Free Ezine Advertising That Works! – Ezine-Publishing
Free Ezine Advertising That Works!
When I say free ezine advertising, I'm not talking about the free ezine ads that some publishers offer, this technique is FAR more powerful than that.One of the best ways to get free traffic to your site, is to write articles for ezines.Now before you shudder and click away, it isn't that hard to write a good article.If you've got a bout of writers block, just search for info related to the subject you want to write about, then re-write it in YOUR OWN words and style, do not copy.Your article needs to be around 500 - 700 words, with short paragraphs, 5 or 6 sentences.DON'T try and disguise an advert as an article and forget about putting in your affiliate links, publishers will delete it straight away, if you want to use this approach to promote an affiliate program, you should really get your own domain as it looks more professional.Once you have put your masterpiece together, leave it a day, then come back to it and re-read it, you'll be surprised what other nuggets of info pop out after a nights sleep, and how many errors seem to jump out at you.When you're sure your article is ready, run it through a spell checker and format it to 55 - 60 characters per line so the publisher can just cut-n-paste into their ezine.Don't forget to put your resource box at the bottom of the article! This is what's going to get you a ton of free traffic to your site after all.Believe me folks, just one half decent article can get you alot of free traffic, I remember one article I wrote was published in a ezine that had a circulation of 500,000, if I wanted to pay for advertising in this particular ezine it would have cost me over $400!Not only does this technique save you money, it also gives you credability, and alot of ezines turn your articles into web pages that will remain there for years to come.Get published, get credibility, get free traffic for years to come! I think that's worth a little effort don't you?About The AuthorFor an extensive list of places to submit your articles for free get on over to: http://www.forfreedom.ws/ezine_article_submission.htm
8 Tell-Tale Signs That Forecast Writing Success!
8 Tell-Tale Signs That Forecast Writing Success!
'Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work." -Stephen KingEver wonder what the hands of fate will deal you in the way of success as a writer? Or why some individuals reap the rewards of literary recognition, while others fail and fade into anonymity?Just as highway signs alert travelers of their impending destination, there are give-away indicators that point to "the road to success" for writers.Here are checkpoints that reveal you're in the literary fast lane!You're Playing the Field- The more genres of writing you apply your talents to, the greater the odds of continued publication and pay. I began my journalistic journey over a decade ago, writing poetry and greeting card verse.What I discovered was that poetry (although my first love), was not very marketable. As a result, these efforts alone met with very little success until I decided to try feature writing for magazines. This change in strategy not only allowed me to establish publishing credits and an impressive portfolio, but also financed the self-publication of 3 volumes of poetry chapbooks and opened avenues for paid performances and open mike competitions as well.Jennifer Brown Banks- Page 2 8 Tell-Tale Signs?You're an Avid Reader- It is virtually impossible to become a marketable writer without reading and studying prominent writers and various styles of expression. Whether you're a member of a local book club, subscribe to a few on-line publications, or regularly escape through a good Harlequin Romance, you're moving in the right direction! Being an avid reader helps you expand your vocabulary, become familiar with different writing styles, and understand the needs of your audience.You're Self-Disciplined- Unlike other professions and industries, writing is by and large a do it yourself success story; there is no delegating or getting by on other team members' strength. It's either sink or swim! You establish your own goals, develop your own game plan, and assume sole responsibility for your career. Successful writers go the distance by making writing a priority, honing their craft and persevering through rejection.You Understand that Writing is a Business- Far too many writers fail to recognize that writing is a business. One that requires much more than creativity and a command of the King's English. To achieve professional status, one must have marketing savvy, time management skills, analytical ability, research knowledge and familiarity with the industry. It also requires putting money back into the "business" by investing in trade related materials such as the Writers' Market, computer equipment and business cards (to name a few things).Jennifer Brown Banks- Page 3 8 Tell-Tale Signs?You Recognize the Importance of Critiquing- Whether it's through a writers' group, a mentor, a college professor, or people whom you admire and trust. Getting an outside, objective analysis of your work can mean the difference between rejection and perfection. Just as "love is blind," many of us are far too close to what we've created to see flaws or gaps in what we're trying to convey.You Know the Meaning of Working Smart- At least 50% of my writing income is generated from resales. The well fed writer realizes the potential to resell and represent the same pieces many times over just by changing the slant and minor details, and by negotiating rights.You're Navigating "the Information Super Highway." Do you Google? Are you able to successfully research, review writers' web sites, and submit work via the Internet? Doing so decreases down time, increases productivity, and puts you in the fast lane to creativity. Check out the following writers' E-zines to enhance your bottom line:Absolute Write Newsletter- http://www.absolutewrite.com- This weekly contains articles, interviews and calls for writers.Inscriptions-http://www.inscriptions.com- Features weekly calls for writers, interviews, book reviews and announcements.Jennifer Brown Banks- Page 4- 8 Tell-Tale Signs3. National Association of Women Writers- http://www.naww.org- Produces a newsletter that provides useful insiders' tips, motivational quotes, contests, conferences and more. It also serves to support and promote the works of female authors.A great book to also help you improve your surfing savvy is 300 Incredible Things to Do on the Internet by Ken Leebow.You Write for the Love of It!- Do you practically eat, sleep and drink writing? Love to communicate and connect? In this field, perhaps more so than any other, passion precedes success. Having the desire to educate, entertain and empathize through the written word is indeed a noble ambition. And it is this philosophy that will allow you to persevere and avoid "road rage" in your daily travels!COPYRIGHT 2004 JENNIFER BROWN BANKSAbout The AuthorJennifer Brown Banks is a writer, poet, speaker and literary consultant. Her work is featured monthly as a contributing writer to Being Single magazine. Additionally, she is a high school substitute teacher.Publishing credits include: Chicago Sun-Times, Being Single Magazine, Funds 4 Writers, Writing for Dollars, Honey Magazine, Today's Chicago Woman, National Association of Women Writers' Weekly, Empowermag.com, Gospel Synergy and a host of on-line and print publications.Her upcoming book of poetry "A Paradox in Pink" is due to be released in fall 2004. Banks is listed in Marquis' Who's Who in America.She may be contacted at
Jennifer Brown Banks
P.O. Box 208821
Chicago, IL 60620-8821
E-mail Jenniferwriter@yahoo.com
Dont Attach That! – Email-Marketing
Dont Attach That!
