Are You Guilty of Spamming the Article Directories?

Common sense tells us if we want quality results in our article marketing efforts, we'd want to make sure the article directories remained healthy and thriving with high page rank and good quality content. We'd also certainly want to make sure that anything we do with them isn't wasting their time. But could you be guilty of spamming the article directories without even knowing it?

Most article directories "hand moderate" their article intake, meaning each article that comes in to them is scrutinized by human eyes and judged according to its quality, its category placement, and its content value. Some of these article directories get thousands of article submissions every single day, so the moderating work can be extreme at times. This is why some people can wait weeks before their articles get accepted and posted.

While many articles submitted are of high quality, and are usually placed in the proper category for ultimate relevancy, some have used automated submission software combined with article spinning software to bombard the article directories with garbage. As you might imagine, it would take only a few people using these tools to triple the work these directory owners have to do in order to keep their sites healthy and relevant.

Unfortunately, these so called "one click" tools have been briskly sold to hundreds, if not thousands of marketers, leaving the directory owners to clean up the mess.

Worse still, many of these tools are easily hacked and distributed to thousands of spammers for free. So you can imagine the havoc all of this causes article directory owners trying to keep their sites clean and relevant.

So while it may seem like good business to completely automate your article submissions, it's not. You're just creating more work for someone else who has to double and triple their efforts just to maintain the value of everything you and everyone else submits.

Far better would it be for each of us to take extra care in our article submissions by submitting either manually, or using a tool that allows us to submit complete, well written articles and put them in the very best categories for relevancy and easy locating by readers.

Article directories are the main source of back links for many marketers, but with so many being guilty of spamming the article directories with spun or poorly written articles, blasted into any category, this dynamic resource could rapidly be fading away.

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A Word of Caution to Article Submission Software Developers

Article submission is the life blood for many businesses both online and off. And the article directories form the foundation for successfully getting the word out. But of course you knew that which is why you created your article submission software in the first place, right?

You wanted to make it easier for article marketers to get their articles into the hands of the directory owners with as little time and work as possible, and you should be commended for that!

However, the Internet has a dark underbelly that brings with it an added responsibility to anyone who produces software for mass distribution. Hackers and spammers have a sole purpose, and that is to disrupt and destroy any effort to communicate via the Internet.

The reason I bring this up is because I recently received an anonymous email telling me that our own software, Article Submitter Pro was being "looked at" as a possible tool to spam the article directories. Hackers were encouraged to download the free 7 day demo and try to unlock it.

The goal was to provide spammers with a way to blast garbage to the article directories in an attempt to bring them down.

I'm sure you know what that would mean to article marketing!

Now Article Submitter Pro has a fairly secure registration process and has not been successfully hacked in over 4 years, but I'm not so sure about some other submitters. Just a quick jaunt to a warez site will tell you if your own software is being used to bog down the article directories with spam.

Making money is what we're all about, for sure. But if we "cut off our noses to spite our face," and make the article directories vulnerable to attack by developing an article submission software that's easily hacked, we'll all suffer the consequences.

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Article Submitter Pro Stands the Test of Time

For a full two years, Article Submitter Pro has continued to evolve and develop, and so after all this time, it still holds the top position for any article submission software on the market. While the status quo dictates that products come and go quickly on the Internet, Article Submitter Pro is one of the few exceptions.

Here's why . . .

1. With over 1,300 article directories preloaded into the software, it far out guns any other submitter.

When Article Submitter Pro was first released, it had just over 200 sites. Today, many of the other submitters still have only about 150 to 200 listed directories and a very limited range when it comes to directory script type which prevents them from submitting to many of the higher ranked article directories.

At this time, Article Submitter Pro can submit to any directory script, gives you the page rank for each, and lets you choose which ones you want to submit to.

2. Semi-automated means more control for the user.

The number one issue that determines article marketing success or failure is of course relevancy. Each article directory is designed to have categories which are the first line of keywords all articles go in to. Without them, articles would get submitted anywhere which would make them almost impossible to find by both readers and search engines.

