An e-book can generally be accessed on any computer, without installation, so that the information it contains can be displayed. It can be downloaded any number of times by visitors, from the server on which it is resident. It is simply a downloadable file, often formed by compressing a number of files together.

An individual is able use his or her time constructively, while reading e-books, since these often provide information that can be of value and prove to be useful, in some way or the other.

Some e-books can, in fact, if the reader were to review these with care, provide information that would not be easy to access anywhere else. These can also include a lot of relevant information about the services or products offered by a company, along with information about the company itself and its business partners.

So, not only do e-books enable the promotion of services or products, but these also provide value in terms of useful information. These are, therefore, tools for marketing online. These remain in operation for years on end, on all days of the week and throughout the day as well as the night and, so, can make huge contributions to the promotion of all that a business has to offer to its clients or customers, if they like the contents of the e-books. These can be distributed freely or, as mentioned before, available for download for free.

Information that can be made use of for running marketing campaigns through email can be collected, by asking those who wish to subscribe for an e-book to sign up for free, at the company's website. The data collected could also be utilized for other research requirements.

Besides the company's own website, there are many others where the e-books can be posted. These websites are generally those, the contents of which are in line with those of the e-books. As compared to printed books, these can be made available at a far lower cost and for a span of time that is much longer. These are available much more easily, as well, since all that the individual has to do is to visit the appropriate website and download the e-books on to his or her computer. Depending on the bandwidth available, these can, therefore, be available even within a few minutes and can be read immediately.

However, in order to catch the target audience's attention, the title of the e-book has to be attractive. The number of times the e-book is downloaded is directly proportional to the degree of appeal that its title has for the readers.

Whether the content is developed in-house or an author's permission is sought to include content written by him or her, the quality has to be good. Original content is more likely to attract a larger number of readers. In order to provide maximum exposure to the advertisements for the services that the business provides or the products that it sells, these should be placed on the page containing the list of contents.

In addition to downloadable text format, auto responder and HTML, the e-book should be available in all the formats that it can possibly be made available in. If the e-book can be read using certain software or browsers only, some of the visitors may not take the time to read it, as that would require them to download additional software.

Once the content for the e-book is ready, it has to be promoted aggressively, in order for it to be successful. A campaign for marketing should be planned well in advance. A website that has been designed well is also essential. There are many opportunities that are available for free on the Internet and can be availed of, for the purpose.

Advertisements for other businesses can be included in the e-book, either in order to earn revenue or in return for those businesses agreeing to place advertisements in their e-zines or on their websites, so as to promote the e-book. In this manner, the marketing for the e-book can be done on an accelerated pace.

Free e-book directories can be made use of, for promoting the book online. Also, the exposure of the e-book can be increased, by permitting those who download it to distribute it for free. The forums for discussion, provided by the online directories can also be accessed, for trying to raise awareness levels.