A piece of writing pregnant with valuable information is often catalytic in driving traffic to your website, either directly or indirectly. A good article on a fairly relevant subject, written by an authority in that field, is bound to be taken away like hot cakes. Webmasters, newsletter owners and online publishers are constantly on the lookout for quality write ups that are hugely popular with search engines. But how exactly do they define ‘quality content’? The various factors that contribute in deciding the attributes of a good article are discussed below.
The title and the teaser
An article is written to be read. The first noticeable thing about your article is its title. Half your job is done if you can arouse curiosity through it and keep it crisp. The title needs to hook the reader to your subject and entice him to read the complete content. Since most pages flash only the title along with a short teaser, it is the punch line that decides the amount of traffic that your article will see. It is the title that decides whether a reader will click on your article’s link to read the complete content. You Can, How Tos, Start Earning and Top Ten Tested are some of the most popular titles. After the title comes the teaser. It is a short introduction about what the article will talk about. Mostly, when the link of your article is clubbed with several others, it is a well written teaser that makes all the difference.
Choice of a subject
This is one of the most difficult decisions that a writer has to make. According to individual expertise and the core competency of your business, choose a topic that is of most relevance to it. Visit discussion forums to find out the most discussed topic there. This topic is obviously a matter of concern for most of the people who need to know about your business. Writing your own expert opinion on this topic is the safest bet.
Keyword interspersed articles
Try to include keywords in your title, teaser, and the write up, but take care that it does not look intended. Place the keyword in such positions where it seems perfectly in flow with the write up. If this is not possible, try using like keywords with analogous meaning. Search engines and webmasters alike rank an article depending upon the number of keywords it uses. Webmasters looking for better Google AdSense revenue often focus on articles with an abundance of keywords.
Write for the layman
Your expertise in a particular field should not be an impediment in your writing articles for the layman. There a misconception that and unintelligible writer is a better one at that. Hence, falling prey to an incomprehensible writing style is easy. Including technical details of your field in the write up is a complete no no. Though even such articles will have a segment of niche readers, they would be unfathomable to every Tom Dick and Harry. Write easy to read and easy to understand articles that even a 10 year old can make use of. Apart from this, keep the paragraphs short and the sentence construction simple. Add a subhead to a paragraph wherever possible, or add numbered bullet points. This is for the convenience of the online reader, who more often than not, scans through an article instead of thoroughly going through it. The bulleting will categorize information in your article into small modules which can be read separately.
Be entertaining and specific
Though you want your article to be informative, being plain can often get pitched against you. Include a little humor here or a small anecdote there. Also stop being vague and generalized. No beating around the bush. The reader gets wary of the repetitions. Rather be precise and specific. To-the-point matter with funny anecdotes is the best way to keep the reader hooked. Provide infotainment through your write up. Also remember to write for a single person rather than a group. This is ought to make you more specific.
Include a resource box
A short resume of the author at the end of the article is called the research box. Include your resource box at the end of each article. It helps you advertise your website, gain precious links to it and divulge critical information about yourself that might help in bringing the reader back to your articles time and again.
Keep the length short
Pages after pages of information at one go can scare off the reader at first sight. Keep you articles short and poignant. Write ups pregnant with precious information, interspersed with mild humor to relieve the cadence are your safest bet. Write articles of not more than 1000 words, though 700-800 word articles are considered to be of the best length. Do not write an article with the intent of boosting your sales or snowballing your business. Don’t ever get down to directly selling a product through your article. Write articles to genuinely provide information to your readers, which in turn will increase your reader base over a period of time. See your readers as your prospective customers and give them time to get ready to buy your product. Don’t try to rush them through this decision.
Article submissions
Submitting your articles to directories that do not restrict the number of articles submitted on a weekly basis, can be harmful in the long run, since most of such directories have been blacklisted by the more reputed of their ilk. Well known article banks that possess a high credibility for their content rich write ups generally do not accept more than two articles a week.
Have a structure
Any write up is supposed to be good if it has an arousing beginning, a full bodied middle and an appropriate end. The first paragraph of the article must provide an insight of the coming article to the reader. Don’t keep the reader guessing. It is important for a reader to anticipate the flow of the article at the very start of it. The middle should ideally voice your opinions or views on the topic of your write up. The prime information that you need to provide will comprise of the middle. Also, an article without a proper conclusion is said to be incomplete. An end must summarize everything that you have said in the write up.
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