Mass Traffic Attack Chapter 8 – Establish Yourself as An Expert Author
Mass Traffic Attack Chapter 8 – Establish Yourself as An Expert Author once you have gotten over the initial hurdle of writing your first article, it will get a lot easier. You will soon be authoring several articles a day – if that is what you choose to do. The next step up is to gain recognition as an “expert author.” The main article directory Ezine Articles (and we will be looking at the directories shortly) will offer “Expert Author” status once you have submitted a certain amount of quality articles.
Other directories have similar policies. This entitles you to use their “Expert Author” logo on your site. Yes, I know, it sounds a little bit like “prizes for everyone” and meaningless but you would be surprised by how many readers see you in a different light. You will get totally unexpected emails asking for your advice about the subject you wrote about.
Here is a slightly funny, but true story.
One of my first ventures into internet marketing was an affiliate site promoting ten different blood pressure pills. I have no idea why I went into that; I have no personal or family experience of high blood pressure – thankfully.
I wrote about 30 different articles doing reviews on these pills, getting the information I needed from the manufacturer’s web site. (In fact, I will be using one of those as an example article in Chapter 10). Now since I am not a doctor, and due to the nature of the product I was selling, I went out of my way to stress that in every case people should seek advice from their own physician.
I got loads of traffic, sometimes over 100 visitors a day, which I thought was good for a very niche market, and for my first attempt.
After a few days I started getting emails – “we really look forward to your articles,” “that’s an interesting review, helped me out a lot of thanks,” that sort of thing. Hmm, OK so far. Then I started getting emails along the lines “what do you think of such and such new drug that’s just come out,” “would you recommend new Drug ABC that’s just been released here in New Zealand,” etc.
The interesting thing is that even though I had not set out with that intention, within a fortnight I was seen by some as an “expert” in that field. (For those of you wondering what my replies were always the same – “ask your family doctor and not me!”). Obviously since I have no medical qualifications whatsoever, I really did not want to be seen as an expert on blood pressure.
But the point I hope I am getting across to you is this – look at how easy it is and how quickly you can be seen as an authority in a particular field. That is the power of article marketing. Naturally, you should avoid “tricky” niches such as medical ones if you do not have the qualifications. However, most subjects are not like that, there is not much to go wrong.
Pen Names
Something you might want to consider is whether you should use your own name or a “pen name.” Many famous authors have done just that. Lewis Carroll’s real name was Charles Dodgson, and Samuel Clemens was better known as Mark Twain. If you are looking to author articles across many different niches this is something, you may want to consider – use a different name for different niches. All the article directories allow you to do that.
If you are looking to establish your name in a particular niche in your own right, then obviously you would want to use your own name. This is otherwise known as branding and is obviously important in such cases. You want people to recognize your name when you author an article; indeed, you want people to click onto your article just because it is you. That can happen quickly.
However, there are various circumstances when you would be better to use a pen name.
Here are a few examples:
- Changing your gender – not literally of course! If for example you want to write about dating and you are a man, you may have greater success if you “position yourself” as a woman. The marketing angle of “Hey guys if you want to catch a hot girl like me all you have to do is read my eBook” is not a new one. On the other hand, if you are a woman writing about sports you may find you will create greater empathy if you use a male name.
- A more appropriate name – your name may be difficult to pronounce for your audience, it may not be what you consider to be memorable, or it may not sound “right” for your target market. Call yourself “Maximilian T. Fotherington” may be an excellent choice if you are writing about English stately homes, less so if your aim is to persuade urban teenage rappers to buy your dubbing software. Horses for courses.
- Safety – if you are writing about a “controversial” subject it may be better to take refuge behind a pen name
- Privacy – if you are well known in your field you may not want readers to make the connection between that and your articles, especially if they are about a different subject.
Finally, before choosing a name be sure to enter it into Google to see what comes up. You do not want to share your pen name with an infamous serial killer, drug dealer, porn star or politician :-). Neither do you want to pick a name that another author, particularly in the same field as you, are using.
Best Wishes, Coyalita
See Tomorrow: “Chapter 9 – The Best Article Directories”
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