Creating a website promotions strategy is one of the most important tasks a web site owner or webmaster should do. It is where the sales process starts. There are literally thousands of ways for small business web marketing; this article will cover the three top tips to get customers to your site.
#1 - SELL THE CLICK.

            Promotions strategies can be a one or a two point sales system. If you are marketing on the web or in print, then it is usually a two point system. Which means, the first part of your promotions strategy is to get people to your website (or into your store). Your only goal in your advertising in this strategy is getting people to click. Your sales copy on your website is then responsible to convert them to buyers.
If in traditional media like newspaper ads you are paying per word, then this strategy makes even more sense.
So how do you do that? Start with a juicy, curiosity creating headline that will leave the reader wanting more, then call them to action - in this case, visit your website.
You could choose from thousands of places to 'sell the click' from PPC (pay per click) advertising, traditional media ads, online ads, banners, page rankings and any other way you can think of to promote yourself online.
#2 - TEST AND MEASURE YOUR RESULTS.

             Test and measure, measure and test. Why do I repeat this? Because it's a vital part of any promotions strategy. You have to know what works and what doesn't. When creating your ad, come up with at least ten different ones. Test all of them, perhaps a week or two apart and actively check the results. Are you getting the clicks (which is your primary goal)? Does a different ad get more or less results? Do you find a particular headline works best on a particular day or month or around a particular event? Take note and keep a record.
A good ad will pay for itself many times over, but a poor one will cost you money. Which one would you prefer to use?
Always keep testing and measuring and you will soon learn that this very action alone can increase your sales over time.
#3 - DECIDE ON A BUDGET.

             As simple as this might sound, it's important. You need to keep a handle on how much you spend on your advertising and only increase your budget when your sales increase.
If your budget is zero, or nearly zero, then you are still able to get traffic to your site even if you advertise for free.
There are thousands of places out there that you can do that.
You have a choice, time or money. That is; you can choose to use more of your time which will cost you less money, or you can use more money and spend less time. That's entirely up to you.
If you want to keep costs to a minimum, one of the best free options is to write articles like this and submit them often. The key is to write a lot of articles. If you can't think of what to write, log into an article directory and read articles in your interest category. You obviously can't use the articles but they will give you some excellent ideas for your own. The more articles you write and have published, the more one way marketing links (backlinks) you will get - and the search engines currently favour them.
Another free option to consider is lead generation sites. There are a lot out there, some are better than others. In short, you sign up (for free in many cases) and submit your ad. In return you agree to receive ads from other members. This can be a great way to get traffic, but it's also a very effective way to fill your inbox. Get a new email address specifically for this if you chose to take this path.
Of course, there are hundreds if not thousands of ways to promote your site. Most business owners forget the value of traditional media such as newspaper or magazine advertising, press releases and radio advertising. There is more information about this topic and marketing your small business website on my site.