Today marks the 10th Anniversary of EzineArticles.com - but we’re giving YOU the present!

On this day in 1999, EzineArticles.com was launched as an online Expert Author community where authors from around the world could share fresh, high-quality articles and make them readily available for limited niche syndication by ezine publishers.

The site was envisioned to be a matching service for ezine publishers seeking supplemental content for their next email newsletter and expert authors who wanted to share their expertise in exchange for exposure, credibility and qualified traffic referrals back to their website.

Today, the site’s incredible success is obvious. Now the #1 article marketing website in the world, EzineArticles caters to almost a quarter million Expert Authors from across the globe. The site enjoys over a million unique visitors every day and delivers an average of 225,000 clicks per day back to our members’ websites. Website Magazine recently ranked EzineArticles.com #18 on their list of the “Top 50 Websites for Professionals” in their November, 2009 issue.

Our Anniversary Gift to You

While it’s true that EzineArticles has a lot to celebrate, we felt that the people who are ultimately responsible for our success, our members and visitors, are the ones who deserve an anniversary present. So we’ve designed this custom EzineArticles wallpaper, complete with our popular mug and coffee, just for you.

Click on the link(s) below that match the resolution of your monitor(s) to download the appropriate wallpaper. Then select that file as your new wallpaper and begin enjoying your new EzineArticles background with our sincere thanks and compliments. We couldn’t have done it without you! :)

Downloadable EzineArticles 10th Anniversary Wallpapers:

• 800 x 600 pixels [448 KB]
• 1,024 x 768 pixels [620 KB]
• 1,152 x 864 pixels [728 KB]
• 1,280 x 768 pixels [732 KB]
• 1,280 x 800 pixels [752 KB]
• 1,280 x 960 pixels [836 KB]
• 1,440 x 900 pixels [860 KB]
• 1,280 x 1,024 pixels [872 KB]
• 1,680 x 1,050 pixels [1.1 MB]
• 1,920 x 1,200 pixels [1.3 MB]

Being in the right place, in the right mood, at the right time, could be key to your article writing success.

We often hear about athletes and other competitive individuals getting into “the zone” before a competition. “The zone” is really nothing more than a frame of mind that focuses all of our energies, both mental and physical, on the task at hand.

The techniques that help get these people into their zone are as varied as the people themselves. For some it’s a routine, born of superstition and experience. For others, it’s a place or a smell or a sound that gets them psyched up.

Believe it or not, writing articles is competition, too – with yourself. Every time you sit down to write you’re competing with all of the other things in your life that are fighting for your attention. If you can’t put yourself into a zone that focuses you completely on the article topic at hand, your writing is going to suffer – both in quality and quantity.

Ways of putting yourself in “the zone” can be broken down into (3) broad areas:

1. Routines – These are the little rituals you repeat every time you sit down to write. Maybe the first thing you do is get a cup of tea in your EzineArticles mug. Then you go to your writing room and shut the door. After that, you put on some music that suits your topic. Then, and only then, do you start writing.
2. Locations – Surround yourself with the environment of your topic and simply let the environment inspire you as you write. For example, if you’re writing about car audio systems, why not sit in the passenger seat of your car with your laptop and jam to great tunes while you write? Or write about great cuisine from a table at your favorite sidewalk cafe.
3. Triggers – Triggers engage your other senses to positively influence your writing. Imagine writing about how to make a great loaf of bread while the smell of fresh baked bread wafts through the air. Or writing about competitive swimming from a poolside table with the sounds of splashing water in the background.

If your topic doesn’t lend itself well to one of these techniques (downhill skiing, for example), consider taking part in the activity and then writing immediately afterward while the experience is still fresh in your mind. Remember, EzineArticles does not condone the writing of articles while participating in dangerous activities. We don’t want you to end up like Jane in the cartoon!

We do, however, condone doing whatever it takes to safely channel your energies into producing high-quality, original articles. So spend the next few minutes thinking about your article topic areas and then try to come up with something you can do or someplace you can go that will put you in the right frame of mind for each of those topics.

