There is a very simple formula which you should always remember when it comes to selling a product or service, or simply trying to get traffic to your website. That formula is:

Outflow = Inflow

Clarified, all this means that the amount of inflow you receive (traffic, sales, etc.) will be equal to the amount of outflow (promotion, marketing) you put into it. This is not to say that to make a dollar you have to spend a dollar on promotion. That would be crazy. But, it does say that your income will be directly proportional to your outflow.

One might think this is common sense, but I assure you it isn't. I can't count the number of times I have either worked with in some way or heard about a company who is in the financial red and the first thing they do is cut down on their promotion budget. This is the absolute wrong move to make, because that promotion is what brings in customers. And customers bring in money which is what staying in business is all about. There is no rule saying that your promotion has to be expensive or perfect, but the answer is simply to get something out there, not to stop it altogether. Economizing is important, but not at the expense of cutting your own throat.

This formula is so funny, let me give you a case history. An old client of mine had me set up a basic mass email system for his new website. It was very simplistic, but it served his purposes. He wanted to promote his company to his mailing list, but in setting up the email, he accidently sent it without no content at all. In other words, his mailing list received a totally blank email. As it turns out, he got more response from that blank email than any promotion he had sent out to date. So, quality is not necessarily as important as quantity, as this story makes clear.

So, if you are looking to promote your website and any product or service it may provide (or even just get more traffic for your content site), you need to pour on the promotion. Here are some ways to do that:

* Set up a newsletter
* Set up a tip of the day
* Set up an announcement list
* Have your web forum send out emails automatically

The motto is to make communication flow from you outward to the internet. In these cases, you will be using your mailing list. If you do not have a mailing list, start one. Promote it everywhere and you will get people to sign up. I would not recommend purchasing a mailing list as those people are cold leads. However, your most important datum is simple: outflow equals inflow.