Consultants, specialists, and/or other departments within your company will eagerly give advice from their viewpoints. You will hear benefits of focusing on "___" (Fill in blank with appropriate specialty.). This is not a bad thing; it is their job to sell you on advantages of their specialties. It is *your* job to probe for downsides and tradeoffs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Different Perspectives ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back in my brand management days, it was sometimes frustrating when individual departments could not grasp The Big Picture. The graphics department and outside ad agency wanted to get artsy when artsy wasn't best strategy. Manufacturing was only worried about throughput and efficiency - never mind what customer wanted. Each department was doing what it could to optimize its own function, but this did not always work in The Big Picture. If all functions were "optimized", it could be to detriment of project. When resources are spread too thin and timelines expand, implementation suffers.

In virtual world same Big Picture problems occur. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) firms focus on page optimization and submission. Copywriters tout best way to write content. PR firms tell you how to send press releases. Marketing gurus sell proven programs. Yes, 95% of advice makes sense in theory. Toss in a dose of reality, however, and you may have an unmanageable mess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Big Picture ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The problem is, no matter how great your product or how gorgeous your website, you need traffic. If people can't find you, they can't buy from you either. Consistent, dedicated marketing will help you to draw interested prospects to your business. Here are a few strategies...

1. Search engines. Optimize your pages and submit your site to major SEs. If you're able to rank within top 10 or 20 sites for a particular key phrase, you'll be treated to a steady stream of targeted traffic. A good place to learn more about SE optimization is http://www.searchenginewatch.com/ .

2. Targeted link exchanges. Find other good sites within your market and offer to trade links. You and your 'link partner' will both benefit from each other's traffic ... plus some of major SEs are now using 'link popularity' to help determine your ranking. 'Zeus' is a neat little robot that can help you with your linking efforts. Find it at http://www.cyber-robotics.com/index.htm .

3. Build your own opt-in newsletter. Your own newsletter gives you opportunity to build your credibility and keep in touch with your customers. You'll be able to market your own products or services to them as well - and even earn some extra income from advertising sales. Find a quick tutorial on starting your own newsletter at http://www.buildyourhomebiz.com/ezine/ .

4. Ezine advertising. Ezines are a very affordable way to reach thousands of targeted prospects for just a few dollars. A great place to pick up deals on advertising is http://www.ezineadauction.com/ .

5. Network through message boards. Join a forum where potential customers or partners may congregate. Become a contributing and respected member by offering help and support. Leave your link at bottom of your posts; people who have come to know you will click on your link for more information about you and your business. Careful, though - it's easy to spend too much time 'chatting'! Search for appropriate forums at ForumOne, http://www.forumone.com/index/index.php .

6. Referral marketing. Encourage your customers to refer others to you. You may want to give them an incentive to do so - for example, provide them with a discount on their next order, or offer a quality free gift.