Article marketing has swept through the internet like an avalanche. Virtually everyone knows about the technique but very few are doing it well. Many people are actually ruining their reputation by ignoring article marketing best practices. Writing and submitting articles offers you the chance to build a large number of back links to your site without having to provide outbound links in exchange for these, all in a relatively short amount of time. This helps boost your search engine rankings by increasing your search engine optimization.

If you like to write and can do it fairly well, you can easily express yourself by producing quality articles in a very short time, all at no cost. These 300 to 500 word articles will help to establish you as an expert within your niche. When you establish yourself as an expert, you are also building trust with those that read your articles, and this in turn, of course, creates more visits, leading to more sales.

As an article newsgroup moderator and article marketing expert I am in the trenches everyday. Increasingly, I reject more articles than I accept. More and more often I hear complaints from publishers that the articles submitted to them are pure crap. Many of these publishers complain that article submission software is to blame. I have to disagree. Here is what I think is causing the majority of problems:

* People who want to use the technique without learning how.
* Private label articles flooding the market.
* Plaigarism and copyright violations.
* Lousy articles with no redeeming values.
* Off topic articles driving publishers crazy.
* Articles that is too short or too long.
* Writers who won't divulge their identity and only use their by-line for advertising a website.

Can you connect the dots to find out where the article marketing problems lie with the article marketer? The article marketer, like me, loves the technique but is often strapped for time. Instead of writing unique articles or hiring a ghostwriter to write for them they get lazy. Stupidity and carelessness is also a factor but I bet being lazy causes most of the problems.

Article marketing done badly is far more damaging then not using the technique at all. It only works when you create quality work and follow submission rules. Don't blame the publishers for your shoddy articles and don't spend hours on forums complaining that the technique doesn't work. It does work. It has worked for me and for many others but it won't work for you if you insist on being lazy and irresponsible.

Make a commitment today to write well, submit only on topic unique articles and to hire help if you need it. Your best efforts will be the catalyst to better results and will support the growth of the article marketing community. Let's use the technique wisely so that it remains a viable part of internet marketing.