Hey everyone, today I want to talk with everyone about article marketing and show you if this way of marketing is still effective in 2015 or is it dead? If you aren’t familiar with how this process works, here’s a basic rundown of it below.
Here’s how it works:
- You submit articles to article directories like Ezine, street articles, Squidoo and many others.
- It gets published in their directory
- Other people can download it and put it on their site.
- You are provided with a resource box where you can put a link to your website.
- Depending on the size, you were also able to add 2 or 3 links to your website within your article.
- The whole idea here was to get people to read it and want more information which in turn would draw traffic to your site.
This would also be a great way to obtain high-quality backlinks.
What’s the whole purpose of using article directories in the first place?
This used to be one of the best ways to build backlinks to your site and get targeted traffic to your niche website. Article directories also used to rank really high in the search engines before people started abusing the system. More on that later.
If you had a backlink from a high ranking authority site then this would give your website higher ranking in the search engines as well.
If you could keep people engaged and interested in your article and you made good use of the 2 call to action links you were provided with. People would click through to your website and take action in what you were offering.
Is article marketing still effective in 2015?
With SEO changing so much due to all these Google algorithm updates over the past few years. Article directories are slowly being phased out. In the past few algorithm’s updates, Google has deemed these as low-quality sources and don’t rank them as high as they used too.
Check out what Matt Cutts had to say about this here
Back in 2012-2013 this was a great way to drive traffic to your website and also a great way to build backlinks, but not so much in 2015.
Want to stay updated on what techniques work today and dominate the first page of Google? Click here
What killed article directories and deemed them as a low-quality source?
I’m sure you have probably heard of article spinners haven’t you? Basically, this is a piece of software that will duplicate any article into several hundred copies and reword it a little different each time.
Each article would have a link going back to your website, and these articles would be distributed to thousands of article directories. Do you guys see the problem here? The majority of these sites were very low quality and not the kind of backlink you would want to go to your site.
Now you’ve got at least a thousand backlinks out there, all leading back to your site and most of them are completely worthless!
This is called black hat SEO and you might as well kiss your online business goodbye if you start doing any of this.
Along comes Google Panda!!
Google has been keeping an eye on all of this and they know all about article spinners. This is exactly why they rolled out Panda. Some of the most popular directories out there were hit hard along with any websites that had poor quality content.
How to build natural and high-quality backlinks today
As you are building out your website in 2015 backlinks aren’t really that big of a deal when it comes to SEO.
Here are a few ways you can build backlinks naturally
- Leaving high-quality comments on other people’s website who are in the same niche as you
- Sharing your posts to social media
- Getting other people to share your posts and like them or +1 them
- Going to forums related to your niche and placing your link in your signature
- Have other high-quality websites link to you
So what still works today and how can you stay on top of things in the SEO world?
I wouldn’t completely rule out article directories just yet. There are still many people who still use them today, but they are slowly becoming a thing of the past. You could spend years trying to figure out SEO and you still wouldn’t even come close to cracking the code on it. However, there’s only a handful of things you really need to know.
I have listed them for you below:
- Focus 100% on your website and writing high-quality content for it
- Make sure you do proper keyword research before you write a post
- You only need to have your keyword in the title and first paragraph. After that just write naturally and use related keywords to get your point across
- Socially share your posts to social media sites and encourage comments or questions
- Respond to comments as soon as you get them, but first make sure they are relevant to your post before approving them
These are just a few tips for you to follow. SEO is constantly changing every day and it would nearly be impossible to stay on top of it all by yourself. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a place that kept you up to date on the latest Google algorithm’s and taught you the proper way to build an online business?
Well, I got some great news for you my friend! Wealthy Affiliate is the place that has kept me updated on what’s working today and what will work in the future. If you’re looking to gain infinite knowledge on SEO, how to build websites, and how to get them to generate revenue for you each month. You seriously need to check them out guys.
The best thing is that you can get started for FREE and try out everything they have to offer without risking a dime of your own money. I will also be there to help you every step of the way if you have any questions or need my help.
