Three Ways to Market Your Website

No matter how great your website is, it won't churn the incredible revenue you're seeking unless it is properly marketed. Today's core strategies typically revolve around two mainstays: pay-per-click (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO). Both PPC and SEO are excellent website marketing strategies, though often highly competitive. Being unique is an asset, which is why the following strategies represent three surefire ways to market your website.

Give something valuable away

Remember when you couldn't expect something for nothing? Those days are long gone as today's online customer craves free information and services. Ergo, one of the best ways to market your website is to develop content or an application that is relevant and useful so it carries high value for your target audience. Your offer should be unique so it piques interest; beyond that, it could be entertaining, fun, informative, helpful, etc. An online pet store, for example, could develop a tool that matches personality types to ideal matching dog breeds. The great thing about developing something valuable is that people who like what you have will share it. This is where social networking comes in - generate buzz through social website submissions and by distributing press releases to members of the media. If your offer is truly great, others will support and promote it for you.

Direct mail

A direct-mail marketing campaign for a website? Believe it or not, one of the most powerful promotional tools for websites today is the postcard. Think about it: When you take out online advertising, your ad is almost always competing with someone else's on the same page. But because far fewer online companies market with direct mail, a postcard is likewise far less likely to face mailbox competition. Postcards are a quick read, make a great impression, are cost-efficient, and are easy for your customers to carry with them to the computer so they can log on to get your great offer. Postcards aren't the only direct-mail marketing strategy you should consider employing. Booklets, calendars, brochures and other printed direct mailers are excellent tools for driving traffic to your website, especially when they're packed with valuable tips and information.

Events

There's social networking, and then there's face-to-face networking, which has more influence than any other form of marketing. Hold a conference or seminar to introduce prospects to your website and to show them how they can put it to use for their benefit. You can also host simple informative seminars on how to do something relevant within your niche. A pet store, for example, could hold a demonstration on how to properly trim a dog's nails. Naturally, the recommended clipper would be available for online purchase. Make sure you print plenty of take-away materials, including brochures, booklets, calendars, table tents, posters and stickers bearing your URL. And don't forget your business cards! SEO and PPC are staples of successful website marketing, but they're certainly not the only avenues available to you. The more channels you explore, the more likely you are to find one that's untapped by your competition. Best of all, each website marketing strategy here increases your website popularity, ultimately enhancing other strategies such as SEO.