In the past year, Twitter has become one of the top online social sharing sites allowing people and companies to broadcast quick, daily snippets. Regular people as well as major celebrities and politicians use Twitter to keep their fans and followers updated on their everyday lives. The world’s top business executives are also using Twitter to keep members of the business community informed as to the state of their respective companies. And, if you follow them, you’ll be the first to know about business deals and events. Here are just some of the biggest names in business that are on Twitter.

1. Richard Branson

Richard Branson, 58, is a knighted, English industrialist estimated to be the 236th richest person in the world according to 2008’s Forbe’s magazine list of billionaires. He’s most famous for his Virgin brand, which now includes more than 360 companies, including Virgin Airways and Virgin Records. His estimated net worth comes out to approximately $2.5 billion USD. His flamboyant and eccentric style and his appearances in shows like The Colbert Report have gained him notoriety in the U.S. On Twitter, you can find out about his upcoming events and learn where to submit your questions to him.

2. Steve Case

Steve Case, 50, is an American business executive, most famous for being the co-founder and CEO of America Online. He gained major notoriety beyond the business world when he headed the merger the $164 billion merger between AOL and Time Warner in 2000, though the merger turned out to be highly problematic. Case resigned from Time Warner board of directors in 2005 and is now focused on working with Revolution LLC, a holding company he founded that same year. On Twitter, Case keeps his followers updated on board meetings and his opinions on the news of the day, from White House politics to the swine flu scare.

3. Kevin Rose

Robert Kevin Rose is a 32-year-old entrepreneur from Redding, California. He’s well known for having co-hosted The Screen Savers, a television show on TechTV, and for his Internet start-ups, the most famous of which is Digg.com, a social news website, where users can post up links to current news stories and comment on them. Stories on the site can be voted up or down. According to Rose, Twitter is a great way for him to quickly make company announcements and share interesting bits of information with people.

4. Tony Hsieh

Harvard graduate Tony Hsieh is the chief executive officer of Zappos.com, an online shoe, clothing, and accessories seller. Before helming Zappos, he sold an internet advertising network, LinkExchange, to Microsoft for $265 million. Hsieh uses Twitter to build a strong company culture and keep customers up to date on the latest Zappos offers and developments.

5. Jason Calacanis

Jason McCabe Calacanis, 38, is an American Entrepreneur who got his start as a blogger. His second online venture relied on the growing popularity of blogs and was eventually sold to AOL. Today, Calacanis runs the “user-powered” search engine Mahalo.com. This site lets people search for information in various categories including, sports, cars, news, entertainment, technology, health and travel. Calacanis says Twitter.com is useful, as it allows Mahalo to give its superfans news and information ahead of time to get their reactions and gauge what the general response to a new product or service might be.

6. Michael Arrington

J. Michel Arrington, 39, is the founder of TechCrunch, a blog that covers technology start ups in Silicon Valley and the field of technology throughout the U.S. He is mentioned often in magazines like Wired and Forbes as one most influential people when it comes to internet businesses and technology. He was also selected in 2008 as one of TIME’s most influential people. Arrington uses Twitter to post links to TechCrunch’s latest blogs.

7. Jack Dorsey

Dorsey, 32, is the creator and chief executive officer of Twitter. He is a software architect whom BusinessWeek called one of technology’s brightest entrepreneurs. Dorsey says that Twitter is the best way to get feedback from users on what the company is doing well and what it should do next.

8. Loic LeMeur

Loic LeMeur is a renouned French blogger. He was the vice president at Six Apart, a software company, after it merged with the blogging company Ublog. Le Meur served as advisor on Internet-related topics to Nicolas Sarkozy during the latter’s presidential run. Today, LeMeur is CEO of Seesmic, a provider of online conversation services. He uses Twitter to as a 24/7 source of feedback for business ideas.

9. Jonathan Schwartz

Jonathan Ian Schwartz is the president and CEO of Sun Microsystems, the company that developed the now universally used JAVA platform. Schwartz uses Twitter to stay in touch with the trends of the technology market, and to communicate with employees and clients.

10. Pierre Omidyar

Pierre Omidyar is the Iranian-American entrepreneur who founded the now internationally known auction website eBay. He is the 120th richest person in the world according to the March, 2008 issue of Forbes magazine. Omidyar uses Twitter to give followers updates on his day-to-day activities as well as business-related developments.

Follow @resourcenation and @betsybrottlund on twitter.