I really hope this post has helped you out and answered some questions you might have had about article directories. I also hope I have shed some light on whether this is still an effective marketing strategy or not. I would love to hear your comments, questions, or any feedback you have for me in the comments below.
I will reply back to you A.S.A.P and answer any questions you have for me.
Your Friend, Scott
sazzad
I just read from someone else who said that article marketing is not as valuable anymore since Google kind of downgraded many of the article sites. Do you know anything about that? I just want to make sure that I’m maximizing my time. Thanks for the great article, I found it via your post on Twitter.
Scott Newkirk
Hey there,
Article marketing isn’t as big as it once was in like 2012-2013. In the past couple of years, this has been a dying form of marketing and I predict that by 2016-2017 this will be completed phased out. Ever since Panda was rolled out article directories like Ezine and many other directories took a big hit in the SERPS and Google deemed these directories of low quality.
Honestly, I wouldn’t waste my time writing content somewhere that you don’t own. I would much rather work on building my website out and creating content that people want to read. If you want to keep on track and up to date with the latest marketing techniques that still work today I would recommend that you check out Wealthy Affiliate.
I have been a member there for going on close to 3 years now and they are consistently updated on what works today and what doesn’t work. I’m so glad that this article has helped you out and that you were able to find me on twitter.
If you have any other questions about marketing or SEO feel free to hit me up and I would love to help you out.
Cheers,
Your Friend, Scott
Ryan
Don’t you think that some of the high quality, manually reviewed article websites still work? I seem to get some results from those. – Sites like ezinearticles.com etc.?
I definitely agree though that the spammy, spin thing isn’t worth the time anymore.
Scott Newkirk
Hi Ryan,
Like I said in my article above, I wouldn’t rule out article directories just yet. There are still people out there like you and other people that seem to still be having some great results with them.(Sites like Ezinearticles and a few others) The point I’m trying to make here is that they don’t carry as much weight as they used to and here within the next couple of years these will be a thing of the past.
I feel that it’s much better to write content for your own website vs putting all that time and energy into something you don’t even own. Articles spinners are just a bad idea altogether and I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone. I really want to thank you for stopping by Ryan and chiming in on this topic of discussion.
If you have any other questions or need help with anything please let me know man.
Cheers
Your Friend, Scott
Electra Ford
Hi Scott,
Thanks for the post. Another hit to article marketing I believe is with the option to publish on LinkedIn using, Pulse.
Scott Newkirk
Hi Electra Ford,
You are most welcome and I’m glad this post has helped you out and has given you some insights as to whether article marketing still works in 2015. Thanks for bringing up Linkedin and the ability for people to publish their work on there using Pulse.
This has got to put a hit on article directories and article marketing in general. While some people still use these directories for backlinks, here in a few years they will be deemed as useless. Nowadays, it’s always best to write content for your website and focus on building your affiliate marketing business.
Thank you so much for stopping by and reminding me about Linkedin and their publishing feature through Pulse. It’s really appreciated.
Cheers
Your Friend, Scott
Dominic Wells
It’s interesting, because back when I did article marketing, I always created a unique article. I think I missed the point that you were supposed to submit the same one to lots of different places. Oops.
What I also find interesting is that many times when Google slams the door down on something, it leaves room for things that have manual moderation. For example, they deindexed hundreds of bookmarking sites in the past, but they still indexed the ones that have manual moderation.
They equally deindexed a lot of spammy article directory sites, but they left the good ones that have manual moderation. Why? Because the links obviously still count, otherwise why bother with the deindexing?
Is article marketing worthwhile as a strategy to focus on though? Probably not. I think somewhere like StreetArticles that only accepts unique articles and has moderation, might still have its links carrying some weight though.
Definitely the type of article marketing you’ve mentioned above (mass submissions) is pointless though!
Scott Newkirk
Hi Dom,
I always created unique and quality articles as well. Don’t feel bad man, I never really got the point of submitting your article for everyone to download either. Google always has favored sites that use manual moderation. By doing things manually, you will be setting yourself up for the long term as well as staying on Google’s good side.
