Here’s the thing. Google, and other search engines, give you credit for fresh content. Consistently posting new material is definitely good for your rankings. But- when you’re simply reposting someone else’s RSS feed or another rewrite on a tired old article two things happen.

1.       The search engines will penalize you for duplicate content.

2.       Readers are less likely to decide that your site offers value and more likely to “bounce” away from it.

That’s not to say that you can’t ever use someone else’s article or feed if you feel it really offers value to your readers. Just keep in mind that you want “sticky” readers. Ones who will stay around long enough to go where you want them to go.

So does that borrowed content have any value? Sure-if it is material your readers will really appreciate. Is the value going to translate into better SEO and page rank? That’s a lot less likely.

Personally, I love that fact that by looking for ways to really offer value and service to your potential clients you are rewarded by the search engines too! It means you can deliver a quality product that you’re proud of, and your entire business will benefit.

So how could any of these activities end up getting you sued? Imagine this scenario.

You’ve spent months focusing on your search engine traffic campaign. You even hired someone to write your blogs and websites because you just don’t have the time for that. It’s working. More and more traffic is starting to appear at your website every day. You are rising on Google. The search engine spiders have found you and that’s great!

Then one day you get a call from some ballsy stranger who claims you’ve copied their content. They’re mad. Maybe they threaten you to remove it now. Or worse. They threaten to sue. Turns out, that great writer you hired “borrowed” some key phrases. Maybe not the entire article. But enough that you’ve got a problem on your hands.

Scary thought isn’t it?

The sad thing is that “cut and paste” plagiarism happens all the time on the Internet. I hate to say I’ve had that experience myself, but it’s true. And while I have encountered only one blatant attempt of a writer trying to submit a fully copied piece, there have been times where a writer’s laziness or ignorance got an otherwise good person and writer into trouble. To be clear, I don’t know the exact legalities for a situation like this, and I don’t want to find out!

Here’s the other shocker. When I have had an article I checked show up some shared phrases, I’ve been amazed by how many similar articles are referenced with the same content. This means that many multiple writers are duplicating the same content again and again. Sadly, keyword articles seem to be one of the biggest culprits.

So how do you avoid this ugly mess?

There are tools availble like Copyscape which are really cheap at .05$ per article scanned that scan the Internet for duplicate content.  Another one at Article Checker is completely free. I even have one savvy client who puts suspicious phrases into to Google to see what she comes up with. Now these aren’t foolproof. I have been surprised to have content clear one checker and not the other. But I’ve also been able to catch some cheaters just by one little 30 second check.

So whether you’ve hired someone to write your content or you do it yourself, I strongly recommend that you get in the habit of checking anything you intend to post on your website. I know I do.

Ever since I stumbled through the doors of my writing business into the SEO world, I’ve felt a bit like Alice through the Looking Glass (her little known sequel to the Wonderland adventure). Things looked sort of familiar, just not how I expected them to be. Now that blogs are such a big part of my world, I feel like things have shifted again.

And so do a lot of my clients. As more and more clients are asking us to write blogs for their products or sites, I’m getting a LOT of questions on the blog writing issue. Here are some of the most frequent questions I get about using this method to increase website traffic:  How formal does a blog need to be? Who needs to write it? How often do I have to post my blog?

How long should a blog be?

Can my blog really make me money?

Can I SEO (search engine optimize) my blog? Frankly, the whole blogging field is still so new that there are almost no set standards. This is really cool, from one perspective. And really confusing from another. So what do you need to know? You’ve got a lot of flexibility with your blog. How formal it is depends on your purpose and your audience. Writing standards are what they always were, but who’s checking? Well, your readers. But, my high school English teacher would roll over in her grave if I started a sentence with but.  But—I can get away with it in many blogs.Or I can write a one sentence paragraph!!!

Ok. So writing for the web is a bit different than traditional writing. What does that mean for an Internet marketer? Here are a few things to keep in mind.

1.      Presentation matters. Not just spelling, but that you present yourself in an articulate way. If you’re not a native speaker of English, you don’t want that to be apparent in your writing. Web readers judge you very quickly. You don’t want to give them a reason to judge you negatively.

2.      Consistency matters. One of the most challenging issues, and the reason we have so many clients who need help with their blogs, is producing a consistent flow of material. It’s got to be relevant and interesting, or your readers won’t return. Of course, you are ultimately responsible for the content, even if you do hire someone to help you with the writing. Make sure it makes you proud.

