by Fred Smith

If you've been around the online marketing world for any length of time, you've heard about using articles as a marketing tool. Businesses that are not currently using article marketing are not tapping into a tool that could very well be the difference between success and failure. Increased traffic, pre-sold customers, and steady backlinks are a few of the many perks you will realize.

Articles you submit to article sites can contain an author link back to your site. This creates a high quality, direct link from an authority site to your site. Credible backlinks like this are going to get your site ranked higher on search engine results pages, which are also known as SERP. Articles that are of high quality and provide pertinent and helpful information can often be linked to by readers. When readers link to your article, it will elevate your standing with search engines in addition to getting your article in front of more people. Finally, if it is a timeless article, it could remain in circulation and continue to provide a solid link to your site for years to come.

Another benefit of turning in an article to an article site is that your site will receive more visitors. When readers see your article and learn that it provides relevant and helpful information, they are likely going to click on the link to your website to learn more about what you have to offer. Therefore, not only is your traffic increasing, but the visitors are from a relevant, targeted demographic. A committed group of visitors is likely to return. You can also use these links to get more people signed up for your newsletter. Instead of linking to your home page, consider linking to a subscription page for either your site or your related newsletter.

As you write more articles on subjects related to your niche, you can start to become a source readers turn to for reliable information. Once you receive the title of expert, your followers will start to take your advice more seriously. The more you publish, the more people will see your name, and the more they will associate you with the topic. The articles must be well-done to be successful. If you fill article sites and niche sites with articles laden with errors and fluff, your efforts will be counter-productive.

When people read a great article, they anticipate the same level of greatness from your site. By reading the article and clicking through to your site, they have already expressed a level of committed interest. Once they have arrived, you can continue to sell them on your idea or topic, without having to start from scratch.

Article marketing is one time when giving your information away free can yield substantial returns. Give the cyber-world the high quality information people want, and you will get what you want, namely free links, free traffic, and name recognition. You will never regret the effort you put into your article marketing campaign.