3 Article Marketing Secrets that will Drive Tons of Quality Traffic to Your Website

Article marketing secret #1: Use the right keywords

If you want to have any chance of having your content found by potential clients, you have to hone in on the keywords they're searching for. That way, you can provide answers they actually need and want, and in the process they'll see you as an expert who can help them solve their problems. They might not be ready to work with you right away, but if you get them back to your site and give them ways to keep getting content from you (by signing up for your newsletter or subscribing to your blog, for example), you can keep feeding them information that will continue to convince them that they need to work with you if they want results.

The best way to find out what your ideal clients are searching for is to use a keyword popularity tool. There are several free ones out there; just do a search to find the best.  My personal favorite is the Google Keyword Tool, but you can do a little research to find one that works for you.

Article marketing secret #2: Create an attention-grabbing headline

Your headline is your first, and often only, chance to capture interest in your message. If the headline doesn't give people a compelling reason to read your article, they won't. People are too busy to read every single piece of information they come across online, but they will take just a few minutes to see what you have to say if they feel the message will impact them directly or solve their immediate problems.

To get started creating your attention-grabbing headline, hone in on the main message of your article. If you're a personal trainer, for example, you might write an article to help clients lose weight without traditional dieting. So your title might be "How to drop those pounds for good without starving yourself." People will love the idea of losing weight without the dreaded aspect of going hungry all the time.

You should also throw in a few "hot" words for greater impact. For a few examples of the words I'm talking about, see my recent e-zine article, "Top 7 Attention-Grabbing Words to Help You Attract Clients."

Article marketing secret #3: Use your author resource box to drive traffic to your website

Your author resource box should appear at the bottom of each article, and you should use this prime space to drive traffic back to your website for a specific reason. For example, if you have a free report that gives more information on the subject in your article, your author resource box would give a brief, one-line description of who you are and who you help, and then you would use the rest of the space (another sentence or two, tops) to tell people about the free report and how to sign up.

If you put these simple techniques to work for your articles, you'll generate more website visitors, newsletter sign-ups, and potential clients to follow-up with that are truly interested in what you have to offer and will be excited to learn more about how you can help them.