Top Seven Tips for Writing Articles on the Internet
Copyright by Judy Cullins
Online readers love information, but be sure your information
is crisp, clean, clear and concise.
1. Keep your paragraphs short, even a line or two. Online
readers will ignore long batches of words in long paragraphs, whether
in an ezine or at a Web site. That costs the author a lot of book sales.
Respect readers who want material short and sweet.
2. Write tips in their correct format. First, use a
verb as a command. Follow it by the cost of not doing it. Then, end
with a positive comment. Use this three-sentence formula to bring the
curious to you.
3. Make your heading compelling. If you haven't tested
it on associates, or haven't edited it at least five times, it says
"lackluster." People will delete it or click on to something new. Which
one will you read? "How to Write an Article," or "Sell More Books by
Writing a Short Article?"
4. Get to the point quickly-in the title and the first
line. Keep your introduction down to a sentence or two, the same for
a conclusion.
5. Tell your readers what you want them to do. They
are waiting for your magic formula to make them richer, healthier, or
enjoy great relationships. Make your copy strong, clear, and direct.
6. Target your article to your preferred audience. Not
everyone will want your information, so include your audience in the
title or introduction. When you focus your information, you write more
compelling, focused copy that your readers will love. They will reward
you by checking to where your book is sold.
7. Eliminate all superfluous words such as adjectives
and adverbs like "ly" and passive verbs. Because of a lack of effort,
novices ruin their work with sentences full of "is" and "was" linking
verbs instead of bold verbs. Neither books, nor articles will sell with
these "slugs."
Keep these tips in mind, so that your article will bring
folks to you, your service, your Web site, and your products.
Judy Cullins: author, publisher, book coach Author
of Ten Non-techie Ways to Market Your Book Online and Write your eBook
or Other Short Book-Fast! http://www.bookcoaching.com/products.shtml
Subscribe to FREE ezine "The Book Coach Says..." mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com