smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

No one likes a pushy salesman. A sharp suit, overly gelled hair and a talent for small talk are of little use if a person has no interest in buying that double-glazing or changing a utility supplier.

This is equally true online. Randomly and repeatedly firing emails to market your business will do more harm than good. You'll find your messages in the trash with offers of Viagra, Russian brides and those "once-in-a- lifetime", money-spinning opportunities that are yours for the taking if you just hand over all your financial details.

While too much can be made of web analytics, there's no doubt that you should take time to study traffic to your site. Sit down and work out the following (use sites like Alexa.com and Google Analytics):

- What text links are getting the most hits?
- How can you keep the site fresh and interesting?
- What searches and key words are popular?

Could special offers and incentives be used to try and increase sales? (check out online retailer Asos.com to see a well put together website)

Use that customer information before launching e-newsletters, alerts and marketing campaigns. Think about who you're targeting among your customer base and tailor what you send out accordingly (in the same way that a direct mail campaign, if it's to be effective, should be focused).

The flip side is to not have a website or to have a page that only says what you do and where you're based (normally referred to as a "brochure website"). The vast majority of small businesses fall into the latter category, failing to see how additional revenue can be generated by taking a few simple steps.

With online shoppers predicted to spend £13.1 billion in the final quarter of 2008, that could be a costly oversight.