Online social networking is a great way for entrepreneurs to gain exposure, promote their ideas and meet other creative and business-minded people who can help them achieve their goals. In today’s information era, a good knowledge of online social networks is almost mandatory for anyone who wishes to successfully launch their own business.

Networking sites are a good online marketing tool to help you find other entrepreneurs to partner-up with. They also allow you keep track of growing trends and business news. Here is a top 10 list of the best social networking sites geared towards business owners and entrepreneurs.

1. Entrepreneur Connect

Entrepreneur Connect is a networking site created over a year ago by Entrepreneur Media (publishers of Entrepreneur Magazine). You can create your own profile and explore an online community specifically geared towards small business owners and entrepreneurs. The site discourages self-promotion and encourages the open sharing of ideas and resources. Thus, it is a great place to find suppliers, partners and service providers. You can also create your own online business group and start your own blog.

2. Killer Startups

Killer Startups is a site that allows you to look at and review new startup companies as they emerge. Each day has a new list, so that you can see what other entrepreneurs are doing, and maybe get some ideas of your own.

3. Konnects

Konnects is a good site for those looking to advertise themselves. It helps you stay connected with business partners and friends, and gives your profile exposure to potential partners or investors. Self-promotion is definitely encouraged.

4. Young Entrepreneur

Entrepreneurs today are getting younger and younger, in large part as a result of our increasingly technology-based economy. Young Entrepreneur caters to young and aspiring business people. The site is essentially a forum for community discussions, the topics of which range from search engine optimization to internet and IT technology. This is also a good place to blog and find business-related videos.

5. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is probably the most well known networking site for professionals. It is useful for anyone who is looking for a job or trying to connect with possible business partners. You can put up a profile and join a variety of online business groups. The LinkedIn “On Startups” group is by far the most popular on the site, boasting over 54,000 members. Participate actively in the LinkedIn Answers section and get your profile noticed by becoming a key member of your online community.

6. Ziggs

Ziggs can be likened to an online white pages service. You can search for service providers, suppliers and other members of the business community, depending on your needs. It is a great way to connect with like-minded entrepreneurs and get help with that brilliant new startup you’ve been planning for months now. Set up a detailed profile as well, so that other professionals who are searching for your services can find you.

7. StartUpNation

What makes StartupNation useful is its unique content. It has articles, forums, podcasts, blogs, on-demand seminars and various other tools to help entrepreneurs learn about their business and be better prepared to make informed decisions. The topics discussed at StartupNation include marketing and business planning as well as online businesses. There are also site sponsored competitions like the dorm-based 20 contest and the elevator pitch competition. If you’re looking to become a successful business owner, StartupNation, with its comprehensive and dynamic approach to business networking, is a must see.

8. Cofoundr

Cofoundr caters to people with new ideas for online ventures. This site brings together programmers, entrepreneurs, web designers, freelancers and investors. The goal is to enable all of these various groups to join resources to create new, online businesses. Cofoundr is a private network, and so you must register before you are able to view people’s profiles. The requirements for membership into the Cofoundr social network include having a valid work or college email. This prevents younger persons from entering. The way you get started is that you create a profile and then post your business idea up on a bulletin board for discussion. You can also browse through other people’s ideas to see if you might be interested in joining someone else’s project.

9. Biznik

Biznik is similar to LinkedIn in function, to the point where some might be tempted to call it a clone. But Biznik brands itself as a business network that “doesn’t suck”. It is composed of freelancers and business owners. Biznik editors review all profiles to make sure that you are providing your real name and real background information. Basic membership is free. Membership fees start at $10 per month for an enhanced, active profile and go up to $24 per month for increased visibility.

10. Perfect Business

This is one of the best networking sites for serious entrepreneurs looking to find industry experts and investors to partner with. Perfect Business is very good place to find partners and advisers. The site itself is partnered up with the likes of Virgin Money and Entrepreneur Media. It provides members with an extensive video center where you can learn about various tricks of the trade from successful entrepreneurs. Basic membership is free. “Gold Membership” goes for $29.99 per month.

During tough times, it’s easy for people to say “stay positive,” and it gets annoying after awhile. None of the people telling you “don’t worry, be happy” have to pay your mortgage. Still, I’m going to join the chorus and say that this recession has a silver lining. The reason: I know what it’s like to manage a business in a recession.

I had the opportunity to work in the domestic auto industry for most of the last 10 years, and I can tell you that domestic automakers have been in a steady decline since my first days all the way back in 1998. Granted, there were some exceptional points in time (the sales spike in late 2001, for example), but most of my days in domestic auto sales were marked by year over year declines, shrinking sales, and slimming margins. The domestic auto industry has been in a recession much longer than the US economy, and I can tell you that managing a business during a recession is tough, especially one with razor-thin margins.

