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View Full Version : Boost Visibility and Add Credibility by Writing for others



Harold Mansfield
07-17-2009, 04:39 PM
I just finished my first article writing for Examiner.com. (http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-17463-Electronica-Music-Examiner~y2009m7d17-Pop-dance-sensation-Erika-Jayne-adds-to-her-billboard-success-with-debut-album-Pretty-Mess)

Becoming a contributing author for outside sites is a great way to increase visibility for your blog or website, particularly if you have extensive knowledge in a certain niche.

Examiner.com looks for people that can add compelling content to their site.
It is predominately local "experts" in just about every niche...everything from Restaurant Critics to T.V. shows and Celebrities......but they do also have National Examiners that write about a niche in general, which is what I am, National Electronica Music Examiner .

The best part about it is, it seems that they are growing and looking to fill good spots with good writers who can provide great content. They announced in Feb, that they were looking to fill 12,000 writer slots to cover 60 markets across the U.S., and have picked up some "celebrity" writers like Robin Leech, and some well known Authors, Chefs, etc..so it's good company to be in...as of June they announced that they had 8,000 writers covering 90 markets.

I got lucky , since out of the thousands of "Examiners" I didn't see a single one for Dance Music, so I jumped right in and got accepted.
I didn't notice a lot of repetition in niches, so filling an untapped void is probably key.

There is an application process which includes submitting examples of your writing skills, and a basic background check.

You have short profile, and you are allowed (relevant) links in your articles as well as, a list of outside links that appears on your article pages. (although I would not recommend spamming your own blog or website, just put it in your bio for credibility).

It does pay, based on performance and traffic to your your articles (Not really my first concern, but if you do make any money, they pay by Pay Pal) , but the best part is you can post articles that are already posted elsewhere provided that you change or add 150 words of original content to them, and it's something kind of cool to add credibility to your other online profiles, and could drive a little more traffic to your website or blog.

They do expect at least 3 posts a week. The main Home page has a PR of 6, which is good, that means they have traffic and people linking back to them, and I see a lot of Author home Pages with PR as well, so there is a little SEO benefit as well.

You can check out more about writing for them here (http://www.examiner.com/about_examiner/).

(Shameless Plug)...If you do apply and want to put me down as a reference my number is 17463. Appreciated, but not necessary.

vangogh
07-17-2009, 07:24 PM
I think writing for other sites whether it's contributing an article or guest posting for another blog is one of the better ways you can market your own site. Naturally you need to write a good article/post and the audience of the site you write for should match the audience of your own site/blog well.

Thanks for the head's up about The Examiner. I'll take a look this weekend. And if I do join I'll definitely put you down as the reference.

Just did a quick check on their traffic at Compete. The Examiner seems to be growing traffic quickly and exponentially.

Harold Mansfield
07-17-2009, 07:40 PM
I think writing for other sites whether it's contributing an article or guest posting for another blog is one of the better ways you can market your own site. Naturally you need to write a good article/post and the audience of the site you write for should match the audience of your own site/blog well.

Thanks for the head's up about The Examiner. I'll take a look this weekend. And if I do join I'll definitely put you down as the reference.

Just did a quick check on their traffic at Compete. The Examiner seems to be growing traffic quickly and exponentially.

Yeah I noticed !

You know for some time now, people have always said that writing for other sites is a great way to get exposure, but where do you go ?
Article sites kind of suck, and not too many people will let you post on their blog or website unless you have a book to pimp out
So this was perfect for me, I don't care if I don't make a dime from them directly, I know it's good exposure.

vangogh
07-17-2009, 07:58 PM
I usually think of it in terms of guest blogging, but that's because most of the writing I do for my business is on my blog (or through this forum).

A few years back when the list of blogs I subscribed to was smaller I would notice someone guest posting for a popular blog I would read. The post would be good and then they'd post again a week later. A week would go by and I'd see the same author on another blog I read. It didn't take too long before I visited the author's site and subscribed to his or her blog. A few of my now favorite blogs were found because I saw the author guest blogging in one or more places.

I agree with you about article directories. A few years ago it was all a numbers game. You'd write an article, submit it to as many directories as you could and coupled with all the times the articles was downloaded you could get a lot of links for writing one article. Duplicate content filters have changed the effectiveness of that tactic.

Now I think it's more about quality and matching your article with the right audience.

I think you'd be surprised at how many people will let you guest post. It's nice to be able to take a couple days off from writing and let others post instead. Also if you can find a few people who write well enough for your audience you can run a site without having to do much work. You get to let others create your content and they gain from your existing readership. It can be a win-win for both parties.

Harold Mansfield
07-20-2009, 09:32 PM
Update.
I can see traffic building, and am starting to get a feel for the payout system. It's not bad. With some average traffic I can see an extra few hundred a month from it.

