Do you know what ONE thing will absolutely DOOM your article? Probably not. Truth is, there are a lot of things you could do that could seriously hurt your credibility as a writer, but there is one thing in particular that will kill it altogether. Know what it is?

Lie.

Oh what a tangled web we weave when at first we practice to deceive. I can’t quite recall what that line was from. I think it was a movie, but I’m getting so old that the memory is starting to play tricks on me. Anyway, yes…lying will absolutely KILL your article AND your credibility as a writer. And guess what? It doesn’t even have to be a big lie. A little one will do just as well. But why? Why is it that lying is so harmful?

Well, to understand that, you have to understand why people read articles in the first place. Naturally, this depends a lot on the subject, but in general, people read articles because they want to learn something. It could be about how to cure their nagging cough or it could be about a new video game that they’re interested in buying.

Now, there is a BIG difference between stating your opinion about something and stating something as fact. For example, let’s say you’re reviewing a video game and you give it a favorable review. And it turns out that most people don’t like the game at all. Well, at the worst, people might not take your video game reviews very seriously from that point on, though I doubt they’ll accuse you of being a liar.

But what if you said in your review that the game could be played on any OS, or came with some special bonus because you wanted people to buy it from YOUR affiliate link. And then they find out, after buying the game, that it doesn’t play on Vista and it doesn’t have that bonus. It was all a lie. This just flat out destroys your credibility as a writer.

Think people don’t do these things? Think again. This kind of lying, which the FTC is now cracking down on, goes on all the time. It’s part of what gives Internet marketing a bad name.

So in short, don’t lie.

It WILL come back to haunt you.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim

Sick of not getting your articles read? Fed up with resource boxes that don’t get the job done? Want to write articles that will turn you into a killer article marketer? Get my book on article writing and marketing located at http://www.honestincomeprogram.com/tcawamg.html
- This is my own book written from over 30 years of writing experience.