In the last couple of weeks, I've received two enquiries from PR firms wondering whether upFront.eZine takes "Placed Articles." For example, A&R Edelman asked, "Does upFront.eZine take contributed articles and if so, do you have writer's guidelines?"
Placed (or contributed) Articles are written by PR firms on behalf of clients. They appear in magazines as if they were independently written, and I am sure PR firms have lists of excuses as to why this is not a form of prostitution.
Be on the lookout for such articles; tips include:
- articles contain only positive statements.
- there are no references to competitive products.
- all articles in the magazine are single-topic articles (cf. the German 'AutoCAD Magazin').
- writer is employed by the company or the PR firm (read the bio).
Why do magazines run such articles? For cost reasons. Placed Articles are either free, or in some cases, magazines charge hefty amounts to run the article. The publisher likes that better than having to pay a freelancer to provide editorial content.
If these PR firms are contacting lit' ol' upFront.eZine, then you can expect them to be approaching all publications in the CAD industry. Not all will respond as I did, which was, "Sorry, no."
Maybe I should have replied, "Yes, for $25,000." After all, it's not whether we are willing to sell our souls, but for how much.
As much as I am for capitalism and gaining personal (financial) freedom, I am very happy (as an everyday reader) that you said no.
Good work, and keep the "free" articles coming!
Posted by: random_guy | Aug 17, 2006 at 09:17 AM
I just read something that at the end said:
About the Author
Copyright © Rene Tse, the owner of the website: Free cellular Phone Deals
Rene is on the look out for mobile devices to enhance her productivity. This website cuts to the chase and has valued information on: free cell phone deals, tmobile phone deals, and which is the best solution available to make your documents portable on your Pocket PC or smart phone.
I grant permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with 2 live links, and the article is not changed in any way.
Is that a placed article?
Posted by: anon | Aug 17, 2006 at 12:06 PM
I'd say it was a self-placed article. Here's how it works:
In exchange for you hosting her 2 links at your site (which boosts her Google ranking and site traffic), you get an article that provides content for your site.
Posted by: ralphg | Aug 17, 2006 at 06:15 PM