  3.      How often you blog depends on the results you are looking for. If you’re blogging for SEO purposes, then the more fresh content on your site, the better. If you’re just looking to keep your list happy, then once a week is OK too.  I recommend that you try to post twice a week.

4.       Keep it short. Online readers tend to look for small amounts of material they can consume quickly. Blogs range from 200 to 2000 words, and probably more. I recommend that you cap it around 500, unless you’ve got some really meaty data your readers are craving on a topic. Even then, continue it in tomorrow’s blog if you can.  

5.      Making Money with Your Blog. Look into affiliate programs, informational products, pay per click ads and direct product sales if you want to turn your blog into a money making machine.  

6.      SEO for your blog. Optimizing your blog is just as easy as optimizing an article.  Since your blog is likely to be shorter than many articles, and will even give you a spot to identify tags, it’s even easier. One of my favorite clients has had us working off of a lengthy keyword list for over a year to help her crank out daily product blogs. Just using a keyword a couple of times in a 250 word daily blog puts a lot of content on your site in a year!

The best part for me is that blog writing is fun. You’re probably writing about a subject or product that you are excited about. How cool is that? And you get to chat with folks about it and call it work. He-He-He. See? Right now- people looking at me are thinking, “Look at that hard working gal typing away!” But I’m really just talking to you. Not a bad way to move your business forward, is it? 

Use Headers in Your Articles 

Another thing to consider is your sentences, paragraphs, and headers. Your sentences should be short, and not too wordy. Remember to use words that don’t require your readers to scratch their heads and say… huh? Big words don’t impress- they scare! By keeping the paragraphs short, you will keep your reader’s interest. Headers help your reader see changes in the flow of writing, making it easier to follow (and read). Writing for the Internet is a different skill than writing for a direct sales campaign or a novel, because web readers process information in chunks and for a specific purpose. Your job is to help them find what they are looking for.

Resource Boxes for Keyword Articles 

If you might be writing an article for submission, you should keep the URL link for your resource box. The reasoning here is simple. I have seen many sites that do not allow a URL link within an article, because of this it is better to place your URL consistently in your resource box and never have to worry about an article not being accepted. Plus, your readers won’t feel like you’re hitting them over the head with your sales pitch.

Submission of SEO Content Articles 

Once you have written your article, you have to decide where you want to put it. You can:

-Choose a single site such as Ezine, which allows you to post your article under a specific heading.

-Use a company such as Submit Your Article or Submit in Me that will post your article to hundreds of websites at once.

-Or, purchase a software program that allows you to make multiple submissions yourself.

Lastly, but most importantly, your article should offer good information. If you are looking to increase website traffic then you need to make sure that your article is relevant to what you are selling or providing. SEO content articles need to make sense, other wise no one will even bother to follow your breadcrumbs (URL link) back to your site. The great thing about all this is, if you are truly good at what you do, and really offer a helpful product or service, that quality will come through in your articles.

Each submission service or site will walk you through a simple process that usually involves pasting your text and selecting appropriate tags or categories for it. You will want to create that resource box we discussed, and possibly an article description too. Sites that offer multiple submissions will often require more work on your end than a single site like Ezine. However, you also get more exposure. Either the way, the how to  is a bit time consuming, but not difficult. In the end, article submissions are a great way to draw new clients to your website.

To increase website traffic, you need to establish a ranking on Google (and other search engines), and to do this you need to get them to see you. The point of Internet marketing is to increase search engine rankings and links, which will in turn increase website traffic.

This can be done using SEO articles and submitting them to directories or posting them on your website. However, while this action is important, traffic generation is not gained by keyword articles alone. There are other elements to consider when constructing your marketing plan. These include:

• Search Engine Optimization – This should occur on many fronts. It involves the use of keywords on a website, and in articles or blogs, to increase the chances of an advanced ranking on search engines.

• Pay Per Click Advertising – Paying websites, bloggers, and stores for every click an advertisement banner placed on the site receives.

• Advertising Campaigns – is just what it sounds like, placing ads on websites, sending them via email, podcasts or other methods.

Once you have begun to increase website traffic, you need to consider how to turn your visitors into customers. This change, called a conversion, can be encouraged through different means. This is where using SEO content articles comes in handy.

