What's smart and profitable thing to do? Create a campaign and be persistent with it. Strategically search out and place multiple ad runs with same ezines. (I use ezine advertising as my example, but same applies to offline ads, banner ads, joint venture projects, affiliate campaigns, etc.) Yes, it costs more, but consider this... would you rather continue wasting money on small one-shot ads that never produce, or save your funds and run 3 sub sponsor or top sponsor ads that bring in sales? I think answer is obvious.

People can't buy from you if they can't find you. Advertising (in one form or another) is a must.

Run a few ads on a trial basis. Ask for recommendations from business associates and select some new ezines to purchase ad space from. Change your headline or your copy to see if one pulls better than other.

It is only by trial and error that we learn and progress. Why? Because what works for one company, may not work for you. What works "so-so" for one company might work better for you! But in order to find out where your customers are and reach them, you have to stick your neck out once in awhile.

Will you make some mistakes along way? Yes. Will you "lose" a little money on advertising? Probably. Will you discover a new and successful way of advertising that brings in stronger results? Almost definitely!

For example, when I started my mask retailing site, I had done enough homework to know that there was a market for a site that sold masks, and masks only. Now, I'm not just talking about your typical Halloween and kids' masks. I offer those, too, but I also offer everything from dust and gas masks to decorative, collector, African, sports, feather, butterfly, animal, and even Indonesian masks. From my research, I knew there were surprising numbers of people out there that collect masks, and even bigger numbers of people who love owning a few just for kicks. I started out with a limited selection, but with demand my site has grown to offer over 450 different masks, both wearable and decorative.

This may seem like a very specific niche, and perhaps it is. However, even if you fill a very specific need, you can still be successful, as long as there are plenty of people with that common interest. Do some research, browse net, and see if you can't carve out a niche for yourself.