I was busiy submitting some articles I ghost wrote for a client to some web portals late one night, when I was struck by a message a web site editor left for visitors. I won't tell you the actual site name, or mention the company that they are targeting with their message in order to protect their privacy. But the message went something like this. "STOP! If you are submitting articles from article factory, we do NOT publish them on this site."

Hire a Professional Writer to Make Work Publishable

This made me pause. I'm a writer by trade and I was submitting original material. I would never even dream of doing otherwise. Many professionals, even the most seasoned in their respective fields, cannot write well. So, they usually hire somebody like me to polish their thoughts, and edit their material to make their work publishable and syndicate it on the internet.

Don't Buy Unoriginal Material

Then there are the other crop of professionals, who pay large sums of money to "article factories" who sell them mass produced material. Obviously, "article factories" sold these same articles to others as well. Professionals are eager to purchase articles such as these, because they are not experienced writers and feel they cannot do it themselves. Search engines are text based. So, keyword rich articles syndicated on the internet and published on a company home page is one of the most effective strategies of driving the right kind of traffic to a web site.

Site Editors Know Quality Material

Web portal editors who regularly recruit original articles are getting wise to "article factories." Editors are enraged by the massive repetitive submissions they receive because it wastes their time to have to weed through the crap. Many are just beginning to fight back. If you are guilty of purchasing articles that are sold to large numbers of individuals ? stop it now. It won't get you anywhere. Editors know when they are being dumped on. And they won't publish this work on the world wide web. They will remember who sent it to them, and not in a positive way, either.

The Creative Idea is Currency

I tell my writing students at University of North Carolina Asheville, that we live in a world starved for creative ideas. Ten years ago, the phrase that swept through corporate America was: "thinking out of the box." Now it's the "idea person" who has the most currency in a company. But you can't just be an "idea person" -- you have to know how to execute, too.

The Expert Interview

In my company, http://www.sidhecommunications.com, we take an original approach to article writing and syndication. We've developed a tried and true method of working with professionals who do not have the time, or the expertise to write well. I call it the expert interview. This is a technique that writers all over the world use everyday.

Syndicate Original Ideas

Here's how the expert interview goes. I telephone the mortgage company I work for and ask the gentleman who is a partner in the company what strikes his fancy for topics this month. He replies, "I'd like to write an article about stated income and no doc loans." I know nothing about mortgages, or this type of loan, but I'm about to learn a great deal. I ask him questions and take copious notes. Sometimes, he will e-mail or fax more information to me. I develop an article based on this interview. The client then approves or edits the article. Then I post it to 20 sites which editors regularly visit for free content for their web sites, e-zines, or print publications. In 3-6 months, this article is all over the internet. In one year's time the article is still alive and being published even more widely on the world wide web, because it is professionally written and communicates valuable ideas.

Receive the Accolades and Qualified Leads

The client receives the byline. He or she also basks in the glory and accolades from this educational writing. The client has admirers on-line, and he or she answers the telephone or e-mails coming from qualified individuals interested in purchasing his or her product or services. When the client answers the telephone, he or she has to have some idea about the topic that's been written on. It's not something that can easily be faked. The expert interview ensures that he or she does have this knowledge.

It's the client's expertise and their idea that made the story. Because of this, I feel the client does deserve the byline. They also deserve the stream of new business they receive from geographical areas they could not otherwise afford to penetrate.

If you're buying articles from places like article factory: stop it. It's better to proceed with original ideas. This way you can earn yourself a great 'virtual reputation.'

Elizabeth Kirwin has published work in national magazines and newspapers. She is co-owner of Sidhe Communications http://www.sidhecommunications.com in Asheville NC. She develops web sites, newsletters, brochures, and internet marketing plans for businesses, non-profits, and health care ogranizations nationally. For more information, e-mail ekirwin@bellsouth.net.