Article Submitter Pro allows the user to choose the perfect category for each directory as a suitable landing place for every article the user submits. While other submitters give you a general category choice to pick prior to submitting, they can't offer the best viable category location that'll place an article into the deepest, and most targeted category. Its this fine tuning of category choice that brings the highest rank value and zeros in on the largest possible reader base.

3. When human presence is required.

In keeping up with the times, Article Submitter Pro makes it possible for the user to be present at each submission. Though originally criticized for not being more automated, it's now clear that user presence has its perks.

Many of the higher ranked directories, and some of the lower ranked ones as well are beginning to use Image coding as a means of security to block spam and prevent the fully automated submitters from being used. This is due to the often faulty formatting and improper category choices made by these "one clickers" as they're called.

Article Submitter Pro allows the user to duplicate the Image coding (also known as "captchas") in the provided text box to allow the submission to go through.

In time, most if not all article directories will require human presence to pass through security features for both submissions and log in. Anticipating these advances in article directory scripting, Article Submitter Pro was built with this in mind and maintains its ability to usher the user through these obstacles.

4. Not all article directory scripts are alike.

There are approximately 6 pre-made article directory scripts available to either download for free or purchase. Each of them is quite different, and requires a different format for submitting to them. This also doesn't take into account the many "hand made" directory scripts created for and used on individual directories, also requiring a unique format for submissions.

Most other submitters can submit to one or two types of directory scripts leaving 60% or more of the current article directories out of reach for them. Some of these out of reach directories offer the highest page rank and the quickest posting time.

Because of the "behind the scenes" structure of Article Submitter Pro, any script, whether its been around for a while of hot off the presses, can be quickly adapted to be completely submittable through the software.

5. Outstanding customer support.

Article Submitter Pro is the flagship product of Double Head Publishing and so all channels of customer support communications are open and available virtually 24/7. Most questions are answered within an hour with unscripted personal replies.

Until a customer says, "thanks, that did it!," the Article Submitter Pro customer support team stays on call.

6. Try before you buy.

Let's face it, there's a lot of garbage software on the market! Most people are forced to buy the product in order to decide whether its for them or not. But Article Submitter Pro has a fully functional demo version to allow you to try it out for yourself before purchasing it.

All of these features have made Article Submitter Pro one of the longest running Internet Marketing products around. It will continue to evolve and bring more features and ease of use in the coming months and perhaps years.

Content May Be King But Context Rules!

Did you see it happen? Did you feel the whoosh?

We went from the "Information Age" to the "Recommendation Age" in the blink of an eye!

Everyone knows that information is readily available online these days. No matter where you browse, you'll always find what you're looking for.

Well . . . eventually anyway.

One of the "flies in the ointment" of Internet browsing is that there is just so much information available that sometimes it's hard to find exactly what you're looking for amidst all the garbage.

Oh don't be mistaken, one man's garbage is another man's gold! And that's what also makes the Internet so great.

Anyone and everyone can find just that right thing to "float their boat."

But on a personal level, when you go browsing for material to lead you in the right direction, you're looking for specifics. So in this regard, finding a specific on a hugely populated Internet with just about everything for everyone, can be a little tricky and time consuming.

This is why the search engines are working feverishly to find better filters and algorithms to fine tune specifics so you can find the exact information you're desiring as quickly as possible.

So then in the vast sea of content that's available, context plays an enormous role in determining how to create the best filters and algorithms possible to achieve complete specificity.

Context then, is of extreme importance to anyone who's web surfing goes the least bit beyond clicking for the sake of clicking. For those who views their searches as a journey and a quest for knowledge, context plays a key role.

From music lovers to the extreme student or any combination in between, finding just the right information is what its all about.

Because of the latest filters and algorithms supplied by search engines, social bookmarking sites, and all the way to the most elite group of bloggers and corporate merchandise suppliers, people can "dig deep" and find the most obscure information out there.

On the other side of this proverbial coin, you, the supplier of content and information want to be sure your contributions to this sea of knowledge is found by these seekers of specifics especially if you're providing articles on a niche topic.

