The debate is still raging with regard to duplicate content. From my perspective, you're best to avoid it. To succeed with content distribution, implement the following techniques when publishing on your website or for improving search engine optimization rankings.

1. Always publish original content on your website. Don't be caught using duplicate content unless you must. You control the content on your website so don't take this issue lightly. Use fresh, original content that appeals to your readers. If replicating content, change it up a bit or use an excerpt with a link to the full article.

2. When article marketing, include the article on your site first. If you're using article marketing to promote your website, publish the article on your site first. I suggest not distributing the article for at least 3 - 5 days. This gives the Google bot time to crawl the content and know its there (published by you).

3. Distribute your content to top article distribution sites first! When distributing your articles, target the largest article directories first (ezinearticles, goarticles, etc.). I would recommend changing the title, article description, intro paragraph, and last paragraph slightly from what you have posted on your site.

4. Complete your distribution to second and third tier article directories. At this point, the value gained is less than the primary article distribution sites. The true value of these sites is the possibility of a webmaster using the content on their own site complete with author box. Again, I would modify the article once prior to distributing to all of these sites, but don't spend a lot of time on it.

5. Update content on your site regularly. If you want to optimize the value of your content, be sure to update information regularly. This is not say that your content has to change daily, but new content should be added to position your site as a valuable source of information.

6. Offer an RSS feed. After your article has been published to your website, be sure to encourage users to access this content via an RSS feed. A feed allows users to get access to your content through a feeder or back link to your site. As a result, they are less likely to copy and post your content. Rather, they can provide an excerpt and link to the original content that is present on your website.

As always, you want to be cognizant of what Google is doing and how they are viewing content. To avoid being penalized, post content to your site first. After a short waiting time, modify the article slightly and post to the major article distribution sites. Then you're ready to distribute to second and third tier article distribution sites. Through this method you can enjoy the benefits of original content and all of the back links that come with it.