By Anita Bruton

Promoting your business online

Is your business online or is it a traditional brick and mortar business? No matter which type of business you have, promoting your business online brings you an expanded market. If you want your business to explode globally there are several things you can do to help it get there.

Let us look at some of these ways to promote your business online.

Article Marketing

Online article marketing serves a dual purpose. It provides publishers with free content and advertisers with free advertising. Articles written specifically for the writers target market are distributed to a number of online publishers catering to those markets as well as article directories like Ezine Articles. Writers are able to target their audience with informative content, sent to an already interested group of readers. The more articles you submit, the more you become recognized as an expert in your field.

Blogs

A blog for your business will provide you with an opportunity to share your expertise and knowledge with a larger audience. A blog is an easy way to add informative content to your site, making it more search engine friendly. Blog posts should be short, 250 to 400 words is optimal. Be sure to provide information to your visitors related to your business, but helpful and informative to their needs.

Email Marketing Campaigns

Email Marketing plays a vital role in a business’s marketing plan. It allows you to build customer loyalty and gain new customers. One of the most cost effective ways of generating profits is to use effectively the power of email to communicate with your subscribers. Fill your email campaigns with informative and interesting material and you will find yourself reaping the benefits.

Web Content

The home page of your website should capture your visitor’s attention and keep them there. It is the most important page of your entire site. You have only five to seven seconds to peak the visitors interest and keep them on your site. On this one page, you need to tell your visitor what your site is about as well as entice them to explore your site.

Make sure that your site has good, useful information that people want. Be brief and direct. Your Website is the door to your store, whether you are selling products or services. Be sure that you make a good first impression on your visitors and keep them browsing your pages.

CONCLUSION

I touched only on the highlights of each form of Internet promotion, Even if your goal is just to increase business locally, using any of these methods will help to increase your client base.

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Anita Bruton is a freelance writer specializing in providing promotional and marketing material to small businesses, entrepreneurs and other business professionals. Visit her website at http://www.anitaspen.com to receive her complimentary report: Six Strategic Ways to Promote Your Business Online.

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For the third year in a row, Miracles of Hope, http://www.miracles-of-hope.com, is collecting Prom Dresses for Katrina Victims through Becca‘s Closet, http://www.beccascloset.org.

The Prom Dress campaign, for those who don’t know the story, began with Rebecca Kirtman, a remarkably caring 16 year old from Florida. In the spring of her freshman year at Nova High School, Rebecca started a dress bank to provide dresses and accessories to high school girls who wanted to attend their prom or homecoming but could not afford it. That year, Becca was able to collect over 250 prom dresses. Regretfully, Becca passed away in a tragic automobile accident on August 20, 2003, but her legacy goes on through the efforts of friends and family.

Last year Becca’s Closet and Sharon Stone’s organization, Planet Hope, helped Miracles of Hope with every single girl who contacted them for help. In addition, Planet Hope also donated two designer gowns, along with accessories of jewelry and perfume for the girls. Donations are accepted all year long, however, the deadline for this prom season is April.

Miracles-of-hope.com is helping direct collections to the areas who need help, for example, there is a group of 40 high school musicians who are going to New Orleans to give a concert and donate 100K worth of musical instruments. They contacted Miracles of Hope because a couple of the girls want to collect gowns so they are setting them up for their collection to go to a Becca’s Closet chapter in that area. Denise Marhoefer, founder of Miracles of Hope, also says that, “anyone who would want to collect and be responsible for sending them to the Katrina area can collect for me that way, I have people on the ground there who can distribute.” She goes on to say that she is concentrating on helping the hardest hit areas this year.

The Miracles of Hope Network is a fantastic organization dedicated to helping children all over the world. The description on their website states, “Miracles Of Hope Network is made up of child agencies, organizations, and celebrities world-wide, who are dedicated to the creation and restoration of good in the lives of children.” These agencies and organizations include: The Defense Foundation for Children, The Juvenile Defender, Healing Horses, Brainstormers INC, and 911 Gear.

You can visit http://www.miracles-of-hope.com and view a “RockYou” slideshow of the beautiful gowns. It is amazing to see one girl’s legacy touch so many hearts. The inspired spirit of humanity moves on.

If you would like to assist in this worthwhile project, please visit http://www.beccascloset.org to either find a chapter near you or start a chapter of your own. You can also contact Denise Marhoefer at defensefoundation@gmail.com for information about sending dresses directly to the Katrina area for distribution.

Written in collaboration with Mary Beth Marino, The Writing Editor, www.thewritingeditor.com

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