Freelance writing can be so rewarding and fun that it makes writers feel guilty, like they're stealing. For those who chose writing as a profession, possibly more than people in other fields, writing must have been a love and writing ability a blessed gift. If that is the case, then monetary reward is the sweet icing on the cake. Freelance writers can be among the most financially rewarded of all writers, but they must also take the most initiative to make it so. In today's economic climate, consistent submission of articles to article directories is essential to name recognition and future sustained success. It can also be a painstakingly laborious undertaking to accomplish on a regular basis. There are tons of article directories. Most don't pay writers a dime. Generally, what they do is allow a writer to post articles to the directory with the understanding that other publications or individuals can republish the article(s). The advantage for the writer is when another publisher wants to use the article, it must be published in the original format, with the title, body, and byline remaining intact. In short, others can't simply take a writer's article and call it their own. Why Work for Nothing? There's a lot of disagreement on whether a freelance writer should work for "the exposure" they may get from a guest blog post, articles, etc. While it's true that some companies, web sites, publications, and individuals are looking to get quality content for nothing, sometimes it can actually pay off over the long term. A writer should be aware, know their own goals, and weigh the potential benefit if asked to write for free or little pay. How Article Directories Differ When a writer completes, say, a guest post for a blog, that post will not be offered for redistribution. Any exposure the writer gets will come only from that blog's readers. Submitting to a directory allows any given article the potential to be redistributed and published to hundreds or thousands of magazines, web sites, newspapers, blogs, or ezines,all with a byline and links back to the writer's sites. It can be, if done consistently, an amazing marketing tool. Why Not Do It Every Day? While article submission isn't anything shockingly new to the world of SEO, many people STILL don't do it, and for good reason. It takes so incredibly long to do manually. For people with article directory submission experience, the following steps will bring bad memories: 1. Write an article (the fun part) 2. Find an article directory 3. Join the article directory 4. Respond to the confirmation email 5. Login to the directory 6. Review the article submission guidelines 7. Find the submission page, copy and paste, review for accuracy and working hyperlinks 8. Submit the article and wait for review (some sites automatically post to their directory, but not many) 9. Make corrections after editorial review 10. Resubmit and again wait for review and/or publication Steps Two through 10, some of which may not always apply, can be painstaking when your trying to do it multiple times. There are literally hundreds of directories to choose from and use. time could be better spent doing something else. There are a few programs available that, thankfully, have automated the process. A program called, strangely enough, Article Submitter Platinum, by Bryxen Software, Inc., allows a writer to automatically submit articles to hundreds of article directories with a few mouse clicks. Aside from a few glitches periodically, which happens when working with hundreds of article directories, all that is required is to input the article criteria into the software, once. Then, the program automatically fills in all required data at each of the submission web sites. As stated, it doesn't always work flawlessly, sometimes sites change their links and they have to be updated, but it reduces the time requirement exponentially. Article Submitter is offered in a free version, which isn't nearly as automated. The upgrade to Article Submitter Platinum is like switching from a Chevette to a Corvette. Still Doubt the Utility of Article Submission? Consider this, after using Article Submitter Platinum to submit one article to the 700+ directories in the program, you have around 700 inbound links to your website, product, articles, information. Most readers will find a writer's work via Google, which places a great deal of importance, through Google PageRank, on inbound, one-way links. Multiply that article by 2, 5, 10, 100, and count the number of one-way links that a given writer can receive. That doesn't even consider the potential for further publication by others, which will multiply readership exponentially. Article directory submission is the easiet way to get links. Of course, when going to get links so quickly, it's important to submit different variations of articles, to make things look more natural to the search engines. Beginning freelance writers are committing a heinous act against their careers by not submitting to article directories. More established writers are doing themselves a disservice, as well. Whether automating submission through software, by using a virtual assistant or publicist, or manually submitting to only a few directories, the key is to just do it. Begin claiming the rewards.
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