3. Traditional Media Strategies

Website promotion should be a mix of online and offline strategies. Traditional media tools apply successfully to increase traffic and get more visitors.

Promote your website URL on business cards, stationery and company documents.

Don't ignore the importance of the traditional media. Include your URL in any display in newspapers, magazines and so on. Many people do use the yellow and white pages to search for services. Make sure your company is listed and provide the URL along your listing as well.

Send your clients business greeting cards on proper occasions. These will act as reminders and help maintain good communication channels between you and your customers.

Use your local TV and Radio to promote your website. Advertisements on national TV are really expensive, but do use them if you have the money.

Print informational brochures and periodicals. For periodicals don't just ramble about a topic: make them worth reading. Send them free to business partners, clients, journalists and research centers.

Develop a free service (related to your business field) to attract clients to your website: a free online insurance calculator, a free e-book, free software, etc.

4. Email Strategies

Emails are virtual corporate letters. Email can be used to send out answers to inquiries, news, offers, advice and much more. The first and most important rule when it comes to business email is: DON'T SPAM! The rest comes naturally.

No matter what business email you send out, always use a signature: your name, position, company address and phone numbers, website URL. Always include the http:// in front of your domain name, as many email software programs fail to convert simple www. into links.

Publish an eNewsletter (“ezine”): this is a periodical electronic publication with useful information for your clients. You may include in the eNewsletter articles, press releases, news and special offers. But don't forget to include a visible link to your website as well.

Send your clients special offers, discount coupons, product updates and so on. These should be personalized, clear and to the point. Once again: don't spam.

There are email marketing companies that have developed lists of people who have agreed to receive commercial emails. You could use such a service, but if you do, make sure it's not a type of “pay to read email” company. To pay for something like this will do you no good, as people who get paid to read emails don't really care about your message, but just click on the links to get a commission per click.

Up to now you've learned the importance of search engine strategies, how to develop a solid linking strategy, how the traditional media tools boost site popularity and what email strategies work best to promote your website. In the third and last part of this short guide, we will show you how to use paid advertising effectively. We will also take a look at some miscellaneous website promotion tools.