Still, one of the most important lessons I took from my time in the car business was this one, simple fact: Even if the market as a whole is shrinking, your business can still grow by grabbing more market share.

A recession is a great time to gain market share - here’s why:

1. Mismanaged competitors will bleed customers. Poorly managed businesses can survive (and sometimes thrive) when the economy is booming. After all, there are plenty of opportunities available to cover-up bad practices during the good times. For the next 18-24 months, however, your poorly managed competitors will be coughing up customers left and right. Attack your marketplace by investing in new technology - develop a strong Internet marketing presence today and take advantage of your reeling competitors.

2. Customers use tough times to re-evaluate. During tough times, many people review each and every one of their expenses looking for ways to save. More and more people are using search engines to investigate their options and seek out alternatives. A search engine advertising campaign is a great tool for educating potential customers about the value that your company provides.

3. Customer service counts. During boom times, customer service isn’t necessarily essential to success. In boom times customers don’t have a lot of alternatives, so they’ll usually endure the occasional bad experience to get what they want. However, during a recession, customers have many options available and they don’t need to tolerate poor service. Can your customers (or potential customers) find your business online? Does your company web site provide useful information? Can someone contact you from your website? Are their emails being responded to quickly? If you’re answering “NO” to any of those questions, your customer service is lacking.

4. Your employees will do more. It’s human nature - when the economy is good, everyone relaxes. Your staff isn’t too concerned about job security, so they’re not always interested in taking on new responsibilities or working extra hours. During a recession, however, employees tend to look for ways to make themselves irreplaceable. Now is the time to ask your staff to do more.

5. Trimming the fat is easier. Every business has “fat.” Perhaps you have an employee or a vendor that consistently underwhelms. During boom times, it’s hard to sever that relationship because of your concerns about capacity and keeping momentum. During a recession, it’s much easier to get leaner, meaner, and more efficient. Cut loose employees and vendors that aren’t performing to your satisfaction. When it comes to advertising expenses, ask your advertisers one question - “How much business are you generating for me, exactly?” If they don’t have an answer for you, it’s time you looked at advertising online. Most Internet marketing firms can tell you exactly what your ad budget is accomplishing in terms of web site visitors, email leads, and phone calls.

6. There’s no better time to expand. It’s anathema to recommend business expansion during an economic slowdown, but I’ve seen many auto dealers expand or acquire competitors during tough times. The rationale is simple - during an economic boom, it’s difficult (and expensive) to expand. Hiring new employees, buying real estate, equipment, etc is always pricey when times are good. During a recession, however, things change. Hiring is much easier - you’ll be amazed at the quality of talent you find just sitting on the open market. Capital costs - like buying new equipment and expanding your office - are lower too. It takes guts to expand during a recession, but if you’ve got cash flow, a good product, and a good team, the long-term benefits can be immense.

The bottom line: By utilizing technology, emphasizing results, and improving customer service, your business can gain market share and grow - even in a recession.

Author Jason Lancaster is a Search Engine Expert and President of Spork Marketing, a Denver Internet marketing firm.

Local search is on the rise.  Search engine users are moving away from the one or two word search terms and continue to get more specific.  For example, the individual that is in need of a dentist would have searched for “dentist” in the past.  Over the past few years the average web user has learned how to get better results by typing more information into the search box.

A large portion of these three or four word search phrases include a city or area name (ex. New York Dentist).  When you search on Google with a [(city/area term) + (product/service keyword)] you frequently see a map within the search results.  This is commonly referred to as the 10-pack.  These results have a completely different set of rules in relation to the standard organic or natural results.

For more information on local search make sure to register for an upcoming webinar entitled “Local Search for National Brands”.  Although the title refers to national brands, any business will gain a better understanding of local search from the presentation.

Can I help it that I am smiling from ear to ear?  I have been floating on air for the last 24 hours.  Let me explain.  I have been telling our clients and writers alike to engage with our readers for quite sometime.  Of course, their response is “yes” then they never do anything about it, or should I say their response is “I never get anything out of it”.  Quite honestly, I wonder if people know what “Engage with your readers” really means.

I asked one of our clients to join every Social network they thought would have their target market and start engaging them in NON-sales copy.  If you are into online marketing, you can see the blank looks on their face.  You see, we are entering a second Internet phase; businesses are downsizing and trying to stretch every dollar looking for efficiency.  They’re shifting their budget from PPC, while using SEO for organic traffic.

