Article marketing is a type of advertising by writing short articles related to business' respective industry. Once written, the business makes these articles freely available for distribution and publication in the marketplace. Each article contains a 'bio box' and 'by-line' which include references and contact information for the author's business. Well written content articles released for free distribution have the potential of gaining the author business credibility within his or her market, as well as new clients.

Article marketing has been used by professionals for nearly as long as mass print has been available. In paper-print form (as opposed to online forms) it is commonly utilized by business owners as a means of obtaining free press space. The local business provides useful content to the newspaper free of charge and in return the newspaper prints the business' contact information with the article. Since newspapers and other traditional media are expected to present content on limited budgets, this arrangement is generally advantageous for all parties involved.

For example, an accounting firm may market itself by writing an article titled "The Top 10 ways to Avoid Getting Audited" and offering it to the local newspapers 2-3 weeks prior to tax season. Similarly, a roofing company could offer radio stations a concise article on "How to avoid ice damage to your roof this winter" shortly before the winter season.

With the rise of ecommerce and online marketing, article marketing has made a move to the online world as well. As in traditional forms of media, online article marketing has served the dual role of providing publishers with essentially free content and advertisers with essentially free advertising. However unlike the off-line version, there are additional dimensions to article marketing online. Most notable among the differences is the use of articles for search engine optimization