One of the best ways to promote your website is by writing articles that you can post in e-zines, and sites that provide free content to e-zine publishers. This will help you develop credibility and, with time, build a solid customer base. There are a few things to take into account to maximize the effectiveness of this sometimes overlooked marketing technique:

• Your article should be short and to the point. It must act as a free sample that entices your reader to go to your website for more.

• To maximize its effectiveness, you should present it as a tip, a solution to a problem.

• Write in easy to understand “layman’s" terms.

• Whenever possible, write from personal experience. People love to hear other people’s experiences (how did they do it?). This approach also tends to hold their attention longer.

• Be extra-careful to avoid spelling and grammatical errors. They will make you loose credibility.

• Don’t make your article sound like a sales pitch; offer honest, value-adding advice.

• Don’t include links to your affiliate programs in the body of your article. It will make your advice seem biased.

• Finally, don’t forget the most important part: always include a resource box at the end of your article. A resource box is a small paragraph (no longer than six lines) with your name, the name of your business, a short tagline, and that all-important link to your website. If your readers like your article, they will follow your link and you will be getting instant, high quality traffic to your site.