Who do you listen to and believe? This is a question which is asked every day by the multitude of visitors to the internet. The answer to that is somebody who has earned your respect by being credible. They are credible because their behaviour has shown them to be trustworthy. Article writing can be an important tool in building your credibility.

Let's first look at why you would want to build credibility in the first place. If you are writing articles for fun, building up an online credibility might not be that important to you. But what if you want to build up a blog, even if it's just for fun, to eventually earn you some money?

The only way you will earn money online is by being credible. You don't necessarily need to be credible overall, you just need to have credibility in the one field you are writing about in other words, your niche. Although being perceived to be an all-round nice and honest person helps if you ever want to add on another niche and make a living from this.

It's very similar to the offline world. Think about this. How do you decide on a doctor, a dentist, an accountant or lawyer if you need legal help? Most often you find these professionals by asking around and getting referrals.

How do you decide what your favourite supermarket is? You try it out. If your experience is a good one then the supermarket builds credibility with you. If you don't enjoy the shopping experience, could be because the prices are too high or the sales staff are rude, then you try another store.

The very same processes work online. Readers will come to your blog to try out what you are offering. If they don't enjoy the experience they will not return. They will also not refer your blog or site to anybody else.

So how do you get to build credibility online? Your first step is to set up your profile and create your personality around this. Be genuine and true to the real you. Add some personal details so that you become human and people can relate to you.

Your second and most important step is to create an online continuous presence by writing articles. Build a reputation online for good content that can be trusted to be relevant to your readers.

Write on topics that interest you and that you can be passionate about. Your passion will come through in your writing. Write consistently good articles with a message that stays on topic.

As you continue to write on your topic people will start to develop trust in your knowledge and expertise. It will mean they find your opinions credible and worth listening to.

Eventually as you build this trust you will be able to use your credibility to sell products and services. This may be equally true for your own offering or somebody else's products and services. Many online marketers who have established their reputation make more money endorsing other products than selling their own.

Article writing will be your most important tool in building your reputation online. Without credibility you will not be able to grow a successful online business.