FIRST THINGS FIRST: DOMAIN NAMES
Before a website goes into design and development, there is one important housekeeping item that needs to be addressed. Domain names (also known as URLs, or uniform resource locators) will need to be purchased. It is strongly recommended that organizations own their domain names and website hosting for ease of management. Having a third party control these elements gives them (not you) power and can incur extra charges or headaches if transitions occur.

Remember that marketing means maximizing relationships (connections, leads, reselling) to grow revenues and profit. Think about marketing not as spending but investing, and make the investments count. Online marketing collateral is a brilliant place to invest (it's low or no cost) and lives forever (unlike print ads, online ads, direct mail, or TV/radio ads that die when you stop paying for them). Consumers today are more conscious and empowered, and they vote with their wallets. They need to know, like, and trust before they buy. Does the online marketing evoke trust? What is being said about your organization on the web? Invest in marketing that supports attracting, developing, and retaining relationships, and it will be an investment that carries an organization for years.

The key goal of online marketing is to maximize relationships, starting with increasing awareness. Online marketing, compared to other marketing media, has the lowest cost and boasts the highest potential to brand,
build, and boost business. There is no right way to approach web marketing. Application varies based on target market, goals, management resources, strategy, previous history, competition, and organizational distinctions.

Awareness: Marketing builds awareness. You can have the best service or product in the world, but if nobody knows, what's the point? Awareness can come from many sources including advertising, search optimization, referrals, online marketing, traditional marketing, word-of-mouth marketing, and, in these online days, "word of mouse" marketing.