The power of Internet as a marketing tool for small business owners cannot be overstated. However, developing a web site is only first piece of this intricate puzzle. Driving traffic to your site is an ongoing, arduous process - one that is most effectively achieved when you employ multiple strategies.

One such strategy is contributing content to web sites, article archives, and "e-zines." Because your URL will be included in your by-line, this is a very inexpensive form of on-line promotion from a number of perspectives:

·A significant percentage of readers will "click-through" to visit your web site ·The increased number of links "pointing" to your site improves its search engine rankings ·Because you have demonstrated your expertise in article, you will generally be held in higher regard than if you were simply advertising or listed in search engine results

The first step in article submission process is to determine your target audience, web sites they visit, and types of articles they enjoy reading.

Let's assume, for illustration purposes, that you want to get attention of human resources professionals. Visit a search engine such as http://www.google.com, and enter phrase "human resources."

Browse some of resulting web sites to get a sense of topics that are currently "hot." If you find that employee retention is a top concern for HR - and you have valuable insights to offer - you're ready to start writing!

Here are some tips to guide you:

·Be sure that your content is informative and useful - not an advertisement for your services ·Keep article length to between 750 and 1,000 words ·Include a four-line by-line that consists of a brief biography, your contact information (i.e., email address and telephone number), and web site URL ·Format your article in a text file with carriage returns inserted at 65 characters or less and create a version in Word or WordPerfect.

Don't overlook carefully proofreading your work. If possible, wait at least one day after writing piece to proofread it and ask a friend, family member, colleague to review it as well. Also consider hiring a writing or editing specialist (such as Affinity Business Communications at http://www.affinitybizcomm.com/) to perform a bit of "wordsmithing."

It's now time to identify appropriate venues for your article. The HR-specific web sites that you found earlier are a perfect place to start. These might include http://www.shrm.org/, http://humanresources.about.com/, and http://www.suite101.com/articles.cfm/human_resources.

But now rules have changed, and although online advertising is still alive and thriving, most web site owners have come to realize that only way most people can REALLY PROFIT on web is to sell a useful product or provide a valuable service --

-- And that they'd be better off doing ad placing rather than subscriber-base-building-AND-ad-spot-selling if they wanted to maximize their business budgets.

Still, building your own mailing list remains a must in any Internet marketer's handbook, with idea that you can use it as your own personal marketing tool.

Because it's a marketing TOOL, it's also supposed to make your job as a business owner EASIER, and there are FOUR THINGS you need to remember to make sure it works (and stays!) that way:

1. Define exactly what you need your mailing list to do. --------------------------------------------------------

Is it for attracting attention of new clients, for keeping old clients interested, or for spotting industry trends and evolving client needs?

Is it for sending more people to visit your website, for getting existing customers to order more products, or for gaining respect & loyalty of people in your industry -- which could lead to referrals, partnerships, and other benefits?

No matter how "worry-free" your mailing list seems to be, managing it (and its subscribers) still takes up a certain amount of your online & offline time.

And it really doesn't make sense to waste ANY time on something you don't even need.

2. Decide on kind of subscribers YOU need. ----------------------------------------------

The old Internet way of thinking was "ANY kind of subscriber is a PROFITABLE subscriber" -- but that just doesn't work on shaken-out web anymore.

Just like your existing clients, mailing list subscribers (who are also POTENTIAL clients) fall into 3 categories:

a) ones who really need what you're offering, and bring you most amount of profit for least amount of time & effort