As I share these tips about article writing and article marketing, realize that the same tips that apply to articles you hope people will put in their ezines apply to blog posts, special reports and other short media. They even apply to book chapters!
I used to have trouble getting myself to write articles. It’s a “slow boat to China” traffic tactic and it SEEMs to be very much an old world – web 1.0 – approach. Yet writing articles and submitting them to article directories and article submission sites like SubmitYourArticle gives you tremendous leverage.
Here’s an example.
I am a faculty expert for a few places, adn I always need fresh “meat” for them. So, I write articles, use the spinner called Article leverage which makes it so easy to have various versions that are unique enough to make the serch engines happy without me having to write 15 articles.
Then the system goes to work for me dripping out the articles over time (either a day, a week, 2 weeks, a month – or even all at once). This is a nice natural way to get content out without flooding the search engines all at once.
So I’ve been testing out the service and will give a review at another time. Suffice to say I’m very happy with it.
Then I can take a version of the articles and give them to the places where I am faculty, place a different version on my blog, and place a still different version of the same basic article into a Squidoo lens or Hubpage.
So maybe you’re wondering why YOU would do this if you’re not an expert “required” to submit fresh content each month.Why write articles?
There are a number of great reasons to write articles.
Search engines love fresh content. Putting out even a couple articles a month, especaily if you use SUbmitYourArticle, will let you write 2 articles and get perhaps 10-15 or even more versions that are fresh.
When you put the articles into directories or a submission syndication site, you spread the word. Wherever a content seeker likes to go, he’ll find your article th ere, all without any additional effort to you if you use an automated service.
Writing these pieces showcases your expertise.
People who read what you write get to know more about your style. They can come to know, like and trust you if the articles are well done.
You can pull versions of your own work into your blog, as I do, for added leverage. All you need to do is keep the integrity of the article source and include the resource box and the entire piece intact.
What makes for a good article?
easy to read
to the point
interesting
use a prominent keyword people are searching
short or “chunked”
exciting headline (title)
powerful reason to take action – a call to action
a story in the article to grab the reader’s attention
Including a story is a great way to capture the reader’s attention. Why? Because you are hard-wired to love stories. I can’t resist this since I teach storytelling for business, and it’s true.
You may notice that I open my blog posts with stories all the time. It sets the scene for you and you can’t help but be drawn in. Your heart beats a little slower. You relax a bit, and your brain goes into a receptive mode in the presence of a story.
So don’t be afraid to include a story in yoru articles.
Here are some examples:
based on a conversation
based on your experience (personal narrative example)
based on a frequently asked question
based on a typical problem/challenge your reader has and how you solve it
THose ideas should get you started.
The key to successful article marketing
Consistency is key. Writing and submitting the occasional articlewon’t do you much good. You have to keep things fresh.
Your turn
Share your most successful article writing strategy or experience in the comments below.
Can you look at the world through the eyes of a storyteller? I say yes, and in so doing, you uncover stories absolutely everywhere.
Storytelling for business is a powerful human connection tool you can start using right away. My chickens teach marketing lessons all the time, for those who have eyes to see them, and since I do, I can share their “wisdom” with you. When I am at a restaurant or out running errands, there are stories everywhere.
Here is an example. In the video below, I’m sharing a story about my chickens. They have some things to share…
We have 12 nest boxes for the hens to use for egg-laying. Several of them liked the corner rather than the boxes, and they would line up in order to have a go at the corner – even though there were 10 or 11 empty nests waiting to receive their precious eggs.
So even though they had abundance all around them, the hens insisted they HAD to wait for the corner. They wouldn’t partake of the abundant nests around them.
Are YOU making a similar mistake? Are you so convinced that you have to do it this way or you have to wait for good things to happen that you fail to notice ample opportunities around you?
That is how you can take an everyday event … well for me that’s everyday. Your examples will probably be less rural … and turn it into a teaching story you can use for storytelling for business.
Resoruces
The Storytelling Templates(TM) Page shows you several “recipes” or templates for h ow to tell a powerful story. Some will be about storytelling for business and others will be about connecting through storytelling.
The Story Power DVD teaches you how to connect with anyone through the power of storytelling. This is from a live seminar, and it is a 90-minute jam-packed seminar. You’ll receive the handout participants had and a couple other bonus gifts.
ave you ever decided that storytelling isn’t important for your business?
Perhaps you imagine that simply telling people about your product or telling them what you want them to know is enough. But is it?
This is a video in which I share a teaching 2 different ways. Which is more memorable?
How to Be Memorable
Think back to your history classes in school. Did you love history or dread it? I used to dread history, and it wasn’t until much later that I discovered why. My teachers focused on dates – who was king when and on what date did some important document get signed?
BORING!
History is about PEOPLE living their lives, often dealing with huge challenges. Their lives aren’t lists of things that happened. Their lives are dynamic, just as yours and mine are.
Storytelling for business is no different. You’re bringing a concept or a product to life for someone by the power of your story. You’ll notice stories everywhere once you start looking.
yesterday on Relationship Marketing 101 Radio I interviewed a fabulous woman named Pam Ragland, who has an amazing healing gift. She told a true story about something someone said to her. She often uses as a teaching story.
Pam loves smoked meats and told one of her friends she was going to smoke a chicken. “Oh no! You can’t smoke a chicken,” he insisted. He had been told this by someone and believed it.
