FAQ

1. Writing An Article

IF YOU'RE WRITING YOUR FIRST RELEASE - follow this step by step quick start guide


1a. Writing style


**Make sure if you're not announcing company news (aka press release) that your article sounds like GENUINE NEWS and not an advertisement or endorsement. good options include writing a quality review, making a how to guide, a top ten list (in addition to article), or the best option news jacking.**

Q. What is the preferred writing style for Newswire.net?
A. AP Style is preferred. Here is a short, quick guide to AP Style: http://www.scribd.com/doc/2664713/Associated-Press-AP-Style-Guide-the-basics

Q. What is meant by "Voice"?
A. Your article needs to read like news, not like an advertisement. Think of what the stories in your local newspaper sound like. For help in writing a news article, check out this short guide: http://www.newswire.net/newsroom/pr/73164-ten_steps_to_a_good_press_release.html

Q. What types of content is allowed in articles?
A. Only "G" Rated Content allowed. No adult content, adult products, gambling, links etc. Ever!



1b. Article Title

** The article Title is arguably the most important aspect of your release. This is not only the first thing readers see, but the first thing search engines crawl as well. Your title needs to be a balance between clever keyword placement and an attention grabbing (aka interesting) header **

Good headline examples:

Who Else Wants _______?
How to _______
_______ in 3 Simple Steps! (numbered headlines are great)
Even stranger is that if you use a headline with a negative connotation you can get a 20% improvement in your clicks. This is because good news doesn’t always sell.

Q. What is a "Title"?
A. Titles (headlines) are the most important part of a news release. Much of the time that is spent creating an article should be devoted to the title.

Q. How do I write a title for my article?
A. Write the headline after you write your article. The best way is to identify the most important keywords from your press release. From these keywords, construct a logical and attention-getting statement. As much as 1/2 of the total time you have for an article should be devoted to the headline.

Q. What is a correct tone for the title for my article?
A. Kind of the same issue as "Voice". It has to sound like news to be news. Headlines are the most important part of a news release.

Q. How long should a title be?
A. The shorter the better. Never longer than 70 characters.

Q. Can I capitalize my title?
A. Capitalize the first letter of all major words (every word more than 2 or 3 letters - i.e. do no capitalize "a" "to" "for" or other connecting words - do not use all upper case letters.

Q. Can I punctuate my titles?
A. Do not use punctuation marks in headline. If it needs punctuation, it is too long. NEVER use exclamation marks in titles.

Q. Should I use keywords in my title?
A. The Keyword phrase of principle importance should be contained within the text of the title.

1c. Meta Description



Q. What goes in the Abstract Box? A. An abstracts is a summary of the article that is indexed by search engines, and also displayed between the title and the article body in the published article. This description is limited to 256 characters. The abstract can be original, or cut from a portion of the article. It should contain the keywords and phrases that you wish your article to be indexed for. No links are allowed in the abstract. Abstracts must not be in all caps, but in regular sentence case.

1d. Article Body


**Make sure if you're not announcing company news (aka actual press release) that your article sounds like GENUINE NEWS and not an advertisement or endorsement. good options include writing a quality review, making a how to guide, a top ten list, or the best option news jacking.**

Q. Do I need to put "For Immediate Release" at the top of my article?
A. "For Immediate Release" is not part of the dateline, and totally unnecessary in your article.

Q. What is a Dateline?
A. Dateline is the first line of the body of the article. Start your article body on the same line as the dateline, immediately after the double dashes "- -".

Q. Are datelines different for different categories?
A. Dateline for News/Press Releases = (Newswire.net - - Month Day, YR) City, ST - - Article Body... Example: (Newswire.net - - March 20, 2013) Atlanta, GA - - The Hawks dropped another close game... A. Datelines for all Other Categories = (Newswire.net via Emailwire.com - - Month Day, YR) City, ST - - Example: (Newswire.net via Emailwire.com - - March 20, 2013) Atlanta, GA - - The Hawks dropped ...

Q. How should I construct the body of my news article?
A. For in depth instructions check out this quick start guide, then read this guide.

Q. What is the proper length of a news or press release article?
A. All categories of articles need to be at least 300 words, and no more than 600 words. (Ideally 400 to 500 words).