By using SEO articles on your website, you can offer interesting information about your products, your company and your site that also gets the attention of the search engines. They are looking for unique and fresh content, just like your human customers. Besides, you have the benefit of trying to get customers who are already looking for what you offer! Know your audience, because if you are writing articles about aeronautics but you sell lawn mower parts, you are not going to get the conversion that you are looking for.

The bottom line is that your keyword articles alone are not a magic pill to create high search engine rankings and increased sales. However, they are a component that no Internet marketing plan can afford to do without.

People look for information online using major search engines like Yahoo and Google. They do this by typing in one keyword, or a keyword phrase. Let’s say, for example, that you are online looking for information on parenting advice. Most likely you’ll type “parenting advice” into your computer, or maybe a more specific phrase (called a long tail keyword) like, “parenting advice for mothers of teens.”

 If you are an Internet marketer trying to get the attention of this niche market, then you want to do what ever you can to get their attention. That is where keywords and articles come into play. The theory is that by you can get the attention of the search engine spiders (sounds creepy doesn’t it?) when they go looking around to find content that matches whatever keywords the user has entered.

There are 2 main types or uses for keyword articles:

1. For article submission to directories like Ezine and GoArticles

2. For posting directly on a website Keyword Articles for Submission

If you write articles to submit to directories like Ezine, your intention (unless purely altruistic) is to get people so interested in your information that they will follow you back to your website. They will do this by clicking on your domain name which will only appear in your resource box that will follow the article, not in the article itself.

Of course, keywords are important here because they are what will initially draw your readers and the search engines to your articles. Content is also critical, because if your reader doesn’t perceive a great value in what you’re offering they won’t make the effort to visit your site.

Keyword Articles for Your Site

Should your article differ if your main intention is to post it on your site? Let’s consider the intention. You’ve already got a visitor who was motivated to come to your website. So the article is there to:

-Give them specific product information,

-Share free information so they will perceive you as valuable and stick around, or

-Attract search engines by the volume of topic related keywords on your website

I say or, but it’s probably all of the above. The difference is whether or not you feel that these articles are for your readers, or for the search engines. Did you post 10 articles on The History of Bunny Slippers because you feel readers greatly value this data, or because you hope to rate highly for the keyword “bunny slippers?” Your answer might impact how you approach the other components of writing your keyword article.

Let’s take a look at some of the other components. In order to create keyword articles, you need to know:

1. What keywords to use

2. Where and how often to use them

3. Who you are writing the article for (your niche market)

Frankly, SEO is still new enough that no one really agrees on the best ways to do anything. Some say the search engines are changing so fast that nothing you do today will definitely stick tomorrow. Others disagree. So where does that leave us for creating articles? I get a lot of my information from the guys at www.StomperNet.com because they really seem to have been successful with SEO. Besides, some of my best clients credit StomperNet with their success.

Keep in mind that article marketing is one component of an overall marketing and SEO campaign. It’s the one I happen to be most familiar with, but it is only one aspect. If you are going to do it, you must understand keywords. SoI recommend that you get familiar with Google AdWords, Wordtracker or some other keyword tool and start getting familiar with that whole side of things.

Frankly, researching keywords is pretty time consuming, but important. Don’t worry. Even before you have that information, you do know what your buyers want. That’s the great thing about articles and web content. If a site is really providing new content and valuable information, it tends to get ranked well. So, while you’re learning about the best ways to optimize, just start creating quality content. You’ll learn about where to put your keywords (in our next blog!), but as long as your material is on topic and informative, it will help your rankings.

Keyword Articles and SEO Articles for Your Website

An article that is going to be posted directly on your site will usually be written with certain keywords and densities in mind. For example, you might have one or two phrases that you’ve identified and ask the article to be written around with a density of 2%. Although we’ll write your article with those requirements in mind, quality and presenting you as an expert on the topic are still the main goals.

If you’re looking for stuffed keywords, we just won’t do that. We will use creative placement of the phrases, like subheaders, to slip them into the article without compromising the integrity of the piece. These articles draw search engine traffic to your site because, if you post enough of them consistently, the spiders will recognize your site as one that caters to the topic they are seeking.

Article Submission Articles to Draw Traffic to Your Website

An article that you are going to submit to an article submission directory differs in 2 ways:

1. Focus on Expert Status- The articles on your site are being read by folks who have already decided to visit your site and are interested in what you have to offer. Submission articles may be read by people who’ve never heard of you or your product. They should read the piece and think, “Oh this guy really knows his stuff” or “I want more info from this woman”. You want them to be so impressed by the quality information that they actively seek out your website by looking at your…
2. Resource Box- After the article is the only place you want to include a link back to your site. Although some submission directories will allow you to include a link in the article content, many don’t. From a potential client’s viewpoint, that link can turn an informative article into a hard sell and take away from your credibility. What is a resource box? A resource box is simply 1-3 sentences that mentions your site URL, and some information on you or your business.

