It is well-known among internet marketers that writing and distributing articles is one of the best and least expensive ways to promote products and services to a very wide audience. If you are involved in trade show or event marketing, you can use this technique to very effectively support your event marketing efforts.
**Supporting your trade show marketing with articles**
Let's say you are a wedding photographer who shoots weddings within a radius of about 150 miles of your office or home. You are selective about which weddings you will shoot because, quite frankly, some pay better than others. So you are interested in reinforcing your carefully developed image. Your image is of a photographer who does work that is more creative and of higher quality than what you get from the average wedding photographer.
One of the successful methods you use to promote your services is to enter two or three specialty wedding trade shows held every year in different cities within your target area. Because these shows are geared specifically towards couples who want "something special" (that is, they are prepared to spend more money), they help you reach the "better than average" clientele you are after.
**A perfect opportunity to reinforce your special image**
This is a perfect scenario for reinforcing your image by writing and publishing articles about wedding photography. Of course you have to be careful that your articles don't sound blatantly self-promoting. Most article marketers suggest your articles contain interesting, general information that can stand apart from the fact that you just happen to be providing the services you are writing about.
For instance, you might write an article called "Do Something Different with Your Wedding Photos", where you describe some different techniques and locations that might be used. Or "Wedding Photography Over the Last 50 Years", or "Should Your Photographer Choose Your Wedding Outfits?", or "5 Secret Locations to Shoot Your Wedding Photos", or "Perils of a Wedding Photographer".
There is really no limit to the number of original and interesting stories you could can come up with if you just use your imagination.
A good article marketing campaign will consist of at least three or four articles written and distributed just before the peak periods in your marketing cycle. If you are trying to reinforce your trade show marketing, make sure you prepare your articles well before the trade shows you are entering.
**How to distribute your articles**
Your objective is to use these articles to create an identity for yourself at the same time as getting yourself lots of free publicity. The more places you distribute your articles, the more prospective customers you will reach, so don't be timid about getting your articles out there.
The obvious place to start is by posting them on your own website. Create an article section and mix in articles from other (non-competing) writers. This will make your website a more valuable resource for your prospective customers, and it will enhance your image in their eyes.
Second, consider distributing your article to the local print media. If it is interesting enough -- and not just a self-promotion -- some of them will very likely publish it. The important thing is to find an interesting angle. Think in terms of their readers and write for them. Some media will even have special sections -- weddings, home renovations, automobiles, outdoor, sports -- that you can contribute to.
Third, if you are entering trade shows, send your material to the trade show organizers. They may publish a show program and may be looking for interesting material that helps make their program appear more substantial.
**Distribution on the internet**
If you are catering to local customers you may think the internet is overkill. But you would be wrong. If you are trying to reach prospects in, say, the Lexington area, make sure you write your article so the search engines know your service focuses on the Lexington area. They will do a great job getting you exposure for searches like "wedding photography Lexington", "Lexington auto detailing", or "kitchen renovators in Lexington".
Distribute your articles to as many key article websites on the internet as you can find. This will do three things for you. First, a lot of people will read your articles on these sites. Second, other sites interested in your subject matter will republish your article, exposing it to an even wider audience. And third, the major search engines will analyse and index your article and it will start appearing in searches.
**Using a professional article writing service**
You may not feel comfortable writing your own articles, and you may think it is much too time consuming to do your own distribution. That's when you should look for a reliable service to do both of these things for you. You might be surprised to find out how many writers and promoters there are out there ready to go to work for you.
Look for a service that has a solid track record. They should be able to show you writing examples, and they should be able to give you a very good idea where they intend to distribute your articles. As with most other specialized services you will probably find it is a lot more efficient to let a professional do it for you than to try to do it yourself.
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