The power of email marketing is vastly underappreciated by today’s business owners. It is not a technique that is strictly used by large corporations, on the contrary it can do wonders for small internet based businesses too. Through email marketing you can inform subscribers about upcoming product launches, promotions you are offering, and news related to your niche. This is a great way to advertise to consumers who are already interested in your niche and your products. Here are some considerations to remember when creating an email marketing campaign:

• Create emails that are relative to your niche and products. You can include tips, new technology, and information about your products and what they can do for your consumers.

• Send regular emails. A good rule of thumb is one email at least every 90 days but not more than one in a two week period.

• Add images and graphics that relate to your article topics. There are email templates to use, or you can design your own email marketing pages

• Include a business email and encourage your subscribers to give feedback and ask questions about your business or products. Be sure to give prompt feedback on any emails exchanged.

Email marketing is a free way for you to begin marketing your online business and it doesn’t require an intense amount of technical computer knowledge. Begin your relationship with your clients as repeat consumers are a great way to consistently develop revenue to your business and in your pocket.

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As a business owner you may have heard all about the advantages of getting an online presence to help your business acquire new customers and better serve existing ones. But you may have some reservations about the whole thing. One of the main concerns that business owners bring forward today is security. These concerns are certainly valid. After all, it is rare that we see a week go buy without a mention in the media of some high profile security breach. But this should not dissuade you from taking full advantage of what the online world has to offer for your business. Here are some of the most common security threats facing small businesses transacting online and how they can be mitigated:

Payment fraud.

This is the most common security risk that you will face and it can consist of either: a fraudster making a purchase with a stolen credit card or sending a forged check, or a “real” customer making an order, paying with a legitimate credit card and then charging back on the transaction claiming that they never placed this order, never got their merchandise or that it was damaged when they got it.

Fraudulent payments are, unfortunately, a part of the e-commerce world and there is no sure-fire way to stop them. However, there are certain things you can do to bring the amount of fraud close to zero.

First, use a payment processor that uses security measures such as verifying that the address on the credit card and the shipping address match. Especially when it comes to high value orders, do not ship to an address other than the billing address. Most payment processors have automated tools that evaluate each order and can help determine the chances of it being legitimate.

Verify the customer’s information yourself before shipping the item. Call them on the phone number provided to ensure that it is valid.

While doing business internationally is great, be very careful about shipping to certain countries where internet fraud is rampant such as Nigeria, Russia, Indonesia, etc. A common story used by scammers is that of a wealthy businessman based in the USA ordering a high priced item as a “gift” to a relative who just happens to be working in a third world country known for credit card fraud.

If a customer sends you payment by certified check, call the issuing bank to ensure that the payment instrument is legitimate. Just because a check has cleared your bank account does not mean that it is genuine. Stolen or forged checks are sometimes used by scammers when ordering high priced items like jewelry, industrial equipment or electronics.

Use a courier service that gives you the ability to trace shipments and requires a signature on delivery. Any item over a hundred dollars should be sent insured for its full value. This will prevent dishonest customers from claiming they “never got the package.”

And most importantly, use common sense when processing orders and always err on the side of caution.

The toughest challenge for all online business owners or even offline business owners with an online component is driving traffic to their website. And of course, just having any old person visit your website is no good if they aren’t interested. Owners want and need targeted traffic, which basically means that they need a bunch of people visiting their website all of which are interested in what they have to sell. The best way to gain this targeted traffic is through a weblog, which have become more commonly known as just blogs. Blogs help your business gain credibility on the subject of your product along with that targeted traffic that was mentioned before. These two products of your blog will go hand in hand in generating you and your business more sales.

Now, you might be wondering why a blog is suggested when most of them on the internet just sit there not being read. We have to take into account that about half of these are personal blogs, which no one cares about, and another big majority are spam blogs, which either copy posts from other blogs, or are just full of ads trying to sell products that don’t even work. Of course, blogs don’t work overnight. It does take a while to gain readership and a good reputation. Plus, if you try heavily advertising straight away, people will probably think you are another one of the spam blogs, and just leave.

There are many important aspects of your blog that you must pay attention to when building it. One is structure, where you must build up to your product with actually useful information. No one will buy what you’re selling without you first convincing them to do so, and then when you do plug your product, you should still do it subtly. You must also promote your blog, and thereby your website. There are many free and paid ways to do this, but after research, the free way is recommended, because it allows for about the same exposure if done correctly as the paid options will provide.

Remember, everything is what you make of it. If you don’t put much work into your blog, and just let it sit there without updating it, it will fail. If you pile ads on it, it will fail. You need to take time, and put content on there that will be useful to your customers, and interest them in the product that your business offers. Otherwise, you will be wasting what little time you are even putting into it.