Back in the Stone Age when I went to art school, we “creatives” were seen as the secret weapons of marketing. We’ve all seen TV shows and movies that glamorize the Peter Pan types with their loud sneakers, scruffy beards and odd habits. Thinking up cute slogans to sell soda. Once I started this business, I learned pretty quickly that it takes a lot more than a twist on a phrase or a 30 second spot with dog driving a car to help build a business. It takes smarts, it takes plans, and it takes co-ordination and focus.

Today, with so many people changing their habits and turning to the computer for nearly everything, marketers have been forced to rethink everything. The creative staff is still only half the solution. (They still have an opportunity to make a living with the right side of their brain. There will always be clutter in the marketplace, and therefore the need for people with things to sell to break through it). That being said, there is a new frontier out there, and in order to conquer it, people like you and me need to partner with math whizzes. They always told us in school that it would come down to math; I just figured that’s what calculators were for.

No matter what size budget you are working with–find a good web marketing resource. (They don’t really all look like the photo, but I’m not above stereotyping to make a point!) Dedicate a good portion of your budget to the right mix of internet marketing tactics for your business.

Web page optimization, online advertising, email marketing, blogging etc. will not only grow your business, but may be one of the most cost-effective marketing tools ever evolved. There is no excuse not to do it. It takes smarts, it takes plans, and it takes co-ordination and focus. And there’s nothing all that new about that.