Q. Can I re-post an article to Newswire.net that has been published elsewhere?
A. No. Articles need to be 100 percent original, and they need to be in correct English. No spins allowed. It is possible for us to mistake – and reject - a poorly written article for a spun article.

Q. How about triple hash marks at the end of my article (###)
A. These marks are totally unnecessary, but may be included if you like the style that they bring.

Q. Can I put links into my articles?
A. Yes. Up to 3 links are allowed in your article body. Links are NOT allowed in title, abstract, or first 150 words of article. Please check all of your links in preview mode before submitting articles. In addition to the 3 allowed links, you should put the naked url of your primary target at the end of your article. (That means a link that is not clickable – i.e. http://www.whatever.com). Do the same with the YouTube address of any embedded videos. The best linking strategy seems to be to make one link to the home page of the target site, one link to another more relevant page on the site (deep link) and one more link to an authority site (such as wiki.org, or another .edu or .gov). In subsequent article for the same company, or on the same topic, link to old Newswire articles that you have written as your authority link.




2. Article Images


2a. Choosing an Image

**The Image for your article is a very important aspect, and the primary purpose of it should not be to show the subject of your release, but to get CLICKS. Meaning, your image should be chosen to be eye catching and interesting before all else. To find eye catching images go to imgur.com or sign in to Flickr and search images for your topic and use the filter "interesting" then optimize it. These images will most likely be perfect for your article, just remember to think of your image as cover art.**



Q. What is an “Abstract Image”?
A. It is the image that will be used in your article.

Q. How do I add a picture to my Newswire article?
A. Browse files on your computer, and upload. Watch this short video for more information: http://youtu.be/kSUmtISb_BU

Q. What size image works best in Newswire.net?
A. At least 640 x 300

Q. Can I use an image that has been used before?
A. You may place any image in your article that you have legal rights to. We recommended however, that you use only images that have not been used in other articles submitted to Newswire. Whenever possible, use an original image that has not been used on the web before. Use your own photography, or take screenshots from YouTube videos that you own to make sure your images are unique.




2b. Optimizing an Image

For in depth optimizing instructions, watch this quick video.



2c. Embed images in iFrame (sidebar)

To embed into the iFrame simply

  1. Upload any image with a 300 px width to the image host of your choice (we recommend photobucket)

  2. Generate the embed code from the image, or (like in photobucket) if not presented with the option simply copy the html source code

  3. Then paste the code into the video box (first box) under the iFrame tab in the article editor



3. Article Info

3a. Author Info


Q. What is a link name
A. Checking the box will create a hyperlink between your author name as displayed in the article, and the following URL. The default URL that appears in this box, is the link your Profile in Newswire. If you have completed your profile, with your Google+ profile DO NOT PUT YOUR GOOGLE+ PROFILE IN THIS BOX. If you have not completed your Newswire Profile, and added your Google+ account, you should do so now. If you link your Newswire Profile to your Google+ Profile, your picture will eventually show to the left of your article summary in Google searches. Use this link box if you wish to link your profile to another source of personal information, such as a Facebook page, or personal blog. If you use a different pen name, you may wish to link that pen name to a corresponding Google+ account. DO NOT USE A DIFFERENT PEN NAME WITHOUT CHANGING THE LINK IN THIS BOX, OR UNLINKING THE AUTHOR NAME ALTOGETHER.

Q. What is a pen name?
A. You may choose a penname to appear as the author of your article. It is strongly recommended, however, that you consistently use the same name, and that that name be the one linked to your Google+ author profile in your Newswire.net profile. This best practice will allow you to build credibility with Google as an author, and get your releases to rank better. If you do use a pen name, make sure to un-check the "link name" box, or use this link box to link that pen name to a corresponding Google+ account for that name. DO NOT USE A DIFFERENT PEN NAME WITHOUT CHANGING THE LINK IN THIS BOX, OR UNLINKING THE AUTHOR NAME ALTOGETHER

Q. Should I write under my own name, or should I use a pen name?
A. It is highly recommended that you use the author name from your profile, in-order to build credibility (and rank) for your submissions. By entering in your Google+ ID, your author name will be linked back to your profile by Google. Over time, this will cause Google to publish your profile picture to the left of the search index of your articles.

