Your web site is perfect, an artistic and informative representation of the best your business offers.

Where on the World Wide Web are your clients going to find you?

Have you registered with search engines and directories? Registering with search engines and directories is necessary, but it is not marketing.

Clients searching for "Internet Marketing" will pull up thousands of listings with a keyword search. The possibility that my site will be seen out of all the listings is not significant enough to keep me in business. If they are looking specifically for my business, by name, spelled correctly, a search engine or directory listing will help them locate my URL, but if they are searching with a common keyword term the chance of our web sites making the top 100 entries are about 15000 to 1, if we're lucky.

Considering the amount of time it takes for search pages to load, the limited descriptions allowed, the length of time to check out the URL's the average surfer either goes with the first few businesses they find or they throw up their hands in frustration and give up entirely.

Attract clients to your site?

After you have registered with major search engines and directories, your next step is writing a media release to announce your arrival and create an interest in your business. Submissions are not limited to Internet media. Your site could be of interest in your local area, business news or civic organizations.
Search the Net for your local media listings. Newspapers, radio and TV stations often have e-mail addresses for submitting media releases.

Direct your releases to media sources relevant to your scope of business. (in other words if your web site is about restoring Mustangs you don't need to send media releases to the gourmet or medical media.) Address the release to the correct reporter or desk (this is very important).

Reporters receive stacks of media releases each day, make it clear, interesting, brief with information the media requires, "who," "what," " when," "where," "why" and sometimes "how," in the opening?

Do some research on writing media releases. Every thing you need to learn to master the art is right online. Writing effective media releases is something business professionals should become proficient at. Only use the acceptable standard format for writing media releases. Write and rewrite until clear, concise and engaging. If you are available for interviews, include that information in your release. Attach a profile or a "bio" This is about you, your credentials and background.

Media releases, search engines and directory listings give you a foundation to start publicizing your presence. Now it's time to start some serious online marketing ...

Ask yourself, "where on the Internet will my leads come from?"

Due to the voluminous amount of rapidly expanding and changing data that defines the Internet, information is managed by processes of categorization designed to make this data accessible. The beauty of marketing through the Internet is the virtually unlimited opportunities to reach niche markets and the masses targeting.

Working the Threads

The best method for developing a memorable Net presence is through discussion lists. There are thousands of different groups and mail lists from the highly specialized to those that are completely free flowing. Postings to these lists reach a large audience. Many web sites are now offering their own message boards to stimulate topical interaction between web visitors. E-mail discussion lists are an excellent source of leads.

Subscribe to the lists, familiarize yourself with the FAQs, rules and posting style of the group before your first public post.

To market your business through a discussion group effectively, it is recommended that your web site feature informative articles, resource lists, and tips. Post a message to relevant discussion groups announcing articles, tips, or resources being featured on your site. Change your content regularly, each content addition or change warrants a discreet public plug.

Do not cross post, send your announcement to one list at a time. Many people and some Newsgroups filter out cross postings. Don't post a message that looks like a bunch of hype, such as the overuse of caps, exclamation marks or grandiose claims. It looks like Spam and most likely will be regarded as such.

If it's not possible or you don't feel comfortable writing your own copy, link to a site that provides information or education basics in your field or offer a page of resources and tools. If you write but don't have the ability to make changes or add content to your site, post your article on the discussion lists with your SIG displayed.

Many discussion lists are associated with web sites. Contribute an article or volunteer work for a byline with your URL and see if you can exchange a link.

To create a positive and powerful business presence on discussion groups, be helpful and friendly. If someone is looking for information or assistance and you are able to help, do so, by all means. Lending friendly assistance while wearing your SIG proudly, is the best online Public Relations strategy I know of.

Be a friend.

When you post publicly, your SIG advertises to hundreds, if not thousands, of people. This is the single most effective system of networking on the Internet. You establish a presence and develop a network. Networking among Internet professionals is alive and thriving.

Spam, Flames and Competitors

A savvy business person promotes their service and products without blatant, in your face, billboard style messages. If you have recently shared information about your services, on the open group, respond to following leads for your services. Mass mailed messages to private e-mail, Usenet or Mail Discussion lists is considered Spam. If you are Spam you will be permanently filtered out of many in-boxes and your professional reputation on the Internet will be darkened in the most profound of ways.

Flames are a public confrontation. There are people out there seething with anger and frustration. They apparently have plenty of time on their hands and not much to lose. You do have much to lose by responding.So just don't. Not even to defend assaults or accusations. Be prepared to be accused of being labeled a "nazi" or "moron" and just about any other offensive title possible for even the most innocent remarks. Let it slide, you are a business professional online and you are known for your words and reactions. Quotes become misattributed and you don't want your good name posted under tangled threads.

Be your competitors friend! Go out of your way to be congenial and helpful to your competition. NEVER speak ill of competitors.

My competitors sent me my first business on the Internet! Now I'm sending them business. Self employment is often feast or famine. A strong referral network of aligned professionals can help even out the work load. Make it worth other professional's time to send business your way. I reward my "finders" liberally. Consider how time consuming marketing and searching for leads can be. Referrals are pure gold. I want to do anything I can to keep them coming!

Webs, Guest books, Links, Rings, Banners

The web offers endless opportunities for free advertising. Target your audience. Establish a connection with sites that offer complimentary services. For Internet Marketing, I contact site providers, designers, producers, and new web businesses. I also market off-line in my own geographical area, so I look for business web sites within my community.

Visit your competitor's sites. See what they are offering and how it is being presented. Sign the guest book or send them an e-mail and say something nice.

Signing a guest book is like handing out a business card, only better. Guest book entries deserve a reciprocal visit to their site and a reply. Always reply to any person showing interest, offering help or just being friendly. Respond to everything except flames.

Guest books entries are open for viewing and many people do. Set time aside each day for signing guest books on web sites offering services or products related to yours or who target the same clientele. Don't just leave your e-mail and URL. Tell them what you really liked about their site, the articles, the graphics, links the format, etc. Briefly share something about yourself.

When you see a site you would like to link with, send an e-mail asking permission and explaining why you are feel a link is good idea. Sites with link collections often include information and forms to facilitate your listing.

A plethora of web marketing innovations have been developed to make doing business on the web more convenient for the client and beneficial for business, such as malls, web rings and reciprocal banner programs. These can be very effective. You will need to carefully evaluate these programs to determine which would benefit your business and serve your clients best.

Every marketing strategy above is FREE. There are so many free marketing sources available online that you are only limited by your time. If business is slow, spend your time marketing yourself! When business picks up don't forget to keep marketing, even if means paying someone to do it for you.

Breads Cast Upon the Waters

If you want to be successful in business you better be successful as a friend. Not just a friend long enough to attempt to sell your product, but sincerely a person who genuinely likes and cares about others. If you don't enjoy socializing hire someone that does to represent your company. These contacts do pay off. If you want to be known online, you want to be known in the positive sense.

If you are sincerely interested in helping others you have the best marketing profile there is, especially on the Internet.