Anyone can build an ecommerce site, but if you don't promote, chances are that no one will ever see it! Promotion is one of the key elements in a successful ecommerce business and one that many webmasters don't know how to do well. That's why you are reading this, to learn more about promotion techniques!

The most obvious method of promoting your ecommerce site is through ads. There are many different types of ads and they have varying degrees of success. For example, there are websites where you can put your link for free, but they will not tend to bring you much traffic. Not that you should rule them out, but don't waste too much time posting free ads!

Google Adwords is a good way to advertise on a budget since they let you set the price you pay per click as well as how much to spend per day, letting you keep your spending in check. Also, you might consider ezine ads, which can be had for as little as $2 in some cases for a classified ad.

Don't overlook offline promotion, as well. If you are selling something that would appeal to the general public, why not take out a classified in the local paper? Or in several papers around the country for that matter? This is a good way to catch the attention of people who would not normally look for your business online.

Sometimes, it is worth resorting to lesser known methods of promotion in order to get your ecommerce site noticed. You can find plenty of ideas by chatting with other webmasters on ecommerce forums, but here are a few ideas to get you started.

Host a contest. By holding a contest of any kind, drawing, writing, photo, etc., you can post your listing on hundreds of free contest sites that thousands of people will see every day. The number of potential new clients that will be attracted to your site is astounding with just a simple contest. Just make sure that you set the end date a couple of months ahead.

You might also consider giving away something, whether an e-report or a sample product. This can be listed on free giveaway sites that will bring plenty of treasure seekers to your website. While some will only want the freebie, others will stay to look around at your products.

Another way to promote your ecommerce site is to set up an affiliate program through a service like Clickbank. This allows you to get your product in front of a wide variety of people who will then work hard to promote your site themselves, if you give them a good enough incentive.

Posting valuable information on forums related to your website theme is another way to get free promotion. You can include your ecommerce site URL in your profile and signature. When people see that you offer good advice, they will check out your site for more information and see your products.

There are many more ways to promote your ecommerce website, but these will get you off to a good start. The more you talk about your site, whether in the real world or in chat rooms and on blog comments, the more visitors you will have. It's really that simple.