Q. What if I don’t want to use my own profile for a specific article?
A. Easy. If you want to use an alias for only a few releases then make another free account with newswire using the desired information. Then when editing your release in your real account, just copy and paste the profile URL from the alias and paste it into the profile link box under Author info.

3b. Company Info

Q. What is Schema?

A. Schema is a powerful kind of .html markup code. To get the most SEO benefit from Schema, select the business category most applicable to your particular enterprise. Not all business types are yet represented. If you cant find a specific category that you think applies to your business, just use the default "Local Business". For more more information on Schema markup, and to learn how to use it on your website, or in articles published elsewhere, visit : http://schema.org

Q. What is the Contact Funnel?
--->
A. This is only available for those with the enterprise subscription plan. If a reader registers with Newswire.net through your published article this option allows you to send them emails.

3c. SEO Tools



Q. What is the “choose url” function?
A. URL: This is the link title that will show at the end of your url, you can simply copy and paste your article title for this box. I.E. http://www.newswire.net/newsroom/local/76352-best-New-York-Dog-Care.html

Q. What are META News Keywords?
A. Keywords are individual tags that google uses when searching for relevant content. These are not displayed in the search, however significant importance are placed in well chosen and relevant words. Examples of keywords for a dog care store in New York: Manhattan dog care, best dog car new york, dog grooming new york, best dog sitting manhattan. Note that all keywords are seperated by commas.

Q. What is the META Description?
A. The Meta description is a field that search engines look at to determine the relevance of an article to a given search. This description should be less than 256 characters, it should contain your keyword phrases, and it should be in correct and readable English. It is acceptable to use a well written abstract word for word in your Meta Description.



3d. Google Authorship

Q. How can I use Google Authorship?
A. :

  1. Simply copy and paste your google plus account into the google plus link box located here.
  2. Then make sure that the image you use for your google plus account and your newswire account are very similar and clearly depict you. That means no cartoons or non-facial profile pictures.
  3. Then you must add Newswire.net to your contrubtor to links (gplus>>your profile>>links).
  4. After you’ve done all these correctly its up to google to do the rest. However not confirmed, we’ve noticed that it takes about 30 days and 12 released articles for google to index you as a contributing author to Newswire.



4. The iFrame, and Embedding Media


4a. The Video and Other Media Box



This is where you can any HTML content you can dream up, pictures, websites, widgets, forms. Absolutely anything you can think of, but in case you’re coming up blank here is how to embed a video: - Embed the YouTube video of your choice here, How to? Easy as pie, simply go to the video you would like to embed, click the share tab directly under the video, then click embed. Not to be confused with the video URL, the embed code can be copied and pasted into this box. In depth step by step for Vimeo and Youtube.

4b. Google Maps Box



Let your readers know exactly where to find you with Google Maps, simply follow the directions to create a map from here then paste the code into the box.

4c. Facebook Like Box




Let your readers show their appreciation, directly. Incorporating a Facebook like box is easy, just visit this page, customize it and copy and paste the code into the Iframe box.

4d. AdSense Box


Make money with your articles traffic! First you have to go through the signup process. Then you can use your account to create an ad unit, then use the code to copy into the appropriate Iframe box.

  1. Sign up for ad words

  2. Create an ad unit

  3. Create code and paste

5.Troubleshooting

5a. Article Text

Q. Why does my PDF version have strange symbols in place of letters?
A. This is due in large part to microsofts outdated and non-standard formatting and characters. The full explanation and fix can be found here.

5b. Article Info

N/A

5c. iFrame and Embedding

N/A

5d. Billing Cycle

Q. Why has does my account say limit of x articles reached when I paid recently?
A. The absolute most probable answer to this is due to the way payment and limitations are set up. Our system allows only a certain number of articles (depending on your subscription) published in a given 30 day period, it's important to remember that the time of payment and time of renewal are separate. This means that you may have recently published all articles your 30 day quota, and although your payment was made, the amount of articles allotted within 30 days haven't unlocked quite yet. For a comprehensive graphic of how the payment system works and why its used check out this image: