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STEPS TO QUICKLY WRITE EZINE ARTICLES
by Lisa Sparks
Come on, admit
it: Whether you're a professional writer or not we all draw a blank when we
want to write an ezine article.
I've found an answer to that dilemma
that will get you writing in no time so that you can publish your ezine article
and begin to receive that new wave of subscribers you've been hoping for.
Here's how to get the lead out if you draw a blank:
1. Write your
action steps first.
Forget about the catchy headline and attractive
lead paragraph for now. There's no use in cleverly leading a reader into an
article that has no real value to them. So start where you build your
credibility, right in the action steps. Of course you want to identify your
subject and then tell them how to make their lives easier. For instance,
plumbers are always going to have to fix pipes, it's the nature of their
business. If you have an ezine to others in the plumbing industry, write about
a new technique in the industry on sealing pipes or preparing them for the
winter, etc.
2. Save the best for last.
There's
something called takeaway or take-home that should be in every one of your
articles. It's your last chance to tell your audience, "I know my stuff." Try
to put that key piece of information in the last paragraph of your article and
you'll want it to be something your reader can do as soon as he or she finishes
reading your article. If you're writing to accounts payable clerks, you'd tell
them ways to get each department to get approvals on all purchase orders before
submitting them. A/P clerks would just eat that up. It's their number one
gripe. Bottom line: Give your audience something they can do immediately at the
very end of your article. They'll remember your name and become devotees for
life- hanging from your every word.
3. Get excited about the
benefits.
After you've taken care of the credibility building
portion of your article, you have to draw the reader in and whet their appetite
for all this great information. By the way, if you write the action steps and
take-home first, this part will be easier because you'll be so excited about
the information you'll see the benefits of it. And that's what writing lead
paragraphs and headlines is all about: benefits to your readers.
Your final take-home advice
No matter what you do, when
you're writing to an ezine audience, always include an "About the Author" blurb
(some call this a sig file, short for signature file) and a plug for anything
new you're into. To do this, determine what you want the reader to do after he
or she is finished reading. Do you want the to subscribe to your ezine? Buy
your new ebook? Or just visit or site? Whatever the benefit to you is, identify
it before you write your "About the Author" section. And you can write this at
any time because it's separate from the article and you can use the same "About
the Author" blurb for multiple articles. As a matter of fact, you could write
one right now. Check out the one I'm using at the bottom of this article.
(c) Lisa Sparks
About the Author:
Lisa Sparks,
author of 'Power Words: How to Write ezines that Increase Your Sales,' has more
than 15 years of experience in journalism, copywriting and marketing. Sign up
for her ezine, a $197 per year value, at no cost by visiting
http://www.integritywriting.com.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
1)
The Art and Craft of Feature Writing: Based on The Wall Street
Journal Guide by William E. Blundell
2)
How to Write Articles for Newspapers and Magazines by Dawn
B. Sova
3)
Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Magazine Articles by
Sheree Bykofsky
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