I agree that some links do still count, but Is it really worth the time to create an article when you could be focusing on your website? I would think not. Street articles is actually still used today and I think that’s great, but article directories are starting to phase out and in the next 6 months to a year I would say they will no longer be effective.
Thanks so much for stopping by Dom and sharing your experience with article marketing with everyone here today.
I wish you all the best in your internet ventures
Cheers
Your Friend, Scott
Leo Emery
Hey Scott, Great Post!!
I remember when my day was filled with creating a 500 word article and submitting it to a ton of article directories. It worked like a charm back then, but that was many years ago. Nowadays it’s a waste of time.
Scary thing is, there are still companies offering article submission services. Just shows they are either way behind the times, or they know it’s useless and are just taking people’s money.
Creating useful, engaging quality content and putting on your site is what you need to focus on. Forget article directories.
If you do the right keyword research your content will get ranked. The more content you produce the better chance you have to get ranked.
Consistent content on your site is what’s going to generate more and more traffic to your site. It’s a beautiful thing.
Keep up the great work.
Cheers
Leo
Scott Newkirk
Hi Leo,
I also remember these days very well mostly because when I first started out in the online world this was the #1 way to build backlinks and get targeted traffic to my website. I never really was a fan of article directories because I felt like writing content on your website would benefit you so much more than writing somewhere that I had no control over.
There are still many places that offer this kind of service and they know it’s an outdated technique. You should stay away from these kinds of programs as they are only out to get your money and have no intentions of truly helping you build a business. I agree with you that writing thoughtful, helpful and engaging content on your website is the key to having a successful business.
I want to thank you for stopping by Leo and chiming in on this discussion as well as sharing your story with everyone here.
It’s really appreciated man!
Cheers
Scott
Tom
Hi Scott- I really enjoyed your Post on Article Marketing, why it’s not used as much today, and the reasons as well as what does work now in 2015. As you mentioned, I will continue to focus on writing quality content along with keyword research. It is slower, but it creates a good strong foundation for a successful business model! This was a well written post that has helped answer questions I had about article directories and reinforced the premise for good content writing. Well done!
All the best-Tom
Scott Newkirk
Hi Tom,
I’m glad this post has helped you out and updated you on what techniques work today. SEO is constantly changing and you need to stay in the know if you want to have a successful website that gets ranked high in Google. Continue writing quality content and focus on doing in depth keyword research so you can get an inside look as to what people are looking for.
By doing this, you will be able to reach out to them and deliver what they’re searching for through your content. If you can do this you have won half the battle and will be on your way to earning revenue in no time. I’m glad I was able to clear up any confusion you had about article directories and set you straight on what works today as well as what’s no longer effective.
Thanks so much for stopping by and chiming in on this discussion Tom and feel free to give me a shout whenever you need a hand with anything.
Cheers
Your Friend, Scott
Alex Sol
Hey, Scott!
Great article, it makes me think of those “good old days”.
I don’t know how much money I made with Article Marketing back in 2009 (when I did a lot of it) but it was fairly easy to make high 4 figures a month from articles posted on EA.
But as you mentioned, people abused the system. I think this is a good thing because now we post more content on our own websites and we care more about the content we post.
So maybe the end of article directories was a good thing after all 😉
Scott Newkirk
Hi Alex,
Yea, I remember the days of article directories very well and trying to get backlinks to your site. Since I was just getting started and was new to all this I didn’t manage to make any money with them, but I’ve heard lots of success stories. That’s pretty impressive that you were able to make 4 figures a month simply from posting articles on EA.
It’s a shame that people always has to abuse the system and ruin it for everyone.Then again, they say that everything happens for a reason. I’m actually glad article directories have phased out so that I can spend more time writing content for my website. I really do want to thank you Alex for stopping by and sharing your experience that you’ve had with article directories with everyone here today.
Cheers
Your Friend, Scott