In response to my birthday request for article marketing questions, one Idea Generator reader asked, "How will splashing free content all over the Web generate money for me?"
Posting articles online can have a huge ripple effect on the growth of your business. It starts with traffic back to your website, when members of your target market stumble upon your wise words as they search online for solutions to their problems.
Back at your website, they hopefully find a pink spoon (yes, more free content), that goes into greater depth and provides more insight into their problem (and how YOU can solve it).
Now that person is on your newsletter list, having signed up when they downloaded your pink spoon. Your newsletter includes articles (yes, more free content) about the specific topic they are interested in. Only now you're sending the articles directly to them by email, they don't have to go out and find them.
Your newsletter also includes personal notes and questions, both of which help to express your concern and understanding about the challenges your readers face. And this helps you grow your relationship and deepen the sense of trust between you.
Occasionally, you'll send out a notice about a product or service, designed specifically to address the very problem you've been writing articles about. And because your reader has grown to know, like and trust you, they will be far more likely to consider your offer than if it was from a stranger.
From the small ripple of a free article, to a solid relationship with your ideal client. That's the power of article marketing!