CPM ) Cost Per Thousand) This is an advertising model based on cost of 1000 impressions of your ezine or web ads. If a publisher is selling advertising for $45 CPM, you would pay $45 for one thousand impressions of your advertisement, or .045 cents each per impression.

CTR (Click Through Ratio) The number of people who click through a link or banner compared to number of people who view it. If 2 site visitors out of 100 click through a banner, you have a CTR of 2/100=.02 or 50:1 (or 2%).

Conversion Rate The percentage of visitors to your site who perform your Most Wanted Response -- subscribe, register, purchase, etc. If 10 out of 100 unique visitors perform your MWR, your conversion rate is 10/100 or 10%.

CPC (Cost Per Click) This is cost of attracting a visitor to your web site. You calculate it using following formula: CPC=CPM/(CTR x 1000)

If you paid $45 CPM for a banner ad with a CTR of 1%, your CPC would be $45 / (.01*1000) or $45/10 = $4.50 Each site visitor is costing you $4.50.

CPA (Cost Per Action) This is an online advertising model in which advertiser's payment is based on number of people who perform Most Wanted Response (i.e. subscribe, register, purchase, etc.)

PPC (Pay Per Click) In this advertising model, payment is based on qualifying clickthroughs. The publisher delivers your advertising material to qualified viewers. You are charged for each one that clicks through ad.

PPL (Pay Per Lead) In this advertising model, payment is based on qualifying leads supplied. For example, a publisher might pay you a set amount for each visitor you send who subsequently provides contact information or subscribes to an ezine.

PPS (Pay Per Sale) This is an advertising model in which you are paid a commission for each qualified sale that results from your activities.

Hybrid Model This is a combination of two or more marketing models. It might, for example, combine CPM and CPC models.

Got it all sorted out? Good. HAGD. (Have a Good Day!)

For example: My barber can join local bakery, video store, pizza parlor, coffee shop and florist to develop a "Neighborhood Comfort Catalog." The catalog simply lists each store and benefits they provide (plus discounts on products and services!). Each partner places catalog in their respective stores and uses it to refer business to each other.

Octopus Marketing starts with an effective message. Businesses must define how they uniquely contribute to community and translate that into an effective story. By developing a message based on their passion, businesses reveal benefit they offer to themselves and their customers.

After identifying their own unique benefits, a business owner can then partner with others and define main benefit that Octopus Network offers to community. This benefit is what will move customers to action.

With message identified they can then discover unique ways to market each other's businesses or conduct joint promotions. It can be as simple as asking customers if they have tried fresh pizza next door or passing out coupons that offer discounts on their goods and services. The result is that reach of their tentacles grows.

To stretch tentacles of Octopus even further, businesses can partner with larger organizations to get word out. Combine community octopus with a neighborhood church, temple or community organization. These organizations reach a lot of potential customers.

Businesses should continue to tap Octopus to keep network thriving. They can approach local neighborhood paper to publish comfort catalog in a special community page. Or find out if local gym or YMCA will distribute it to their members. What about Chamber of Commerce, isn't it there to help?

By uniting together, small businesses can strengthen community, deliver what customers need plus help create opportunity for nation's collective future. One small business at a time, we will build a compassionate nation that spends money on good stuff.