How to Write an eHow Article

Do you know how to do something the average Joe doesn’t? Want to teach people how to do it but don’t know how? Follow these steps to create the most useful eHow article that will have everyone coming to you for information and adding you as a friend.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Pick a topic. Be familiar with the topic because you want to share what you know. People want to learn from the best, so you should be the best--or at least have enough experience to teach others. When coming up with the topic, think about your hobbies and interests; your best articles will come from there.
2. Join eHow Register for an eHow account. This will serve as your personal account to post How To articles onto the website. Pick a user name and build out your profile so that others can get to know you and your background. It’s always reassuring to know that the person you’re getting How To info from has a personal interest in the topic, so remember to include your hobbies.
3. Click on the “WRITE AN ARTICLE” tab at the top of your profile. This will take you to the eHow article template form to enter your article. It is organized with fields for a title, introduction, ingredients needed, steps-by-step directions, tips and warnings, and website resources.
4. Add video! Create and upload a video. With today's technology and sites like YouTube, people are creating and posting videos online more than ever before. Adding a video is optional, but you might find that visual directions are better at getting messages across than written words. Nevertheless, a video must accompany text, just in case the clip fails to play.
5. Write the Article Add content. Starting with the title, try to use words that people will search for on the Internet. Those words will make it easier for pepole to find your article, furthermore allowing more people to find the information they seek. The introduction should consist of information that states what people will get out of the article. This is a good place to include background information about the topic that just won't fit right in the steps. Include ingredients when necessary so that people will have a list of the materials needed to get through the steps. Then add the steps. They should be written in layman's terms so that anyone can follow their direction to get to the result. Three is the minimum required, but in order to keep steps simple you should add more steps as necessary.
6. Post pictures for visual aids. Sometimes nothing describes a step better than a good picture. You can upload a primary image at the top of the article and include photos to go along with each step. Remember you must own the photo or have permission if it's a copyrighted photo to post it online. Click on the "Add an Image" button and upload away.
7. Tips and Warnings Add any tips and warnings you have that will help people get through the step-by-step process. Then end each article with website links that can provide additional information or resources about the topic.
8. Spell Check Always use spell check! You are the expert and experts don’t make mistakes right? Articles should be well written and free of spelling, grammar and punctuation errors. Luckily, you can catch most of these problems just by clicking on the “Spell Check” button under the “Introduction” and “Tips & Warnings” fields.
9. Categorize the article. Keep articles organized and searchable by filing the article under the best category options. Add keywords to the following field to help people find your article and include related articles and resources that will help inform the reader.
10. Save and preview the article when it's ready. If everything looks right, hit the "Publish" button and your article will automatically post on eHow. Now everyone on the Internet will be able to search for and read your article.

Tips & Warnings

• Edit articles any time. Your eHow articles are available for you to edit as you see fit, even after they have been published.
• Keep steps simple and explain anything that is not common sense.
• Remember to use the spell check. This is an educational site, so don't teach people to write poorly.
• Add keywords to help people find your article
• Profanity, indecent images and inappropriate content will be short-lived on the site. It's just not worth it to try.