Got Originality?
Got Originality?
There are many ways to be original these days. But unfortunately I cannot reveal any of these ways because the followers would then not be original, would they? Now, I realize that somewhere between one to two people would have followed the advice I gave, but just in case my calculations were off - and it turns out three would have followed - I need to be careful about what I write ?One slogan which completely frustrates me due to its lack of originality is "got ____?" That's right - that lowercase phrase which was formerly synonymous with milk (and is now synonymous with everything) is so clich
Ive Got An Article To Submit, Now What Do I Do With It? (6 Tips) – Writing-Articles
Ive Got An Article To Submit, Now What Do I Do With It? (6 Tips)
You submit it, that's what you do! And submit it to as many article directories as you can. (More submissions = more exposure) The more directories you submit to, the better your chance of having the right ezine, newsletter, or website publisher reading your article and using it.If you're not up for submitting your article manually to over 100 sites, you should pick up a copy of ArticleAnnouncer. It will submit your site to a ton of article directories, and you won't have to do much work at all. If you plan on writing articles to increase your traffic, you NEED ArticleAnnouncer.Or, if you don't want to spend the money, you can submit to the top 5 sites: (I want to stress that you should submit your articles to as many sites as possible in order to get the most traffic and publicity)http://www.EzineArticles.com
http://www.Content-Articles.com
http://www.ArticleDepot.co.uk
http://www.ArticlesFactory.com
http://www.GoArticles.comIf you want to submit by hand, and want to submit to more than the 5 sites listed above, head to http://www.arcanaweb.com/resources/article-directories.html and there's a list of 100 (as of the date this article was submitted). However, not all article sites are created equally. Here are my 6 tips of things to look for when you're choosing which directories to submit to.Tip #1 ? Make sure the site allows for SEO
- Do they allow you to choose your own keywords? If the directory doesn't allow you to choose keywords, you could possibly lose some SE traffic because of untargeted or less-targeted results. Entering your own keywords also helps with searches within the site, if the search operates on keywords.- Do they put your keywords and article summary into meta tags? Yet again, this ability is great for SEO. It allows the search engines to index your article more effectively, giving you the best traffic you can get to your article.- Do the major search engines index the site regularly? If a site isn't indexed regularly, your article will take awhile to show up in search results. Not a huge deal, but it could delay some traffic.Tip #2 ? Make sure the site offers RSS feeds
- Do they allow your article's content to be syndicated? RSS Syndication is a big thing right now, because it makes it very easy for another site to feature your article's title, body, and author. If a site doesn't offer RSS, you may not want to waste your time posting there, as you probably won't get as much traffic from them.- Is syndication by category only, or can more parameters be submitted? Some sites allow the RSS feeds to be customized by category only. Others allow syndication by any combination of category, submission date, and author. This is very beneficial to you, because 1) your article could remain on a syndicated "archives" page, where the site gets the specific date RSS feed, and 2) you can have all of your work syndicated ? sites can choose to be fed only your articles!Tip #3 ? Make sure the site is easy to use
- Can visitors to the site find articles quickly, or do they have to dig around? I'm sure you've been to sites that have horrible navigation. The same is true for some article submission sites. When you get there, make sure the articles are easy to find. If they're not, don't waste your time.- Does the site have a category list and search function? Make sure the site has both, as some users will want to use the categories, others will search, and still others will do both.Tip #4 ? Make sure it's easy to submit your article
- Can you submit articles quickly and easily? Some require you to login, which is okay, because then you'll probably have an "author page" where you can add a bit more information about yourself, and people can find a list of all of your articles. However, if the site makes you enter very much personal information, confirm more than once (most will require you to confirm your email address) or scan your fingerprint (haha, that'll be the day), you can probably skip them. You don't want to do that every time you want to submit an article, especially if you're submitting to more than 5 directories.- If they proofread your article, how long does it take? Some sites proof-read your articles, which is okay, as long as it doesn't take more than 24 hours for your article to be approved and made active on their site.Tip #5 ? Is the site popular?
