The Free-Reprint Articles Powerhouse and Copyright Law

By Bill Platt
Posted Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Writing articles is definitely a very solid method of building a client base for your online business. There is no doubt about that. The writers I speak with who use free-reprint articles for the promotion of their businesses all proudly talk about the success articles have brought to them.

Articles will generate substantial traffic to those who write well. Even better, a considerable amount of the traffic will convert to sales.

The Internet is a rocky super highway. Thousands upon thousands of people have had their dreams shattered by the realities of marketing online.

Less than 5% of all online businesses will survive, so it is important to try to do the things that the 95% do not do. I will tell you one thing now --- more than 95% of all online marketers do not even attempt to use articles for the promotion of their businesses.

I have written a number of articles telling people about the promotional power of free-reprint articles. In fact, I have built my business on free-reprint articles, by helping others tap into the promotional powerhouse for themselves.

I have often said that one should investigate writing their own articles. I have even said that ideas of inspiration can be found in reading the works of others.

I wish to re-emphasize my original direction to find inspiration by reading the words of others. I said that reading around should only be used for inspiration. One will discover that as they read someone else's point of view, they will suddenly see an idea for an article on what may be a similar, but very different tact.

One should NEVER take the words of the original author and make them their own!!! Nearly every article you read will contain a copyright notice. The copyright notice is legally binding, supported by federal law.

If you are writing your own articles but borrowing a few sentences from someone else, YOU ARE STEALING! Copyright violation is a criminal offense that can find you in court and defending your bank account!

Words that I write and put into a free-reprint article do carry clearly stated "terms of reprint". Let us review those real quick:

This is a Free-Reprint article. The only requirements for publishing this article are:

· You must leave the resource box unedited. · Minor editing to the article is permitted. · You may not use this article in UCE (Unsolicited Commercial Email).
· Email distribution of this article must be opt-in email only.
· You must forward a copy of the ezine or newsletter that contains the article inside to the author at: mailto:bplatt@windstormcomputing.com · If you post this article on a website, you must set the links up as hyperlinks, and you must send us a copy of the URL where the article is posted.

Where in these "terms of reprint" do I give permission to borrow a few sentences or paragraphs from one of my articles to form the basis of your article with your name in the resource box?

I have read these "terms of reprint" again, and I still do not see the permission to use my words in this way! What am I missing here?

Let us writers be aware, there are those in the our Internet writers community who deliberately disregard our "terms of reprint" to take our words as their own.

Folks, if you are just getting started in using free-reprint articles to promote your business, please realize that it is completely unnecessary to steal the words of others! Inspiration resides in all of us, and we can find it in the most bizarre of places.

Back to my original article on this topic, which was written for Max Shifrin (one of my ghost writing clients by the way), this is what I said:

When in doubt, I always turn to the search engines to find inspiration. I might have a general subject in mind, but I might not know how I want to address it. That is until I am reading someone else's view of this subject, and Boom!, inspiration strikes.

A spark goes off in the old brain and I know exactly where I am going tonight. I know exactly how I will proceed with my new issue and article.

When I am done, you could look at the original source and never understand how I decided my slant on the article. That is because the source being read only serves to spark the inspiration from which the article will be written.

To read this article in context, click the following redirect link and read the second article called "Online Publishing: Where Do You Want to Go Today?":

(http://thephantomwriters.com/promotion-tips)

This topic is being addressed today for one very important reason. I keep seeing my words pop up in the articles of another! These words are derived from articles I write in my own name and in the articles written for my clients. While everyone can read this article, it is actually only intended for one person. They know who they are.

In the meantime, this article also serves as a warning to those who are just getting started with this very lucrative promotional technique. There really is no reason at all for anyone to steal from another to become successful online. When we tell you to copy what works, we are not telling you to literally steal what is working for us!

And to the one person who is choosing theft as the basis of their business, be forewarned. I am watching you and gathering a portfolio of examples to use against you in a court of law. When I have gathered together my case, you will be hearing from my attorney. Funny thing is, you do not know how many people I actually ghost write for, so you have absolutely no idea how deeply you are exposed! Thinking on Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland", how deep does the rabbit hole go? Think about it.

There is only one way for the perpetrator to avoid the courtroom in this case. Make your confessions and agree to my terms for keeping yourself out of the court room. This is not just about me and my ego. This is about the value of the work that has been done for my clients who have been ripped off as well. The ball is now in your court. I will await your message.

mailto:bplatt@windstormcomputing.com

Folks, honesty is always the best policy. Honesty will keep you out of court and in the black. Find inspiration where it may reside and use that inspiration to join those of us who are in the 5%, by using the powerhouse that free-reprint articles represent in the process of growing your online business.

About the Author
Bill Platt owns The Phantom Writers, a company committed to helping people to establish an Internet presence & promote their businesses through the use of Free-Reprint Articles. All articles are distributed to 6,500+ publishers & web-masters as part of the package. Do you write your own articles? Let us distribute them for you. (http://PathTrax.com/x.pl/BP121,50)