Of course, you know your clients and your business. There are times when including the link will be fine. Just keep in mind that the purpose of sending article submissions is to generate traffic back to your website and make a sale. We usually will include a pertinent keyword in the first and last paragraph, since that generally supports the flow of the article. As long as the article is on topic, the resource box takes care of the rest.

So do article submissions help SEO? If they are done consistently and with the purpose of educating your audience, I believe that they do. Give it time, track your results and you’ll have your own answer.

Here’s the thing. A backlink is a necessary element for article submission. There is little point in sending out your articles if the reader has no way to identify you and travel back to your website. (Unless you are posting for purely altruistic reasons.)

I often advise against including a backlink in the content of your article for 2 reasons.

1. It takes away from your credibility. The reader is likely to feel like your site mention is a hard sell; however, an informative article followed by a friendly blurb at the end is usually seen as an added benefit.
2. Some article directories won’t even publish a piece with a backlink in it. Of course, you can choose just to submit to those that do, but you will miss out on a lot of traffic opportunities.

Having said that, some of this depends on your niche. Some retailers are obviously trying to sell a product and might as well go ahead and make that link convenient for potential buyers. However, if you are in a coaching business or trying to sell informational products where trust is a must, I’d save your link for the resource box. Remember, no one like a hard sell, but everyone loves to buy.

Here are some of the things you need to consider when deciding how many articles you need to post to significantly increase search engine traffic.

• Consistency matters. Even if you only begin by posting one keyword article a week, it is partly that change in content that will attract search engine spiders.
• Keywords matter. Do your homework here. Writing 50 articles because you think or assume that you know the keywords your potential buyers are using is foolish. Spend 3 or 4 hours in deep meditation with wordtracker so that you really know what keywords are being used.
• Be willing to change. If you’re not seeing results ramp it up a notch. If an increase in articles works for a while, then you hit a ceiling, bring the number back down. The key here is to keep track of your results and adjust accordingly.
• Consider article submissions, spider articles and press releases. These are all really good ways to make use of keywords and increase search engine traffic.

The bottom line is that every Internet marketer or Web site owner is playing a slightly different game. Every niche market has a different level of competition. Every competitor is using slightly (or greatly) different strategies. Plus, the search engines are constantly adapting their strategies. The most successful Internet marketers I know are the ones who use tracking tools, are consistent in their posts, and know the keywords their market is looking for inside and out.

Well, there are a few of factors to consider:

• What product or service are you selling on your website?
• Are you trying to establish a specific image in your industry? (I hope so!)
• How much time and/or money are you willing to invest?

As far as your product or service goes, it seems to me that there are some items (say general retail items) that are a bit less open to general content articles. Really, how many articles do you think people are going to read on throw pillows? In this instance I’d still try to write informative articles (I never recommend putting junk or filler on your site), just realize that if you post 50 articles on throw pillows, most people aren’t going to read them all. They’re really for the search engines.

If, on the other hand, you’re selling your services as a custom embroiderer who creates one-of-a-kind creations which include throw pillow then your content will need to have more of an impact. There is still value in strategically placing keywords in your article; however, the main focus here would be on creating an image of expertise by providing valuable information about your trade. The whole idea of creating an expert image to help sell any product is central to article creation and article submission.

And what about the time and money you’re willing to invest? Does it show in the articles? Having both written and paid others to write articles, I can tell you the difference is huge. Of course, that doesn’t mean that by paying big bucks you are guaranteed the best writer. You can also sometimes luck out and find a new writer who is great, but willing to write for peanuts in order to get started in the business. It just comes down to how much time and money you are willing to spend finding these hidden gems.

You can always write these articles yourself. Hopefully, you know more about your product than anyone else anyway. And learning to write keyword articles isn’t that difficult, unless you get into some of the tricker long tail keywords. So what’s my bottom line?

Always put your content first. Then try to focus on natural placement of keywords in strategic places. Finally, go for the density. Keyword stuffed articles sound foolish and will end up driving traffic away from your site. The best keyword articles don’t sound like keyword articles at all.