Again, the latest technology in search comes into play. And so much so, that a totally unknown "garage band" that may never have been heard by anyone other than themselves, can shoot up the ladder of success because their mp3 file manages to reach the "if you like this group, you might also like . . ." level on Rhapsody or another music site.

Or a brand new niche can open up one day and become all the buzz tomorrow because the right article was submitted to the right category and everyone read it.

Yes, the first place to crack the context code is the most obvious . . .

Category choice!

It can start the wheels turning in the right direction if utilized properly. However, too often its not.

Supposing you were looking for articles about "fly fishing." You visit an article directory and find that there's a category specifically for "fly fishing," but there's another that's just "fishing."

Where would you look first?

Now supposing you were supplying an article about "fly fishing." Which category would you think your article would be seen in first if you submitted it to that same directory?

Chances are if you didn't put it in the best possible category, and just went general with it, the person searching might find several good articles in the "fly fishing" category and not feel the need to look any further, and you'd lose.

Could be that your article is the best out there. And could be that your site linked to that article would have taken them to exactly what they were looking for. But I guess they'll never know.

And to make matters worse, the search engines are watching where people, who are looking for specific information, are going, and you're site isn't it.

So much for link popularity.

In this "Recommendation Age" people are looking for direction. They want to know that something is valued by others and they want you to show them. The days of haphazardly roaming about the Internet are over!

To supply the demand, you just have to make sure that your content is good, but the context in which it can be found in is better!

Did you know that Article Submitter Pro is very context conscious? It's the only article submission software that lets you place your articles into the smaller, more better suited niche categories.

Hey Buddy, Watch Where You’re Pointing That Article

Article Marketing has really taken off lately. Virtually thousands of articles are written and submitted every single day. This is mostly due to Google AdSense and the search engine’s keen interest in relevant content.

So everyone’s creating high yielding content for their AdSense sites and building significant back links by submitting their articles to high ranking article directories.

Profits are being made, people are being instantly turned into experts in their field, and the search engines are totally loving the constant flow of new content they can show their customers.

But there’s one definite way you could completely “blow” the whole thing for yourself, and unfortunately far too many people are doing it lately.

You see, the key factor that makes all of this work is relevance. The search engines want to know that when someone does a search through their system, they’ll get exactly what they’re looking for. It’s what all this talk of changing algorithms are all about.

The search engines are on a quest to find the best way to provide the most relevant material for any specific queries put in front of them, and so they keep changing their algorithms to fulfill their goal.

All we have to do is make it as easy as possible for the search engines to find this specific relevance on our sites and in the articles we write, and we have a marriage made in heaven.

Now when we speak of relevance, there are a number of factors involved. Sure, if you’re hoping to get your site listed a the top in the search engines for “baking cookies,” your site better be all about baking cookies, and you’d better have a lot of content about it too.

But there’s more to it than that.

Even the links on your site should be about baking cookies because the search engines take those into consideration as well when they judge your site’s over all relevance. In fact, if your site is about baking cookies and you accept links from sites about car parts, you’re actually hurting the relevance of your site and lowering your page ranking.

Keeping this in mind now, there’s a seriously unfortunate habit a lot of article writers have gotten into. There are just so many articles being written and submitted to the article directories, that many aren’t paying attention to where their articles are being posted.

Most article directories have category choices that separate the content of their sites into specific groupings. These groupings are seen by the search engines as individual “mother lodes” of content. But this true only if these groupings or categories are actually relevant to one specific topic.

Which is why article directory owners have to work so feverishly to maintain the integrity of their categories.

So if you’re submitting articles to them justĀ  for sake of submitting, you’re not only giving them more work, but you’re actually wasting your time and working against the intended purpose of article submitting in the first place.

If your articles get posted into the wrong category, it won’t help you because your back link will be in an unrelated place. Plus the value of the category will diminish due to your article about “car parts” being in a category about “baking cookies.”

This problem has reached a critical point. Either those submitting articles will have to work at being more accurate in category choices, or the article directories will have get smarter so they can catch irrelevant articles before they ruin things for everyone.