For a lot of people, the idea of simply sitting down and writing an article for article marketing stops them cold. You could wonder if you have anything truly worth saying, or if your writing is "good" enough. You should know that pretty much every writer - even the professionals - start out with the same fears. Here's a five-step plan to start your first article:

1. Brainstorm topics.

What inquiries do you get about your topic area? What are the sticking points for beginners to your field? What equipment or specialized knowledge do people need to get started? Make a list of the most frequent questions you are asked about your enterprise.

For instance, if your niche is freezer cooking, people might want to know:

*How will freezer cooking help me?

*What gear will I require?

*What are the issues I might encounter?

*How much money will it cost to get setup?

*What are some basic recipes?

In five minutes, you can have topics for your first dozen articles.

2. Choose one to begin with.

Select one of your topics to start with. Forget about deciding on the "perfect"subject - there is no such thing. With a pen and a piece of paper (or a computer, if that is more comfortable), jot down all the things you can think of related to that topic. Don't be concerned about complete sentences, formatting, or spelling, just get the ideas down.

For instance, if my topic is "How freezer cooking can help you," I might write,

*Save money

*Better diet

*Lose weight

*Fun

*Social - can do with pals

*Helps you be prepared and organized

*Less stress

3. Assemble it and flesh it out.

Then take the outline you created in Step 2 and organize it into common themes. You're aiming for an article about 400-700 words, so three to five main points is ideal. If you have even more than that, never fear! You can turn that material into an additional article.

If this is where you start feeling butterflies in your stomach, relax. Presume you're writing an email to a friend to explain to him or her the topic of your article. Again, don't get stuck on grammar, spelling, etc. Just get the info on the page - you can always go back and revise it.

4. Proofread.

Now's the time in which you can go back through the article and revise and polish, making each sentence say what you want it to. Be sure it's cohesive, that the statements stream together, and that it makes sense. Also be on the lookout for places where you can tighten your writing - where you use three words when just one will do, or where there are redundancies. Make each word, each sentence, each paragraph have valid reason.

5. Submit!

Once you've written your article and polished it until it shines, it's time to submit it. Lots of article marketers submit to online directories - clearinghouses where experts post articles and editors find content to publish. Although there are hundreds of online article directories, there's no need to submit to more than a few. Each has its own pluses and minuses, so take some time to pick the most effective for your niche.

Article marketing is a worthwhile free of charge marketing strategy, but it must be used regularly- and often - for the best results. Therefore once you've finished one article, go back to the beginning and start writing your next. Keep the content flowing, and soon you'll see the results of your hard work. You can't buy better promotion than that!

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