What does that mean?  In simple terms, great content with a mix of social media. The new era of marketing, which created the foundations of marketing on the web, made its way to a new buzz in the industry - Inbound Marketing.

What Is Inbound Marketing?

Inbound Marketing focuses on bringing the customer to the business, instead of the business searching for the customer

In outbound marketing, the “traditional” way, companies use poorly targeted techniques to bring in customers.  They use radio and T.V. advertising, spam, cold-calling, print advertising, junk mail and more.  In other words, they use every method that most people get irritated about.

These techniques are long out-dated, less effective and more expensive, thanks to technology.  TiVo, spam filters, caller ID that blocks cold calls and tools like RSS render print and visual advertising almost useless.  While these methods of advertising still work to some extent, it’s much more expensive.

Inbound Marketing flips outbound marketing on its head.

The Internet opened up whole new avenues and marketing possibilities.  Instead of television ads that scream at potential customers to “buy, buy, buy”, or junk mail that gets thrown away, inbound marketing has a gentler, more persuasive technique.  Entertaining, informative videos, interesting blogs, useful content and tools – inbound marketing is a soft, inviting whisper rather than a pounding sledgehammer.  With these tools and techniques, highly qualified customers are attracted to the business through a combination of curiosity, confidence and trust.

The Three Components of a Successful Inbound Marketing Campaign

1.  Content:  Every Inbound Marketer knows that content is king.  Information and persuasive writing, helpful tips and tools help attract potential customers to the company’s website or business.

2.  Search Engine Optimization: Potential customers find this informative content much easier through SEO.  Building your site, and building up inbound links to your site, through optimization and website design “best practices” maximizes your search engine rankings.  SEO brings your product, website or company into the public’s eye, so they can begin the buying process.

3.  Social Media:  When the content is truly helpful, informative and interesting, people tend to discuss it with their friends, family, co-workers etc.  Distributed across several networks, it gains credibility and authenticity, making it more likely to draw people to your website.

You’re wondering what any of that has to do with the smile on my face?  In one day I was able to prove that using inbound marketing can not only save you money by getting free targeted traffic, but you learn that investing in your company’s future sometimes has it’s rewards without trying.

I was featured in Businessweek.com for engaging in Social media.  That alone has sent our website a nice boost of traffic.  I know I may not get all the business that‘s out there but, the way I see it nobody does. However, the new business I do get can result in a higher base of  happy customers, more referrals, and ultimately more sales.

Contests are genius and typically can create hysteria if done right. If you are looking for a way to get your business out there, this is it. Create a contest and give away money. Especially now.

Just type in ‘contest’ in Twitter and you’ll see thousands of people promoting some sort of contest. Contests are ideal for companies trying to brand, sell, or engage people. They give businesses a platform for developing a voice and spreading a message.  The key is to make the contest voteable so participants share with friends and friends of friends gaining even more traction to your site. With online marketing sites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Digg, and StumbleUpon, contests can go viral in a matter of minutes.

Before you run off and create one though, make sure you do it right in order to generate the publicity and buzz your business is looking for. For one, the ‘prize’ needs to be significant enough for anyone to care. Don’t even think about creating a contest to give away a book or you’ll be known for the hellacious contest creator. No one wants a free book – they want money.

Here’s a short list of killer contest conductors. Follow their lead if you want to do it right.

• StartUp Nation. Between the Home-based 100 and the recently launched Leading Moms in Business in partnership with LadiesWhoLaunch, StartUp Nation doles out the correct amount of genius to make contests a success. The Home-based 100 contest drove thousands of participants and 249,000 votes were cast in support of contestants. Why? Because people tweeted, blogged, digged, widgeted, podcast’d, emailed, flickr’d. StartUp Nation finds a trend, targets the people following the trend and offers a big reward. Those Sloan brothers are whiz kids.

• Ideablob. Lets members post brilliant schemes for starting up a business and the community votes each month. Winners receive $10,000 grant and can turn the business in to reality.

• Zumanity. Recently announced a contest to create the next Zumanity game. The money here is small, but the real prize is significant for those people entering the contest: travel and accommodation plus VIP tickets to the show and backstage passes.

• A band called Making April created a contest with Brickfish where entrants had to design a T-shirt and in return the band would write a song for the winner.  Results? Additional 100,000 hits to page in two weeks, winner got a shirt, a personal call from the band and song written.

