The economy is at a low point and that does not bode well for many business, especially online where there is a lot of competition. Because companies are cutting costs in a variety of places, one of the places most turn to is advertising and marketing. Some experts might say, now is not the time to stop advertising or marketing efforts but increase them and stand out. However that leaves you in a tough position because sales are slumping and you need to cut costs.

Well you are in luck. I am about to give you the most surefire way to increase visitors to your website. You will need to work at it about an hour each day, be consistent with this technique and of course be dedicated. The best part of what I am about to tell you is this advertising and marketing technique is 100% free. In other words you won't have to spend a dime to get more visitors.

Ok before you click the exit button because you think I am crazy, here me out. You have a business. And that business is "about" something. Whether you sell a product or offer a service, your business does "something". And that "something" makes you an expert at it. So why not write about your "something"?

The advertising and marketing technique that can help boost your business without spending a dime is called article marketing. Article marketing is the process by which you write an informational and educational article (just like the one you are reading now) about what your business has to offer, submit that article to various article directories and then watch your website visitors roll in, all without spending a dime.

As an example, let's say you sell refurbished MP3 players. You find old ones that people are getting rid of because they do not work, you fix them and resell them. Sounds like a neat business right? Right! And because you do this you an expert at MP3 players. What you need to do now is put your expertise down on paper. Lets say you know what features make up a good MP3 player. You can write an article about that or if you know what headphones work best with certain players you can write about that. Whatever you know, you need to write about.

Your article must be at least 450 words in length, but try not to go over 800 words. Too short and some may not take it seriously and too long and many won't read it. Just like in the example above, you are article needs to provide the reader with helpful information that they are either looking for or can pass along to someone who may be looking for it. Writing an article about MP3 features is good, writing an article about which beach you like to lay on while listening to Jimmy Buffet on your MP3 player, not so good.

Once you have your article written you need to create a resource box. A resource box is a small piece of information that is placed at the end of your article that gives the reader information on how to get in touch with you the writer. For example, "Drake Jones is the owner of Refurbished MP3s, you can learn more about Refurbished MP3s by visiting their website at {insert your web address here}", makes up a good resource box. The resource box needs to tell the reader who you are, what you do, and how they can get a hold of you if they wish to ask you a question (and of course make a purchase). As you can see by our example, our resource box satisfies all of these.

So you have this great article with your resource box but you now need to do something with it. The next step is to submit your article to as many article directories as possible. Doing a simple Google search on the term "Article Directory" will yield you many to choose from. Submit your article to as many as you want. Article Directories receive tens of thousands of hits daily from people looking for the type of information that you are providing. They look for either their own interests or because they own a blog and need content. Imagine your article being picked up and placed on a few dozen blogs that also receive hundreds if not thousands of hits. Your website's link will be all over the place. That is what article marketing does.

All you have to do is repeat this process daily with one article each day, and in no time you will be receiving so many hits you won't know what to do with them all.

So to recap, write an article related to your website that is informational and educational, add your resource box to the end of, and submit your article to various article directories. That's it. Increased visitors and customers and you didn't have to spend a dime to do it.