All too often, companies, organizations, and self-employed individuals spend a great deal of time and resources launching their web sites. Once site goes live, people seem to believe internet search engines will bring them business they need. The truth is, web site is only one key marketing tool used to represent a company, often from a distance. The marketing genius who creates site must continue to come up with innovative ways to keep site “fresh” and in minds of consumers who are in need of products or services.

Spam NO MORE

Let’s face it, we all hate SPAM. But many U.S. companies have been reliant upon SPAM as their main internet marketing tool. Why? The top three reasons are because it’s cheap (practically free), fast, and efficient. Yet nobody likes being “spammed” so why annoy a potential customer or client? The good news is that anti-spam laws have just been passed in U.S. Sure; companies will still send SPAM from across border. People will still despise SPAM. Instead of irritating your potential customers and clients, try luring them to your web site in different, more memorable ways.

Lure Them with Content

One thing that does gain you a higher standing on web browsers is changing content of your web site frequently. No need to change it from top to bottom. Just have your web designer put a few lines of text on your home page indicating you want to give “expert advice” or a “news flash” pertaining to your field. Link this to an article that you’ve written about your area of expertise – whatever your business or organizational interests are. Write one per month and post new article (or a partial link to it) on your home page.

Professional Grade Writing

No matter what customers say they want, what they're really looking for is "something special." They can't quite describe it, but when they find it, they know.

Indeed, those little details of buying experience may appear intangible. But what you sell is usually less important to customers, almost incidental--unless they don't get what they expected.

As Walt Disney said, "Do what you do so well that people want to bring their friends to see you do it again." Any business able to satisfy customers in these five ways will consistently beat competition.

NOTICE: More important than WHAT you provide, is HOW you provide it.

So much attention is paid to WHAT, HOW often takes a backseat. Yet it's quality of your HOW that determines whether sale is made or lost. Buyers focused only on price are likely to be one-time visitors, but even they sometimes decide cheapest price "just isn't worth it."

1. How well they're treated People (even business buyers) care about human touch. They want to be treated with respect and fairness. They want to feel like valued customers--whose time and opinions matter. If people can't trust you to treat them right, they certainly won't trust you with their money. Whether or not sale occurs depends on whether customer feels taken for granted--or taken.

Equally important is how business deals with problems or complaints as they arise. Making mistakes needn't be fatal, customers understand that. However, willingness to fix them and minimize their impact on buyer is crucial. Solving it immediately, with right attitude, can even strengthen bond. But fumbling ball a second time simply isn't forgiven.