1. Search Engine Rankings:
Search engine results are estimated to generate over 90% of all website traffic, therefore this is one area that almost all e-commerce websites cannot afford to neglect. Having said that, optimising your site to rank highly for a commercially competitive keyword/phrase is easier said than done. Although most SEOs will have you believe that they know what it takes to get your site to the top, the actual fact of the matter is that search rankings are determined by the search engine's ranking algorithm. Each Search Engine has it's own algorithm, whose exact nature is a closely guarded secret and they don't tell anyone! In Google's case, their algorithm is believed to be based on over 100, (probably more) variables. At best, an SEO's knowledge of what works and what doesn't is more of an educated guess, as only the search engines themselves know what exactly the ranking factors are.

Nowadays Google's results are almost in a state of ever flux, as they constantly tweak and tune their algorithm to stay ahead of the competion. The extent of your SEO efforts can vary depending on the competitiveness of your keywords and the nature of your competition, however pay attention to both on page and off page factors.

2. Internet Advertising:
Appearing in the top 20 or 30 search results can be a slow process, but this doesn't mean you cannot generate Internet traffic. All the major search engines have advertising programmes. Google run AdWords, which display ads on the relevant search result and other web pages and AdSense, where ads are displayed on member site web pages. Both these programmes are pay-per-click (PPC) schemes. Yahoo's advertising programme is managed by Overture and is similar to Google's. The exact details of both schemes are easily available on both sites.

If these advertising programmes don't suit you budget, try advertising on other high ranking, high traffic websites. The 'One Million Dollar Webpage' being a case in point and although this particular opportunity has reached it's sell by date, be on the look out for other, relatively less expensive Internet advertising options.

Whether you choose a pay-per-click, a cost-per-impression or a time specific ad campaign, you want to ensure that you get maximum return on your investment, by converting the maximum number of visitors in to paying customers. PPC and CPI advertising can have low conversion rates, for a wide variety of reasons. So, you want to ensure that you maximize your sales conversion potential of each visitor. This makes it almost essential for a website with online commercial aspirations to have itself validated for trustworthiness, through a seal and certification programme like WebsitePromotek's.

3. Offline Media:
The offline media can also be a useful internet marketing tool. Although this is unlikely to deliver the instant results of online marketing, this will generate awareness about your site and help to build brand value. Be innovative and open to all forms of promotion, including the print and electronic media or participating in exhibitions and conventions.