There is so much hype about online marketing that the purpose of this blog entry is to provide you with a checklist for sound, proven, online marketing tactics.

Here are the requirements of a solid online presence (and we go into much more detail about this information when you join our Network):

1. A website with the following components: compelling benefit-driven headline; testimonials to provide proof of your excellence; an irresistible marketing message; an offer to capture visitor information so you can follow up; great education that addresses your target market's most pressing issues; a number of ways to contact you; and copy that is about your prospect (not you) and draws your visitors in.

2. A mechanism to follow up with prospects via email. The emails you send are informational and build up your trust, value, and credibility. They also make a series of low-risk offers to build even more trust with your prospects (e.g., participation in a free webinar). It takes 5-7 positive interactions with a prospect for them to trust you enough to buy from you online!

3. Your website is optimized for search engines. Note that many web designers cannot do this well, and that a specialized SEO firm may be required.

4. You have a variety of strategies to drive traffic to your site while also increasing your search engine rankings: article marketing, reciprocal links (preferably triangular links as double are questionable), social networking, participation in blogs and forums, registration as an expert for media interviews, press releases, etc.

5. You test different offers on your website to maximize conversion. Traffic is easy to drive to your website. Getting people to convert to customers is the hard part.

6. You test various Pay Per Click services like Google to determine if these can help you drive traffic to your site (traffic that actually becomes customers).

7. You rigorously measure traffic and purchase behavior on your site, and constantly improve.

8. You reach out to affiliates and partners who can promote your products and services in exchange for a commission or other benefit.

9. The entire experience of ordering from you meets your customers' expectations, including follow up support.

10. You constantly offer your existing customers new products and services, and give them something special in return for their loyalty.