One of best aspects of IYP at this time is that it can be accessed in a relatively inexpensive way by many small businesses. So it’s feasible for even smallest business to check out various IYP options, and try them out for a while to see which works best. A business can buy into several programs, because IYP plans come in a variety of configurations, from national to very local.

At present time, much about phenomenon of “local search” is new, and relatively untested. But given that online browsing and shopping by consumers is growing, it is clear that some channels of local online promotion will turn out to be winners. Business owners seeking to stay abreast of developments in this fast-changing field should give adequate consideration to IYPs.

Neil Street is co-founder of Small Business Online, based in Wilton, CT., a website design, management, and promotion company dedicated to Internet needs of small business. His website is at http://www.smallbusinessonline.net Send email to neil@smallbusinessonline.net He can also be reached at (203)761-7992.

On these sites you can dig up information on anything from current world events and your favorite Spanish soccer team, to cattle tagging regulations in Argentina (no kidding) and exploding online auction markets in mainland China.

News from around world on virtually any subject waits literally just a few keystrokes and a mouse-click away.

An incredibly useful feature offered by many of these sites includes email notification based on your keyword search criteria.

So instead of paying a "clipping" service to find articles and send them to you, these websites will do it free.

Now how could you use this type of news notification service?

Well, imagine you own stock in a specific company. You could subscribe to a number of different news services and have them send you breaking stories about company, CEO, affiliated companies and anything else you choose.

Or, let's say you deal in a very specific industry, such as real estate investment publishing.

You could sign up to get notified any time a news story gets published about changing regulations, interest rates or other factors affecting your business.

All this online news certainly does not rate a substitute for morning coffee, local and national news, and an important ritual to start day, but it has a place, especially for extremely specialized areas of interest, hobbies, or business news.

Watch for many new services, software, and opportunities to arise from this growing and dynamic area of online publishing.