But if I were referring to business world, you would definitely want your answer to be YES! Good old-fashioned word-of-mouth advertising. It is still one of most effective business builders there is.

Even if people are talking negatively about you and/or your business, it can be a positive for you. This talk might make a person curious enough to check out your business and (hopefully) they will find their experience to be pleasant and satisfactory. Then they would possibly go back to original talker and tell them of their positive experience with your business and original talker would try your business again.

No matter how great you, your employees, and your business are, you cannot please everybody. But you can please MOST people if you run your business efficiently and effectively. Some ways of doing this are:

*Be True to Your Word! You must be trustworthy and do what you promise to do for your customers. Do not make false claims or promises. Your customers will remain loyal if you are true to them.

If you've ever posted an url on a free for all links site, no doubt, you were promptly deluged with dozens of "confirmation e-mails," most of which were nothing more than advertisements for some fancy new product or business program.

If you're new to net, instead of quickly deleting these irritating mails, it may ultimately be to your benefit to sample a few first. Glance inside and study how these advertisers are trying to get your attention. Notice use of language. The catch phrases used. Study how are they trying to entice you to click on their url link and visit their website.

Are they using hardsell? Or are they being somewhat evasive and coy, hinting that you're missing your one final shot at financial success, unless you do something right now! The catch is that you won't know "exactly" what it is they're about, until you take a look-see at their web site. -- A good technique.

Also emulate those techniques which you find to be effective. Or that ring of truth. A good advertisement is one that puts you in a receptive or positive mindset.

And learn what not to do, from those advertisements that you find to be poorly conceived, insulting, awkwardly written, or unprofessional. If you don't like what you're reading. Ask yourself why. You certainly don't want to waste your precious time designing an advertising campaign, that will only turn potential customers off.

One of smartest things you can also do is to memorize names that you come across from day to day. Names such as Allan Gardyne, Ken Evoy, or Corey Rudl, to site a few examples.

This is very important.

You will notice that internet entrepreneurs such as those just mentioned, are accomplished at getting their name, their business, or their product, in front of buying public. And they do it legitimately, without spamming or using other unsavory methods.

In fact, many of these established internet entrepreneurs, never use ffa sites, or any annoying devices such as those gruesome pop-up ads that ensnare your web brower. Most will not post to popular business newsgroups.

But how have you come to recognize their names?