The one thing I noticed is there doesn't seem to be a lot of web pros as contributors. Many have great qualifications...Books, PHD's, Educators, some are well known in their perspective field, and just regular folk who go out and review restaurants and such, but I have noticed very few are "web people", which is great for me.

From what I have seen the opportunity for exposure is great. Today my stats are well above the national average in my category "Arts and Entertainment", so it's been good so far.

I highly recommend it, but shoot for a National category so you can lock in a niche all to yourself, unless you are looking to attract locals then it is still a great opportunity.

vangogh
07-20-2009, 09:49 PM
That's not bad money then. I looked through some of the categories and there wasn't anything specific for web design/development articles. It could fit under the technology category I think. Might be why they don't have any we pros at the moment.

Are you able to submit content to other categories and have them decide if the category is acceptable?

I can see how as the site builds more, more people will contribute, then more people will visit, etc. Seems like a good opportunity to get in on. And you can rewrite your own articles that you publish on your blog too.

Harold Mansfield
07-20-2009, 10:58 PM
That's not bad money then. I looked through some of the categories and there wasn't anything specific for web design/development articles. It could fit under the technology category I think. Might be why they don't have any we pros at the moment.

Are you able to submit content to other categories and have them decide if the category is acceptable?

There was no Electronic Dance Music Category when I applied. I suggested it with my application, and submitted links to what I was already doing.

There are categories that they are looking to fill, especially in the local markets, but for the national section it seems open as long as you can bring some expertise.
There's people like Robin Leech writing about wine, art and other lifestyle subjects and others writing about reality shows, and MTV....pretty broad range.

If there is no category for what you want, that is a good sign. That means it's open. If you can get it, you'll be the only one :D

I think that maybe something that is targeted to the small business owners developing their own websites, or amateur web developers or basic design skills could get their attention. Too technical may be too much...but I'm not sure....they are growing. Who knows how broad the coverage will be.

I thought that would have told me they were "not interested at this time.", but I was wrong.



I can see how as the site builds more, more people will contribute, then more people will visit, etc. Seems like a good opportunity to get in on. And you can rewrite your own articles that you publish on your blog too.

You can repost your own stuff as long as you add 150 words of original content to it, which is pretty easy.

I should also add that I only started a few days ago, and immediately did some preliminary SEO...added it to all my online social networking profiles, Submitted my feed to to feed directories, some bookmarking, linked to my page from my other music sites, and ...today I almost got more traffic on that page , than I did my own site and doubled the average for other sites in that category...so for someone savvy with the web, I can see a good opportunity writing for them and right now it's basically an open casting call.

vangogh
07-21-2009, 12:08 AM
Thanks for all the extra info.


today I almost got more traffic on that page , than I did my own site and doubled the average for other sites in that category

I bet the site is building up quite a bit of trust and authority which explains the first and I bet you're one of the few authors who's actually working to promote their page, which explains the second.

I definitely need to explore the site more. The only reason I haven't submitted something is because I'm not sure I can meet their required amount of articles. Realistically I should be able to, but lately I haven't had a lot of time for writing. Still it might be too good an opportunity to pass up and I could repurpose the content.

Instead of just adding 150 words I was thinking you could take an article and rewrite it once or twice so while it's essentially the same article at heart it would be two or three different articles. You could add a couple different points to each or slant each in a different way.

Harold Mansfield
07-21-2009, 12:35 AM
Thanks for all the extra info.



I bet the site is building up quite a bit of trust and authority which explains the first and I bet you're one of the few authors who's actually working to promote their page, which explains the second.

I definitely need to explore the site more. The only reason I haven't submitted something is because I'm not sure I can meet their required amount of articles. Realistically I should be able to, but lately I haven't had a lot of time for writing. Still it might be too good an opportunity to pass up and I could repurpose the content.

Instead of just adding 150 words I was thinking you could take an article and rewrite it once or twice so while it's essentially the same article at heart it would be two or three different articles. You could add a couple different points to each or slant each in a different way.

That is something to consider and it was my biggest concern....if I could post enough different stuff other than what goes on my blog everyday, but 3 times a week is doable for me, and since they have a US target audience, I get more than enough sent in to me to fill 2 sites every week, so that works out well for me. Thank God I made connections in the industry over the last 2 years to get all their press and promotions... If I had to research and write all my information from scratch, I probably couldn't do it.

vangogh
07-21-2009, 01:57 AM
The weird thing for me is I easily do enough writing for a few dozen blog posts a week. Look at all the stuff I write here. Add in other forums and emails and that's a lot of writing. For some reason when I sit down to write a post or an article the editor in me gets turned on and it takes forever to complete a post/article.

Once I can get that editor to stay away I'll hopefully be a much more proficient blogger.