You see it everywhere, but probably didn’t know it had a name. Not only is it entertaining, usually humorous, witty and often times innovative, it is a great resource to maximize attention to a particular product, service or organization by offering shock value and edge. In fact, it can be one of the most effective marketing methods available. What is it? Guerrilla Marketing.

To get help with your guerrilla marketing campaign, visit Resource Nation’s online marketing business center.

Guerrilla marketing is all about getting the maximum attention of the public by using minimal resources. Usually unusual and unpredictable, guerrilla marketing techniques break traditional marketing rules, cross boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed, and even come close to breaking the law.

We must appreciate guerrilla marketing and the force it has to drive business and attract attention. If you have the right creative brains in place and understand the market you are trying to reach, guerrilla marketing can be very cost-effective, entertaining and drive eyeballs and sales to your business. Smart companies take their guerrilla marketing tactics to the streets…or bathrooms, or Rugby fields, or escalators.

A few of my favorite guerilla marketing campaigns:

1.  HBO

HBO advertised their hit show The Sopranos while playing on the crime theme of the show. This marketing campaign definitely broke traditional marketing rules and was effective in attracting a lot of attention. It is a great example of the shock value that often accompanies guerrilla marketing tactics.

2.  Cingular

With this giant, hard-to-miss, unconventional ad, Cingular effectively attracts onlookers from the ground, from the air, from offices across the way, from a distance, and more.

3.  American Airlines

American Airlines highlights its airport wifi network in this edgy ad. With many people utilizing the Internet at the airport gates, this ad effectively relates to the vast majority of airline passengers. As a bonus, the ad also unintentionally advertises Google.

4.  Spiderman

How about this irregular ad for one of the Spiderman movies. It definitely drew attention, but let’s hope patrons didn’t actually attempt to “use” the ad.

5.  Sonic

Sonic Drive-In fast food restaurants marketed with magnetic cups that adhered to patron’s cars. It would seem as though the driver forgot to remove his/her drink from the drink’s temporary resting place on the car. Meanwhile, Sonic’s logo was pasted all over highways, roads, and parking lots. The campaign was funny and effective.

6.  Virgin

This marketing method employed by Virgin Atlantic Airlines’ is a favorite of mine. They employ the perfect combination of funny, cute and originality to create buzz about their airline company.

7.  Other

Taking advantage of pre-existing everyday features is a cost-effective way to market. Here, various companies utilize escalators as the medium for their advertisements.

8.  And finally, what NOT TO DO.

In August 2002, two men went streaking at an International Rugby game with a mobile telephone company’s corporate logo painted on their backs. While the campaign was successful because it drew an immense amount of attention from consumers, it landed both the two men and the phone company in legal trouble. This boundary-crossing technique reminds us to beware of legal ramifications when partaking in guerrilla marketing.

The internet marketing industry is still very young and evolving rapidly.  Small business owners don’t have the time to keep up with the latest trends and tactics, especially in regards to seo, ppc and social media.  The result is that professionals in the field hold the responsibility to educate, inform and lead their clients in a direction that provides the best opportunity for success.

The process of guiding the client in the right direction has a few required steps.

1. Do your due diligence in regards to the client, the industry and their competition.

2. Listen to the business owner and try to get a sense of what it’s like to be in their shoes.

3. Re-evaluate your understanding of what makes the business tick based off of your learnings.

4. Educate.

5. Strategize the best course of action.  Does the client need SEO, PPC, both, etc?  Will social media work?  What budget is required?

6. Implement campaigns.

7. Show the value of your hard work to the client (preferably with success metrics

8. Re-evaluate the direction of campaigns based off of measurements.

9. Re-educate.

10. Course correct and repeat steps 7 - 10.

Notice the theme of re-evaluting.  We all have a tendency to hold on to our preconceived notions, but forcing ourselves to take a step back often will improve perspective.  This holds true both as we understand our clients’ businesses better and as we practice what we preach by adapting to the ever changing world of internet marketing.

In the end, the client should know their business best.  But does their understanding correlate to the ever changing online world?  My advice is to simply be up front and clear.  Don’t be afraid to say “I disagree.  In my experience this technique would work best online” and explain why.  It takes a rare breed to push back on someone who writes your check, but that is one of the differences between constantly finding new business or making the relationships you have last.

Visit Resource Nation’s online marketing expert business directory to find experts to help with your project.

