The last part of your article that the reader will see is the Resource Box and it follows the final paragraph of your actual text. This area is often referred to as the Authors Bio Box. A lot of thought should go into completing this box, because of how important it is in promoting you and your business. When I first started writing articles, I didn’t understand the real significance of this box, and I was entering way more information than was necessary. I was practically putting my life history there, until it was pointed out to me that the reader can check my bio information elsewhere if they want to know more about me.

On doing some research on the importance of the Resource Box, I realized that it’s main purpose was to motivate the reader to take action that would benefit my business. For most of us, that action would see them clicking on the links we have provided that directs them to our website.

You would want to include the following information in this area:

• your name

• a brief history of your background

• your present employment

• a call to action

If you look at my Resource Box at the end of this article, you will see that I have included all these things in a very concise paragraph. People are reading your article because they are interested in the information you are providing. They did not click onto the article to read about you. However, in the Resource Box you give them the opportunity to get to know you better, by visiting one of your websites. Hopefully, you have provided enough valuable information that they will want to see what else you have available on your other sites.

You will probably have taken quite a bit of time creating your article. I suggest that you take nearly as much time in developing your Resource Box. If you do not motivate people to visit your website after they have read the article, then it doesn’t matter how great the article is….it might even be on the first page of Google…..if they are not ending up on your website, then it will do nothing to increase your business. I want you to really get this point, because it is so important. I know of people who write the most wonderful articles but are not getting that transition over to their site.

Most article directories allow you to have two links in your Resource Box. If you try to put more than two in, and the directory has to modify your Box, it could end up being a problem for you. I feel that two links is quite sufficient for just one paragraph. I usually direct both my links to my website but sometimes I will use one for my social networking sites, such as YouTube or Facebook. This gives the reader a chance to get to know me better.

The Resource Box gives you a great opportunity to reach out and connect with your readers. Please make sure you take full advantage of this and then you can just stand back and watch your business grow!

There are many reasons why people write articles and get them posted on the Internet. Some just enjoy sharing information with others, but there are those, like myself, who are interested in using their articles as a vehicle to generate leads for their business. The question to ask ourselves is whether it is worth all the trouble. I can assure you, that after you have read this particular article, you will be running to your PC to start your writing career!

There are many authors who write about a variety of subjects. Because of this they do not always use their own name. You can actually use as many different names as you wish. So, this is one of the first things you have to decide. Are you always going to use your own name? If on occasion you are writing about a subject far removed from your business, then perhaps you would want to use another name.

Obviously, if you are trying to brand yourself on the Internet, then you would want to use your personal name as much as possible. If the subject matter can be in some way related to the type of business you are in, then it is going to be much easier to transition with a link back to your website.

It is recommended that articles be between 400 – 600 words. That works out to be about 8 paragraphs, with approximately three short sentences in each paragraph. If it much better to write a few short articles, than one long one.

It came as a pleasant surprise to me to see how I could significantly increase my presence on the Web, by getting my articles posted there. I didn’t write and submit my first article until late December, 2008. That was three weeks ago from the time I am writing this article. At that time, if I searched my name “Jan Shimano” in Google I would come up empty. However, just a few short weeks and ten articles later, when I googled by name in quotes again, I came up with 2760 hits. Perhaps you would like to check for yourself and Google my name (make sure you put it in quotes) and see how much it has increased since then. It seems to increase on a daily basis.

So, are you curious as to how I was able to accomplish this? Well then, I’ll tell you!! It just took writing those ten short articles and getting them accepted by EzineArticles. This is the largest article directory and it should be the first place you submit to. By the way, Google search just loves EzineArticles and gives them a very high rating, moving you up the charts, so to speak. If EzineArticles accepts your submission, then you will have no trouble with any of the other article directories.

However, just getting published with EzineArticles is not going to get you the huge presence on the Internet that you are looking for. There is an important second step to take and that is to sent it off to a multiple submission company. The one I use, and which I highly recommend, is Unique Article Wizard (UAW). On their website, you type in three unique versions of your article, along with variations in the Resource Box. UAW then configures all the paragraphs and resource boxes and comes up with hundreds and hundreds of unique articles. This is very important, because the search engines do not like duplication and you will not be rewarded at all for it….in fact, they could punish you. One of my articles was submitted to over 1800 directories by UAW.

EzineArticles is a free service. They do have a paid upgrade, but for the majority of people that is not necessary. I personally only use the free service and I am allowed to submit as many articles as I like. If you are using UAW, there is a monthly cost of $70.35. If you are only planning on writing an article now and again, this might not be the way to go for you. However, if you are serious about creating a huge presence for yourself on the Internet, then I can’t think of a better way to do it.

You do not have to be a professional writer to get your articles published on the Internet. If you can sit down and write a letter to a friend or loved one, then you can sit down and write a short eight paragraph article. Remember, this is not an assignment from your old English teacher from years past. She is not looking over your shoulder checking your grammar. Your reader is looking at your article because you are providing him with valuable information. He is not there to critique you. So, please, make up your mind right now that you are going to give this an honest effort. Once you have that first article accepted and published, my guess is that there will be no stopping you!!