The process starts with keyword research. When you perform article marketing, you want to be sure that you target the right keywords. For example, instead of targeting "books", which is too general, you may wish to target phrases like "self help books" or "political books". How much traffic you get depends very much on the keywords that you choose. Without a list of keywords to target, it's like flying blind - you don't know where you are heading.

The traffic you get from article marketing is very predictable if you know what you are doing. Identify some keywords with a fair amount of searches (at least 1k searches per month) and you're good to go. Notice that I didn't ask you to target general keywords with thousands of searches per month. You can if you wish, but they are almost always harder to rank. Besides the traffic is not as targeted. You want targeted traffic for conversion reasons.

Most marketers can get this over with very quickly. The real challenges start when the actual article writing and submission begins. Here are a few common problems:

1) Lack of time (no. 1 reason for not writing)

2) Poor command of English - articles get rejected.

3) Distribution to article directories take a very long time, sometimes hours for distributing just 1 article.

4) Type too slowly.

5) Encounter writer's block (another common reason).

6) Not sure how article marketing works.

7) Been told that article marketing doesn't work (and actually is gullible enough to believe that without trying it out).

I could go on and on with this list of challenges. But the truth is, not every single point you see above is a genuine challenge. Some are just excuses for not doing something. Being able to overcome these challenges is what differentiates a successful article marketer from an unsuccessful one.

So how to overcome these challenges?

The first thing you need to do, is to find out how you can begin enjoying the article writing and submission process. Different people enjoy doing different things. Some enjoy writing, while others don't. Some like to write about personal interests, while others like to write about political issues. Knowing what you enjoy helps you identify the areas that you are more willing to put time into.

For instance, if you really enjoy writing articles, then write articles yourself. As for distribution, you can always outsource to another service provider. If you enjoy identifying article directories and submitting the articles yourself, then hire someone else to write for you, and do the submission yourself. But if you hate to do both, simply outsource everything. Of course, be prepared to pay a little more for quality services.

But you know where the real joy comes from?

The real joy comes from seeing your precious little website taking off. Your website is like a newborn. It needs to be taken care of and nourished. And traffic is exactly the nourishment that a new website needs. Article marketing can give you that traffic. The goal is to get your keywords to rank well in the search engines so that you get a steady amount of traffic month after month. Note that this is unpaid traffic. Even if you stop your article marketing efforts, you still receive this traffic from the search engines month after month.

But when you see your little baby taking off, you won't stop your article marketing campaigns. In fact, you have just proven that article marketing is something that works! However, you are not the first one to make this discovery. Hundreds of article marketers have already learned that article marketing works, and some are even making five figure incomes just by writing and submitting articles. In time to come, perhaps you may join them in their ranks.

For now, stay focused and make some plans.

How many articles can you write on a daily basis? How many do you intend to submit each day? Break things down to a day to day level. It's easier to keep your focus and meet your targets this way.

When your site starts to rank, and you start receiving traffic, you are already closer to your personal goals. It's only a matter of time that you reach your goals. And when you do, you get to enjoy the lifestyle that you want - comfortable house, big and fancy cars, money for your parents, etc. That's the true joy of article writing and submission.