The topic of sending attachments by e-mail is not one that is discussed as much as it probably should be. It is easy to attach a file to an e-mail. Almost too easy! E-mail programs allow you to attach almost anything, regardless of the size and format without giving the sender any sort of guidance as to the consequences of their actions.And yes, there are consequences. Like shutting down other's e-mail accounts and causing subsequent e-mail to bounce. Now, that's not a very nice thing to do, is it? And to think with just a bit of thoughtfulness you can avoid embarrassment and set an example of proper technology use!Most that forward attachments or send photos along are doing so with good intentions not purposefully wanting to cause any problems for the other side. That said, though, one has to take a moment and think before attaching files to an e-mail and clicking Send. To simply attach files without taking the time to consider the person on the other side can come off as self-serving not to mention reflecting your overall lack of tech savvy.Here are some quickies you should run through before you arbitrarily attach any file to an e-mail and send it on its way:=> What is the file's size? If you don't know, find out. If you don't know how to find out, learn. For example in Windows, you can view the file's size in Windows Explorer. Make sure the Views option at the top right is set to Details. This will allow you to see a Size column reflecting each file's size.=> If you are sending a file over 200,000 (200KB) in size consider how you can minimize the file's size either by reducing the physical dimensions or by using file compression software. And, even then, courtesy dictates you ask the recipient first if it is O.K. to send them an attachment and what is the best time of day to do so to ensure they are available to download your file and keep their e-mail flowing.Never send attachments without warning especially after business hours or on weekends when the recipient may not be there to clear out their inbox.=> Files over 1M (that's 1,000,000 bytes!) should not be sent by e-mail and will have a hard time going through the pipeline. Just because you can physically instruct a computer to attach a file of that size doesn't mean you should. You could also instruct your computer to reformat/erase your hard drive but you don't do you?=> Files should only be sent in a format that you know the other side has the appropriate software to view - because you asked first! For example, not everyone has MS Publisher, Excel or PowerPoint. If the other side does not have Excel and you send a Excel file to them, they most likely will not be able to open it.=> When it comes to graphics and photos, just assume the files are gargantuan. Whether the files are for business or personal matters, here again you need to compress either the file's size with one of the many compression utilities available or reduce the physical dimensions of the graphic or photo.Learn how to resample/resize the graphic to no larger than 600 pixels in width. 600 pixels is large enough for the majority of uses - especially if you are just sharing photos with friends or family. For use on your Web site, they need not be larger than this either. Photos thousands of pixels wide easily get up into the 2-4M range! Yikes!!=> Never send anyone an e-mail with an attachment about anything, (particularly your product or service) if the recipient did not specifically e-mail you for that information and you are responding to his or her request. By sending overly large files (even several personal photos) you can cause the other person's e-mail box to fill and all their subsequent e-mail to bounce.You have no insight into the other person's e-mail volume to assume activity to be minimal or storage capacity to be optimal to receive your files. You do know what happens when you assume? Many e-mail accounts are only 5M in size and can be filled up very easily by those who either don't care to or don't know how to determine file size.To send an attachment without notice that someone didn't ask for is the epitome of lack of courtesy for those you are e-mailing. No matter how important you think that attachment is - you now have no excuse to ignore the above issues when attaching it to an e-mail. Don't attach that file without first knowing its size, format and notifying the person on the other side that it is on its way.Just a little common courtesy can go a long way to you being perceived as a person who is a pleasure to communicate with and who also understands the technology in which they are participating.About the Author:
Judith Kallos is an authoritative and good-humored Technology Muse
who has played @ http://www.TheIStudio.com for over a decade. Check out her popular Software, Programming and Web Design
Cheat Sheets @ http://www.LearnAndThrive.com