Now put your ideas to the test. Did psyching yourself up have any effect? Did an inspirational location help you get into “the zone?” If so, learn from the experience and use it in other areas of your life. If not, try something else.

Either way, come back here and leave a comment to tell the rest of the EzineArticles family what worked … and what didn’t.

EzineArticles recommends that your Resource Box be around 15% of your Article Body’s word count. If it’s too big, your article will look spammy and be of little value to the reader. If it’s too small, you may be missing out on a great opportunity to market you and your products.

So how do you calculate the relative size of your Resource Box?

Use this formula: Take the Article Body’s word count and multiply it by .15 (15%). The result is the target size for your Resource Box word count.

Example: An article has 1,000 words in the Body:

• Article Body word count x .15 = Recommended Resource Box word count
• 1,000 x .15 (or 15%) = 150 words

Since the recommended target size Resource Box is 15% of the article body word count, in this example you’d want to try to create a Resource Box of about 150 words.

Notice that 15% is not a rule, just a recommendation. Your Resource Box could be significantly larger or smaller than 15%, but then you risk compromising that article’s performance. And if it’s way too big, your article could get soft-rejected. So spend some time evaluating your reasoning if you decide to stray far from this particular “rule of thumb.”

Leave a comment an let us know if you’re unsure of the calculation method or reasons behind this recommendation.

While this is one of our coolest tools, it has one downside: It can take 60-90 days after your article gets published on EzineArticles.com before it starts to produce really useful keyphrase referral data.

What if you want to leverage this keyphrase strategy right away? Watch this video to discover how!

Downloadable Versions:
           

Do these 3 steps today for massive leverage:

1. Look at your web stats (Google Analytics, AWStats, etc) and identify the top keyphrases/keywords used to find your articles on your own website.
2. Write & Submit new articles to EzineArticles.com based on those keyphrases.
3. Watch your traffic spike and repeat this process over and over again.

If you don’t have a free Google Analytics account or a website stats package/service that identifies the top keywords and keyphrases used to find your site, get that done this week! Otherwise, you’re missing out BIG-TIME on critical data you need to build your business online.

Do you use other ways to capitalize on website analytics to increase the success of your article marketing efforts? Leave a comment and tell us about the tools and techniques that have worked for you.

The following is a list of (30) assorted author tips, insider info, fun facts and reminders we tweeted in the month of October. Any one of these could have been just the tool you needed to turbocharge your article marketing efforts.

Just CLICK on any of the “ReTweet This” links to auto-populate your Twitter status field. Then just edit for length and retweet to your heart’s content!

EzineArticles Tips and Training Snippets:

• A trap to avoid: Making the focus of your articles about what you are AGAINST. Instead, argue your points about what you are FOR & why. [ReTweet This]
• Resource Box Tip: Never pretend or say that a self-serving link is not your own when in fact it is. Build TRUST, not deception. [ReTweet This]
• Tip: Excessive HTML in your article body makes it hard for publishers to use, meaning you and your links get less circulation. [ReTweet This]
• Punctuation Tip: Reach the period sooner before later. Don’t drone on and fail to close your thought. [ReTweet This]
• Article Writing Tip: Make connections with your readers by envisioning yourself speaking directly to them. [ReTweet This]
• Article Body is where you GIVE; Resource Box is where you TAKE. (This is one of our core tenets.) [ReTweet This]

EzineArticles Fun Facts:

• Fact: 6484 articles were Scheduled for future release in the month of Sept by our Premium members. [ReTweet This]
• Website Magazine’s Top 50 Websites for ‘Net Professionals named EzineArticles #18! http://is.gd/4zvYk Cool! :] [ReTweet This]
• No surprise here: 19% of all problem articles not accepted are in the 250-299 word count range. 41% are under 399 words. [ReTweet This]
• “Mavis Beacon” is an excellent example of an unreal person that is used as an exclusive image to represent the brand in the market. [ReTweet This]
• EzineArticles members submit an avg of 2+ articles in their article submission session. Smart, because it leverages their time. [ReTweet This]
• 46.8 percent of EzineArticles members use FIREFOX for their browser! Wow. Best reason to use FireFox? Built-in SPELL CHECK! :) [ReTweet This]

