Psychologists recently sought answers to these questions by assembling a number of equally attractive women volunteers, then assigning them to take classes with groups of college men for an entire semester.

Some of women attended 5 classes each week with men, while others attended only 3 or 1.

When semester was over and men were asked to rate their women classmates in terms of attractiveness, results were revealing: It consistently showed that more classes they shared with each woman, more attractive (and desirable) they perceived that woman to be.

So as far as human nature is concerned, it appears that Hannibal Lecter's observation in "Silence of Lambs" is true: We desire what we see most often -- even to point of coveting it.

And what does this insight have to do with way you run your business / market your products on web?

A LOT.

Familiarity Breeds Desire -------------------------

The more frequently your potential clients NOTICE your products, more DESIRABLE they'll perceive your products to be -- and more chances you'll have of developing business relationships with them.

But becoming visible & desirable doesn't have to spell "unaffordable" to small business owners. Because chances are, you already know a number of low-cost ways to be SEEN by target surfers on web. The only question now is, do they really NOTICE you when they do?

Here are 5 ways to make sure you (and your website, and your products) appear VISUALLY OUTSTANDING in first place, and mute hundreds of other stimuli surfers usually get on net.

1. CAPTURE WITH COLOR --------------------- It's true that different colors can evoke different emotions, and greatly influence how long someone will stay on a website or look at an ad. So besides choosing background & graphic colors for readability, choose them also for emotions they'll evoke.

Here are some of most common colors & their general effects, divided into 2 types:

HOT COLORS Hot colors are bright, and not very good for long-term eye exposure. They're best used for graphics & important text -- anything that you want to really draw attention to.

* RED - energizes, gives a sense of heat, excites * ORANGE - stimulates any existing emotion a surfer already has * YELLOW - illuminates, provokes thinking

COOL COLORS Cool colors are easy on eyes and produce a calming effect. This makes it safe for them to be used extensively in graphics, text, and even in backgrounds.

And average knowledge worker receives LOTS of e-mails each day. In fact, most of us receive so many that we feel overwhelmed and almost paralyzed when we look at screen showing how many new mails we have received. Yet despite e-mail's ubiquity and popularity, users, in general, are not proficient at its use. So here are ten tips to help you make most out of this critical business tool... without letting it consume you.

1. Get right fit.

Firstly, you need to determine if e-mail is right vehicle for your communication. It is - if and only if - if meets at least one of these criteria:

„h The content of communication needs to be documented.

„h The recipient is unavailable (by phone, instant messaging or in person), not co-located or in a different time zone

„h It is not time-sensitive.

„h There are multiple recipients who are not co-located or available simultaneously. (Read caution below in Number 3 about broadcasting e-mails).

„h The subject does not require a lot of back and forth discussion.

Even if you decide that e-mail is right medium, don't create a mail or respond too quickly or emotionally to e-mails you receive. "Sometimes phone is better for difficult interactions. You need personal contact to resolve matters and certainly don't want to document things in ways you may later wish you hadn't said." cautions Janet Jordan, communications expert at Keynote Communications in Boston.

2. What's my objective, anyway?

As with any business correspondence, before you put finger to key, you should really ask yourself, what is my objective in sending this mail. Is it to inform, persuade, motivate, request action, etc.? Knowing this up front will help you craft an effective e-mail.

3. Whose business is it?

Don't copy world. Just ensure that people who really need to see this communication receive a copy of it. If it needs to go to a group list, it is probably content that is better posted in a team room or to an intranet site. The mail you send should just reference where recipients can find information.

Copying a large number of people or sending it to a group list causes two potential problems. First, many people who don't need to see it do, and you are clogging up their in-boxes; and Secondly, by "cc:ing world", you can easily detract from effectiveness of your message. Studies show that when faced with a deluge of e-mail, many of your fellow human beings filter out e-mail that appears to be for masses. Essentially we're facing electronic version of "this doesn't apply to me syndrome" that has plagued humankind for ages. The message: if you want to reach individuals don't treat them like masses.

4. Make subject clear, direct and accurate.

The Subject line can be most important part of mail. It can be factor which helps recipient determine if he/she is going to open it. So, make it clear and as descriptive as possible. How many times do you see a subject like: re:re:re:re:re:re:re:re:re:re:fwd:stro? If you are forwarding a mail or replying to a mail - change subject if you need to make it more accurate. Mark things urgent, or routine, in subject. But use 'urgent' sparingly - if you mark everything urgent, you may unknowingly build a name for yourself as "boy who cried wolf" and cause people to eventually disregard urgency of your mails (and even cause a few snickers as people review their in-boxes).

5. Set scene.