My company provides internet marketing services for small-medium business, and when I meet a new client, I often find myself selling the value of the web itself as much as I sell the value of my company. The fact is that the internet, despite being more than 10 years old and representing hundreds of billions in revenue for millions of companies, is still “new” in the minds of many business owners. There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding online marketing, even if it’s just creating a simple website.

Of course, I’ve never had a problem convincing a business owner to market online. The technology is just too powerful. With search engine marketing and optimization, we can target potential consumers at critical stages of the buying cycle. With social marketing, we can build an audience and establish a business as an authoritative resource. With email marketing, we can take advantage of a businesses’ greatest resource - previous customers - and attain significant and immediate results.

I’ve attained a nice long list of reasons to market online during the last couple of years, but I’m always looking for more. A conversation I’ve had with a couple of business owners lately has given me another:

Reason to Market Online #374: Win More Contract Bids.

It didn’t even occur to me until I spoke to a couple of contractors, both of whom wanted to get a website up and running because they felt it would increase their chances of winning contract bids. Evidently, when contractors bid for a job, the bid review process entails more than just finding the lowest bidder. The bidder is often asked to provide references, examples of previous work, safety information, regulatory compliance, and more. What medium could provide this information better than a website?

Is someone looking for an example of a concrete foundation you’ve poured? Let’s post pictures and a copy of an inspection report. Does someone want to know what clients you’ve worked for? Let’s post a list with company general contact info. What about your safety record? Let’s create a page for your website that talks about all your safety procedures and your overall record. Is a client concerned about your compliance with laws and regulations? Let’s make sure they can find all the important disclosures on your site, and let’s also list off all of your company’s associations and accreditation’s.

The fact is, the internet provides instant and immediate access to a variety of information. By creating a useful and informative business website, you’ll increase the chances that potential customers will value your company or service higher than all the rest…and you just might win a few contract bids.

Please be sure to visit SporkMarketing.com or Resource Nation’s online marketing business center to learn more about their internet marketing services.

Recent reports show magazine revenue steadily decreasing. In fact, according to the United States Publishers Information Bureau (PIB), total magazine rate-card-reported advertising revenue through the first three quarters of 2008 posted a 5% decline against the previous year. Additionally, there was a 9.5% drop during the first three quarters of 2008 in advertising pages, compared to the same period in 2007. Specifically, for the third quarter of 2008, total magazine rate-card-reported advertising revenue decrease 8.8% compared to 2007’s third quarter. In addition, there was a 12.9% drop in advertising pages compared to the third quarter of 2007.

The magazine industry argues that magazine advertising has been negatively impacted by the ongoing economic woes, similarly to several other industries. Ellen Oppenheim, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Magazine Publishers of America stated “We’re seeing the unfortunate result of the ongoing softness in the economy. . .Consumers have cut spending and advertisers have followed suit.  It’s affected every ad category and every ad-supported sector of the media industry.”

A closer examination of magazine revenues evidences that while overall magazine rate-card-reported advertising revenue, publishing, and advertising page count declined, some advertising categories posted gains. For example, retail, food and food products, and public transportation, hotels, and resorts are three advertising categories that showed increased revenue. Overall, though, magazine revenue is unfortunately steadily declining.

So, how can the magazine industry and other industries remain alive and increase revenue?

By finding other ways to produce revenue online. Banner ads, revenue share affiliate programs, and lead generation are just three examples to help drive down the total cost of acquisition per customer and increase revenue.

See Resource Nation’s online marketing business service center to connect with companies to help you with your marketing needs.

Banner Ads, also referred to as web banners, banner ads are beneficial because they can be customized with multiple images, animation, and changing colors.

Revenue Share Affiliate Programs are another way magazines and online businesses are increasing revenue. Affiliate programs allow businesses to earn a share of the profits each time the magazine refers a customer to the business. If the business provides a service that is an added-value to the magazine’s online readers, the size of the profit share can be significant. Amazon.com has been successful in its affiliate program. Our program has also been successful for partners like Entrepreneur.com and StartUpNation.

Lead Generation is also becoming more and more popular. Essentially, a lead is someone who either signs-up for a product or service or signs up to receive more information about a product or service. Magazines and companies are implementing these tactics to connect with prospective customers.  Examples of lead generation marketing include online lead generation, direct mail, telemarketing, and email marketing.

The online advertising industry is a billion-pound industry with hundreds of millions spent on online acquisition campaigns alone. From Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising on search engines like Google and Yahoo!, to banner ads, email campaigns, organic search, blogging and web PR, magazines and other businesses are making an investment to find additional revenue.