EzineArticles Inside Information:

• Clickbank Affiliates: We’ve never allowed clickbank URL’s in the past and now we’re auto-rejecting at the front door. [ReTweet This]
• We’ve significantly tightened up our anti-derivative content filters last week. Yesterday alone 741 articles rejected at the front door. [ReTweet This]
• How big should your Resource Box be? Between 7-15 percent of your article body in terms of word count and line length. [ReTweet This]
• Want a reason to keep your self-serving links in the Resource Box and not the Article Body? Links in article body are set to NOFOLLOW. [ReTweet This]
• We disagree with using iStockphoto for fake/pen author names. Reason: Because the photos aren’t exclusive to your name. [ReTweet This]
• We’re not automatically declining articles with locations in the title; but article body needs to deliver specific locale info. [ReTweet This]

Motivational Moments:

• “Being a published author is a big, fat billboard that says, I’m SMART!” – Arielle Ford [via @LisaDSparks] [ReTweet This]
• Enthusiasm is contagious. Market a product/service you’re passionate about, and chances are others will become excited about it too! [ReTweet This]
• Only EXTREMELY rare expert authors can write high value 250-400 word articles. The rest of us deliver value in the 400-800+ word count range. [ReTweet This]
• Always know your purpose for writing each article. This will keep your content focused, concise, and easier for readers to understand. [ReTweet This]
• Quality trumps Quantity. If your articles are failing to deliver, slow down, start over and allow yourself another perspective. [ReTweet This]

Misc. Words of Wisdom:

• Blogging and article marketing are natural partners. Both present info, articles just do it in a non-promotional, more formal way. [ReTweet This]
• 1 of the biggest advantages of article marketing is getting targeted traffic. You miss out on that if your links don’t match your articles! [ReTweet This]
• Have your checked your ARTICLE DIAGNOSTIC CENTER lately for dead links that need fixing? Fix ‘em and get your FREE traffic back! :) [ReTweet This]
• Looking for fresh content? Try mentoring a newbie! You’ll be surprised at how much you learn and a new perspective is fertile soil for ideas. [ReTweet This]
• Derivative = Spun or re-hashed content that is NOT unique as it delivers the same information only re-worded. This adds NO value. [ReTweet This]
• Want to improve your readers trust in you, your articles, and your expertise? ADD AN AUTHOR PHOTO to your profile. :-) [ReTweet This]

Have you got a Twitter question? Post it here to get some answers.

Writing and submitting quality articles for inclusion on EzineArticles.com can significantly boost highly pre-qualified traffic to your website(s). That traffic is generated by interested readers clicking the links in your articles. But when one of the links in an article breaks, the article is no longer able to do its job. A broken or dead link in an article is like a car that won’t run – you can be proud of your beautiful car, but it’s useless for “driving in traffic.”

That’s why we provide you with an “Article Diagnostic Center” to quickly check the links in ALL your active articles at once. It’s accessible in your member account under the “Author Tools Menu.” Check it out now – If all is well, you will see a message saying “All of your links are responding!”

If we DO find a broken link, our internal system begins to monitor it: [Download Chart (PDF / 120KB)]

• After 3 days of inactivity, the link shows up in your Diagnostic Center where you can address it.
• After 8 days of inactivity, we provide a courtesy reminder to you via email.
• We continue checking the link for activity and send courtesy email reminders after 15 days, 22 days, and 29 days of inactivity.
• After 35 days of inactivity, we will “unlink” invalid links in your articles [and display in text-only the original link that was unlinked]. We aim to provide a positive user experience and chronically broken/dead links do not create a good experience for your readers.

It’s important to fix broken links promptly to keep your readers happy and not lose potential free clicks to your site.

