Every webmaster knows that to gain ranking positions in search engines you need to build links. This usually means hours at a computer submitting your site to directories and emailing other webmasters requesting reciprocal links. There is another way of getting links which often overlooked and complements your current link building strategy, writing articles.

Content is the life blood of the Internet every webmaster needs it and every website needs fresh content to keep Google and the other Search engines coming back regularly. By writing articles you can provide this content and at the same time get yourself permanent backlinks to your website. This article will attempt to answer some common questions asked by first time article writers.

What should I write about?

Write about what you know and make it relevant to the content of your website this will ensure that the links back to your site are also relevant and enhance the links value in the search engines.

How do webmasters find my articles?

Once you have written your article you submit it to Article Listing websites. These website provide a categorized list of articles that are free to use on websites as long as certain conditions are adhered to. One of these conditions is that all links must be live. When you submit your article you add a short biography and a link to your site in the resource box.

Won't people just remove the links?

Yes this does happen but not as often as you think. It is very easy to track these webmasters down. Use a tool like Google alerts which checks the internet for relevant key phrases. It is very useful if you add a unique key phrase to your articles that you can enter into the search tool. You can also search for your name to ensure that all the links are live.

How long should the articles be?

There is not set length of article but anywhere from 200 words to a maximum of 3500 words is normal. Personally I usually aim for 350 -500 words as this usually sits nicely on a page.

How many sites should I submit to?

That is a matter of personal choice some people believe that you should submit them to as many as possible, personally I only submit to 2 or 3 sites with a Google PR of 3 and above. My personal belief is that this keeps the articles unique enough to benefit any webmasters who use the articles.

How many Articles should I write?

The more you write the better If 1 article a week gets you an extra 50 links then imagine the links you'll get if you write one article a day. I usually try to write 1 article before breakfast everyday.

Mark Thompson ran an IT consultancy in London for many years . He now live in Spain and runs an number of websites including Freezine Articles