any service like the one Karon had. Ideamarketers has an article promotion program that involves featuring your articles on their sites:
http://www.ideamarke...es/packages.cfm

You could also build your own list of sites and publishers you want to submit your articles to, then hire a virtual assistant to submit to each.

[copywriter]

No, Karon's not running that service anymore. (Long story.) And I don't know of any other service like it. The IdeaMarketers service only gets you exposure on Marnie's 5 or 6 sites. She gets lots of traffic, but you'll need to submit to other places.

I used Ezine Announcer when it first came out and found it to be inaccurate in a lot of cases. It even had me (with my name spelled incorrectly) listed as a publisher who requested guest articles for her ezine and I've never run guest articles. At one time I was getting bombarded with emails containing articles I didn't want. I've heard other publishers say the same thing.

However, like I said, I got it when it first came out. It might be more reliable now.

I'd vote for compiling your own list and using a VA to submit the articles. Submitting is the most time-consuming aspect of the whole process.

As for submitting to newspapers and magazines, it is unlikely you'll get coverage there. Print publications operate in a completely different arena than the Web.

Magazines and papers hire staff and freelance writers to develop feature articles. What you're writing are editorial articles... your opinion. Feature articles are written from fact by a completely unbiased source and backed up with quotes/findings from industry professionals. (Jill has served as an industry professional in many such articles in the WSJ and other pubs.)

You might find some takers from association newsletters, however.

[BobetteKyle]

I used Ezine Announcer when it first came out and found it to be inaccurate in a lot of cases.  It even had me (with my name spelled incorrectly) listed as a publisher who requested guest articles for her ezine and I've never run guest articles.  At one time I was getting bombarded with emails containing articles I didn't want.  I've heard other publishers say the same thing.

However, like I said, I got it when it first came out. It might be more reliable now.

I don't use the ezine publishers database, only the article announcement directories and lists. So, I don't know if the current ezine publisher database is more accurate or not.

A few of the lists and directories are defunct - and I've added a lot of my own resources to my copy of the database - but it's been helpful enough overall to have been worth it for me. This because of both the articles/directories database and the auto fill features (I don't know anything about writing software , so on my own it's strictly cut and paste).

Edited by BobetteKyle, 21 August 2004 - 12:57 AM.

[knight01]

I used Ezine Announcer when it first came out and found it to be inaccurate in a lot of cases. It even had me (with my name spelled incorrectly) listed as a publisher who requested guest articles for her ezine

Sorry for bringing back a semi-old thread, but I'm putting together a site for my sister this weekend and was wondering if anyone could point me to a service that offers articles to be used on a website?

I want to use topical guest articles to help give her new site some content and a jump start. The site is based on antiques and collectibles, if that helps at all.

thanks!

[copywriter]

You can go to http://www.ideamarketers.com. Those articles are arranged by category/topic and are available for free reprint.

[Martin C]

Try these for both submiting articles and getting content

Amazines http://www.eureka-ja...Zines/index.cfm
Go Articles http://goarticles.com/index.html
Article City http://www.articlecity.com/
NetterWeb http://www.netterweb.com/articles/
BPubs.Com http://bpubs.com/
IdeaMarketers http://www.ideamarketers.com/
Simply Search 4 it http://www.simplysearch4it.com/
Vector Central Marketing http://www.vectorcen...icles-form.html
Learning Folder http://www.learningf...mitArticle.aspx
Ezine Articles http://ezinearticles.com/submit/
Xongoo http://www.xongoo.com/submit.html
World Wide Web Outlet http://www.certificate.net/wwio/

[copywriter]

Great list! Thanks for sharing!

[discountdomains]

www.zongoo.com is also pretty good.

Clare

[BobetteKyle]

For business and marketing articles ...

I've had luck with direct submissions to powerhomebiz.com (You can submit articles through a link at bottom of the page).

For marketing related articles, it's if you can get published by http://www.marketingprofs.com. In my experience, very targeted traffic. Great for newsletter sign-ups, too. The "hottest how-tos" and "hottest articles" lists on the homepage are an added bonus if you can get on the list ... my SWOT article has been a top 10 how-to since February 2003 (Awesome brand equity builder ).

Note that marketingprofs is strictly a no hype zone. If you submit, first make sure you've written a quality, intermediate/advanced level article. Then, carefully read the guidelines (click "Write for Us" at bottom of the page), study a few of the already published articles, and look at some "about the author" blurbs before submitting.