Why not smoke a chicken? I’ve eaten some delicious smoked chicken. Maybe the guy who believed it wasn’t possible had tried and failed, or maybe a friend of his had turned the chicken into cinders or undercooked it, or whatever, but the fact is you CAN smoke a chicken.
So this guy has gone through life for years with what Pam ragland calls a “Smoked Chicken Thought,” meaning a false belief. I uncover one of those in myself from time to time and get rid of them as fast as possible when I do.
Now I know that everytime I come across a false belief, in myself or somenoe else, I’ll remember Pam’s smoked chicken thoughts because of the story she told.
Incidentally, Pam has a wonderful product that I will review very shortly which helps you change your story about money. If you’ve ever worried about money, had trouble paying bills or thought you couldn’t afford even a small purchase, I highly recommend you receive her 5 free videos and make a small investment in Be a Money Magnet product.
I’m sure you’ve met people – or maybe you’re one yourself – who tells those long, detail-filled-but-boring endless stories. Maybe you find yourself leaving out the most interesting parts of the story in favor of accuracy.
No matter what your current perceived ability as a storyteller, I am here to tell you that you truly are hard-wired for stories…
AND you are, in fact, born to share stories.
How can I make such a bold statement in the face of all those “yawners” or “eye-rollers” out there?
Watch this video and discover why I say you are born to tell stories.
Yes, it is your birthright to share stories!
The wonderful thing about storytelling for business - well, one of the wonderful things about it – is that storytelling, by its very nature, is a personal development tool as well as a reltionship building tool.
In other words, by telling stories, you’ll discover new aspects of yourself and develop yourself while you build your business.
So take on the mindset of the great storyteller and realize that, like any other skill, all it takes to become a graet storyteller is practice!
Resources
One of the live workshops I was invited to give allowed me to share the stage wiht one of my favorite peopel, Dr. Ben Mack. I want to recommend to you the DVD that came from this seminar, because you will discover the Great Storytelling Formula and how to tell a story that empowers your life and business.
The Story Power DVD guides you through telling the story of YOU in business – I call it your Core Story- powerfully so you connect with anyone you need, especially your ideal customer.
You may also receive a 5-part mini-course on storytelling by completing the box below.
I had the supreme honor and pleasure of attending a concert of Brule and the American Indian Rock Opera at the RFD TV Theater in Branson, Missouri. What I love most about this group is not the fabulous and moving music or the breathtaking dancing, although their performance is truly spectacular and not to be missed.
What I love most is the message of love and reconciliation Brule & AIRO bring to 2 races with a dark history between them. Paul never knew his Lakota heritage. As a child, he was sent to live in mainstream America at a time when being Native American was hidden. This protected Paul and gave him a different life than his brother Moses lived on the reservation.
When I teach people about telling your Core Story, sometimes people get confused about when to start. Like any storyteller, you start where the action starts.
When you start your core story where the action starts, you are sure to engage your audience and create an emotional connection.
After the death of his adoptive parents, who loved him dearly, Paul finally discovered his Lakota heritage. On a fateful Thanksgiving Day, he met his birth family. Thus began his quest and mission to bring unity and understanding between Native and mainstream America.
Here is a snippet from the biography on the Brule site:
“Occasionally an event occurs of such significance that it forever changes the way you perceive life itself. In November, 1993 such an event occurred for Paul LaRoche. Paul, adopted at birth off the Lower Brule Sioux Indian Reservation, discovered his Lakota heritage in 1993 after the death of both adoptive parents. He was reunited on Thanksgiving Day 1993 with a brother, sister, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews. The discovery of his true heritage has greatly affected Paul’s life and those around him. The influence on his career has been monumental. Overwhelmed by the experience, Paul has turned his powerful feelings to humanitarian causes through music.“
Because Paul accepted the hero’s journey to which he had been called (not the life he planned), Brule and AIRO have created a whole new category of Native American music that honors the past while creating a new sound for the present and a living legacy for future generations of reconciled people to understand each other.
Enjoy a video of their music and dance.
They caused an entire new category in music and music awards to come into being: Contemporary Native American Music. They have been named Native America Music Group of the Year 3 times.
As you look at their story, contemplate your own.
How do you tell the story of you – your Core Story? Your story will come from both passion and pain – from the life you chose AND the life you did not. For example, Paul’s love of music was nurtured by his adoptive parents at a time when he did not know his birth culture at all. When he learned of his heritage and began to understand Native America, brought the tools of choice (his music) together with the unexpected life (his Native heritage) into harmony by accepting his call to adventure.
His daughter Nicole took the first musical journey with him and adapted her study of classical flute to create her own unique sound that combines her classical training with a Native American flair. While she plays the traditional wooden flute, she uses the classical flute in concert, because for a woman to play a wooden flute is a cultural taboo. The way she plays her music provides the sound and feeling you anticipate from Native American music while still honoring her cultural heritage.
While I have loved to create stories since I was a toddler, studying the spiritual traditions and mythology of the world with the help of Joseph Campbell called me to an adventure of bringing peace and unity that I would not have discovered any other way. Now I bring storytelling both as a tool for business and primarily as a self discovery and peace tool into my work, which is truly a calling of the heart.
I invite you to work with me and create your Core Story and discover where your own hero’s journey is leading you.
Resources
Visit the Storytelling Templates page to begin your journey of understanding and exploration.
I did a 90 minute workshop that takes you through discovering your own story power for your life and business. You’ll discover the hero’s journey story in a way that makes it easy for you to understand and apply. Bring home the Story Power storytelling DVD
YOU are a natural born storyteller. Claim your power and live from it!
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