- Have many articles been posted in the past few weeks? If the site hasn't has submissions for a few weeks, or they're trickling in, chances are that's because it's dead. Do keep in mind, though, that submitting to a brand new site is always great, because chances are the owner is promoting it as much as possible, which means great exposure for your articles.Tip #6 ? Do they offer a large list of categories?
- How many categories do they have? Most sites have quite a few categories, or they're targeted to one area (like Internet Marketing). That's perfect. But if you come across a directory that isn't targeted, and doesn't have many categories, skip it. Publishers probably won't pay it much attention because less categories means less targeting, and more articles to sift through to find what they want.Congratulations you on choosing article writing to boost your online exposure! It's an easy technique that, if done correctly, will more than pay for the time you spent writing the articles. Ok, now go out there and start submitting!Jason is an Internet marketer and owner of Premier MicroSolutions, LLC. Submit your articles right now to Content-Articles.com - The Free Web Site Content Article Directory
Mexican Living: Somethings Got to be Done!
Mexican Living: Somethings Got to be Done!
Mexico needs to do something about the behavior of Gringos who come to their country who are hell-bent on acting out the Ugly American Syndrome stereotype no matter what.I concluded this after an early morning shopping trip with the wife to the local Supermarket. There I saw this 70-year-old hippie, with his gun moll, cussing up one aisle and down the other looking for liquor. Doesn't that just figure? He ended his search with a screeching revelation,"They don't even have beer here for Christ's sake!"Why do Americans always want to attribute something mundane and worldly to Christ and for His sake? I mean, really, is it for Christ's sake that this early morning lush was searching so diligently for some booze? Anyway.So, off he marched after screaming loudly enough to wake the dead.I have some ideas that Mexico could do to stem the ever-increasing tide of displays of the Ugly American Syndrome:First off, Mexico could pass a stupid tax. Americans who insist on acting like horses' butts in Mexico would be charged $50,000 pesos for each incident. I think this is a grand idea for Americans acting stupid in America too! What do you think of that? This money could be used to improve the infrastructure of the Colonial towns (like where we live!). But, after the tenth commission of a stupid act (which will take about 2 days), Americans would be deported immediately and without recourse.Second, Mexico could enact a drunken bum or boozehound tax. There would be an allowance of three times you could appear in public WITHOUT falling down before you they would start taxing you. This would be particularly profitable in Puerto Vallarta where American drink to excess day and night.We were in a little place in Puerto Vallarta once for breakfast when this couple came in and had three rounds of beer before their scrambled eggs and hotcakes came. We were told (because we asked the manager) that this goes on all the time. Americans are constantly drunker than skunks and are falling down all the time.We saw more 75-year-old plus men stumbling around town like drunken sailors trying to pick up young coeds. Mexico could make a killing in Puerto Vallarta and no doubt the other resort towns as well.The highest tax would be for each incident of The Ugly American Syndrome. This means that, each time you do the following, the Mexican government will charge you a tax of $150,000 pesos:1. Insisting on paying for something with dollars because you are too lazy (or stupid) to get them changed into pesos. This would really be a moneymaker for the Mexicans since Americans do this routinely.2. Telling the waiter who brought you EXACTLY what you ordered that you wanted a REAL taco.3. Shouting English at a Mexican vendor or salesclerk as though will miraculously change them into a bilingual person.4. Cutting your finger and toenails while in public. (This not only will get you taxed but a good slapping as well.)5. Loudness or obnoxious behavior that is so typical of Americans when they come to another country. For example, statements like,"Gee are all Mexican women this fat?""It sure is filthy here.""Don't they serve real beer?""These Mexican houses don't suit our American tastes.""Don't you know how corrupt your government is?"And so on!There is more, much more, and the Mexican government would have to publish a handbook with hundreds of examples of the Ugly American Syndrome to be fair to the visiting or expatriating American. Perhaps they could use Rick Steves' Europe Archives: Ugly American Sightings as a template for their handbook for Ugly Americans!Check it out at: http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/archives/ugly.htmlDoug Bower is a freelance writer and book author. His most recent writing credits include The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Houston Chronicle, and The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Transitions Abroad. He lives with his wife in Guanajuato, Mexico.
His new book, Mexican Living: Blogging it from a Third World Country, can be seen at http://www.lulu.com/content/126241