You might have thought that you could measure the success of your article marketing campaign by looking at the view counts on a single article submission directory.

If you have high views on that site, then you're doing well. If you have low views, then you're doing something wrong. Right?

Wrong!

Let's bust this myth...

Actually, the real test of success is how high your website is ranking for your keyword terms in Google and the other search engines. Search engine rankings are influenced over the long term--you will not be able to see any difference in your ranking based on any one article submission.

The changes you are trying to bring about are the result of an accumulation of backlinks from your article submissions and republications.

These types of SEO changes can take months to happen--you will not be able to see any sign of them from looking at the views on a directory. Article views and search engine ranking do not have anything to do with each other.

Why Does Search Engine Ranking Matter More Than Article Views?

When your target customers are looking for information online, they will go to Google and type in their search terms. Then, (hopefully) they will find your website listed high in the rankings. They will click the result listing and be taken to your website.

You can receive much more traffic via Google than you can through people finding your articles and clicking the link in the resource box. That is why it is important to focus your attention on search engine ranking rather than article views when evaluating your success.

What Does The 'Article Views' Stat On A Site Mean?

It is simply a count of how many people have viewed that one article on that one directory. It does not tell you how your overall article marketing campaign is doing. It cannot tell you how your website is improving in the search engine ranking. It does not tell you how many people have republished your article.

Your article marketing success is not dependent on any one article. Your success is the product of a cumulative effort of consistently submitting articles over an extended period of time.

What Can You Do With Your 'Views' Info?

Your 'views' info is telling you how one article is performing on one directory. Do you notice that one of your articles is extremely popular?

You can use that information to help you write more popular articles in the future. Look at your article and try to determine why it struck a nerve with the people on that site more than your other articles.

Perhaps it is your subject matter, and you need to write another article that goes further in depth with that topic. Perhaps it is the type of article--maybe that article is a 'How To' or 'Top Tips' one. Maybe it was your title--was your title in any special format, like a question, or was it keyword rich?

It can be very worthwhile to analyze your top performing articles on a site, but be careful not to associate article views with the overall success of your campaign. Article marketing is a long term marketing tool, so be sure to look at the big picture.