When an author creates an article, it becomes a permanent fixture, driving traffic and enticing new customers all the time. So the question is frequently asked, "How long will an article be available to the target market?" It's a fair question and one that is both relatively easy, and almost impossible, to answer. What happens to your articles once they are distributed?



~Posted on Websites~

This is the first destination that matters. Websites always need content. Webmasters love having relevant articles on their sites that will help their visitors make better decisions. The more you write on your subject, the more of an expert you will become. If there's a widgets website and your articles are all over that site, the target market interested in widgets are going to come to know you as an expert.

So when will the webmaster take your articles off the page? Almost never. Why would they? It's an additional page on their site that the spiders and their visitors alike appreciate having access to. That means that your link in the resource box is going to be reaching new widget audiences for years to come.

~Sent in Newsletters~

Publishing a newsletter is very popular, but creating enough content by yourself is difficult. When newsletter editors publish your widget articles in this month's newsletter, it is sent out to a group of people who have demonstrated interest in the topic of widgets. How did they demonstrate interest? They signed up for the newsletter. You could pay for an ad, or you could write an article. Articles are more interesting to subscribers than ads are, and you can demonstrate your expertise more fully with a well written article.

~Archived on the Web~

Many newsletters, in addition to being sent directly to the inboxes of your target market, are also archived on the website of the newsletter publisher, giving your article double exposure. Talk about better bang for your buck!

~Linked at Sites~

Don't underestimate the power of links. Sure you get a link from your article to your page, but here's something that many people haven't considered: A link from the widgets home page to the widgets newsletter which contains your widgets article adds a tremendous weight to the relevance of the link from your article's resource box back to your home page. This is a very advanced linking strategy because these links are pure ambrosia for the Google Spider.

These heavily weighted links generally show up 3-6 months after the newsletter has been sent out - giving you an unexpected bonus boost with Google Page Rank and Search Engine Results Position.

~Constant and Never Ending Submission~

New publishers and editors are always joining Article Marketer Universe, so your articles are constantly being sent out to new content sites, new newsletters and new article repositories. Your words are always being delivered to a fresh set of prospective customers.

~Article Directories~

Your articles are posted on article directories, and they are available forever. These sites want content and they'll keep your article around forever.

~Used by Affiliates~

Your article might also be used by your affiliates as they try to create new business for you. That means your article will show up on your affiliate's sites, in their newsletters, targeting another fresh set of prospective customers - or even new affiliates for you.

~Included in e-Books~

E-book publishing is entering a new phase of popularity. Free reprint ebooks and rebrandable ebooks are used to introduce newcomers to a given product space. Remember when you were new at your thing? Didn't you do research, look things up on the web, and read the ebooks that were available? Don't you wish there had been more information easily available? When your article appears in an ebook, you have been introduced to yet another qualified prospect. You are being recognized as an expert in the space.

So what is the life span of an article? It can be years and years. I know that my articles have been picked up long after I've written them and all of a sudden I've got a bunch of new visitors I wasn't expecting. The cumulative effect of having several articles out there makes your article life span almost as long as yours... maybe longer!