How to correct invalid links in the Article Diagnostic Center:

1. Login to your account and go to the Article Diagnostic Center. Click URL’s marked as ‘invalid’ to see if they work.
2. If the link is still NOT working, edit any articles which contain the problematic link to remove or replace it.
3. If the link IS working, you may click “Report As Valid” and one of our editors will verify this.

We’re always trying to improve our processes to make your life just a little bit easier. Leave a comment and let us know what you think of this process for diagnosing and repairing your dead or broken links.

Those who believe they have met the challenge requirements for any prizes must send a prize request via email to hahd@ezinearticles.com prior to Monday, November 15, 2009.

To Qualify:

1. All articles must be submitted under the same author name. Articles from multiple author names may not be combined.
2. A minimum of 100 articles must have been submitted between 12:00AM CDT Saturday, August 1st and 11:59PM CDT Sunday, November 8th.
3. Qualifications will be verified and prizes will be shipped no later than November 27th via USPS to the postal mailing address listed in the member profile and to verifiable postal mailing addresses ONLY.

All qualifiers will receive a FREE downloadable #HAHD Certificate of Achievement (frame not included).

Upon request, all qualifiers will also receive:

• Original Limited-edition EzineArticles #HAHD Trophy Mug
• Limited-edition EzineArticles #HAHD Mouse Pad

All “First 100 Qualifiers” slots have now been filled for this challenge. If you didn’t qualify, don’t despair – the 3rd #HAHD Marathon Challenge begins January 1st, so start planning those articles now!

Question: How do I crank up the word count in my articles without adding fluff, yet still deliver NEW quality content that will capture my audience?

Hmmm, seems like an easy enough question. This challenge arises when you have already delivered as much as you feel you can and your articles are starting to sound like your grandfather’s favorite old story. Over and over, the same words are flowing and you’re trying like crazy to offer something new in your market. So what do you do?

Answers:

• Join in Conversations - Sign-up for forums and participate in blog discussions. This will help you discover what your market is looking for. When you get a nugget of wisdom, draft an article on it and submit it!
• Ask Questions – When you feel that you have shared everything you know, go ask questions. Generate discussions on your own blog page or learn what others are talking about.
• Review Your Already Submitted Articles – You might find that there are plenty of snippets in each that will give you new topics for future articles. You may notice that can further clarify issues or elaborate on one specific area.
• Social Network Within Your Niche – Social networking via Facebook, Twitter, etc. creates a vast opportunity to meet others in your area of expertise. Learn from them and pass your newly-discovered knowledge on to your readers.
• Use Article Templates – Occasionally using different article templates can force you to look at your niche differently and approach your writing from a fresh perspective.

Remember, writing is not easy and article marketing is not a fast process. To succeed, you will need to invest time in researching your topic and your market’s needs. The good news is that time changes everything – so there is always something new to write about.

4 Things to Avoid:

1. Filling your already thin article with loose filler words just to meet the word count. These articles are spammy and do not provide a good user experience. Your readers will stop reading.
2. Writing about newsy topics and then blatantly slapping an affiliate link in. It’s not OK to write to about Obama scholarships in hundreds of articles and then pitch an affiliate link.
3. Say the same thing, only using different words or rearranging those words. It’s not OK to submit derivative content.
4. Don’t write 1,000 articles that you know nothing about. This is not only unethical, it’s simply rude and offensive to the reader. It may even be downright dangerous or cause harm to others in certain circumstances. If you are going to write as an Expert Author, BE an expert author.

Here are a few other blog posts to help you find inspiration for fresh, content-rich articles:

• Let’s Pretend …
• Make Your Writing New Again
• Harness the Power of Unbidden Ideas
• Surround Yourself with Topic Inspiration
• Article Topics to Get You Unstuck – Part 1 and Part 2

This is by no means an exhaustive essay on how to generate a high number of longer fresh, original articles. If you have other thoughts and ideas on the subject, we’d love to hear about them. So please leave a comment.