Do you have a website that's been developed a long time ago but nobody ever visits it? Do you have a bad-ass site that looks cool and you've spent lots of money on it but the poor, unfortunate billions of people around the world don't know what they are missing? If you've answered yes to either of these questions then you probably need some web site marketing.

Web site marketing is very different then search engine optimization. In order for your site to be optimized to it true potential for natural web ranking results, changes need to be made as to how your website is designed and constructed. You need to change and re-vamp your website; you need to make it different by changing many web pages, server code and probably even the database. Search engine optimization is like remodeling a house. Web site marketing is like putting a for sale sign on an already finished home, one that you don't plan on making changes to.

Web site marketing is still important. Sometimes your site is designed very well but the market you are entering may be simply very saturated or competitive. You may need a jump start that gives your website some initial exposure, helping it reach it's critical mass and helping it to bloom.

So what do I need to know about web marketing? What help does it offer to my web site? Well, you are paying money for web hosting whether you are getting great web hosting rates or not, so why waste all that hosting money for a site that isn't accessed. Web site marketing follows the same fundamentals as other general business marketing, even if the means are different.

You can advertise your website anywhere: you can advertise your website in print, you can market it on billboards cross country on various highways and cities, or you can market your site through online advertisement. Online ads are probably the best way to go at first for your website.

There are multiple options available for web marketing. Your web site can be advertised as a banner on specific websites. If you go this route, make sure your advertisements are displayed to a targeted audience. If your website is about cats, then you should probably advertise on cat related websites; don't advertise on a site that sells computer or some other random website that has nothing to do with what you are trying to market.

Your best bet is to use Google AdWords. You can create your own advertising campaigns and set a budget so that Google sends a limited number of targeted visitors to your website. The nice thing about Google's service is that it's fast, reliable and you know how much you are spending. You can see how the campaign works for your site, you can tweak it along as you go and you can pay for the marketing you afford. Depending on your market and industry, the cost of advertising will vary based on supply and demand. If you are advertising for web hosting, web site design, computers, credit cards, financial investments, etc, then chances are your cost-per-click may be more expensive then somebody else marketing their cat-related website.