Businesses are moving at a furious pace to the Internet. Being online is becoming a commodity! Where it used to be "cool" and often expensive to be online has now become "normal". And if you are a savvy shopper, also pretty affordable. Very soon it will be just unheard of for anyone not to have a www piece of online real state as a business owner.

So what is the result? It is just unbelievably crowded out there. There are more than 7 billion Google searches performed online, 6 billion YouTube videos (as of the date of my research), 156+ billion websites, 110 million Myspace profiles with Facebook right behind at 60 million! And you know what is the kicker? With so much stuff out there most people report they do not even trust content anymore!

It is survival of the fittest at its best out there! You have to think on your feet and have to seize the opportunity to reach your target audience like lightening, and before it strikes! But how?

A solid online marketing strategy that is focused on identifying your target audience and at least 95% content driven. You see, in online marketing your goal with your message is to generate traffic to your site. No traffic, no leads, no sales, no business! And that traffic must be targeted high quality leads looking for what you have to offer and ready to rock and roll on your site with wallet on hand. At least that is what your online marketing strategy should be focused on when those leads are costing you money!

To generate traffic, you must generate interest. And to generate interest you must be a savvy marketer trying to capture your customers attention with irresistible messages that aim directly at their emotional being. The messages must be spread amongst different avenues of delivery and they must be carefully crafted to attract only those prospects that would most likely be interested in what you have to offer.

You cannot focus on just one delivery method only and you cannot just throw an ad online and leave it at that. And well, hopefully you know that you cannot design a message that will sell to everyone! Focused marketing equals higher return. Divide and conquer. If what you sell is available to different audiences, then your marketing strategy should be divided amongst each of those audiences independently and what makes them look. More work, yes, more sales, YES!

Slap and ad online with a picture of your product and loose easily against a wittier competitor that put up an article with valuable information that people can digest, use and apply. Why?

Content online is usually just more attractive than ads mainly because of the sheer number of them popping out at you! And typically online surfers are looking for information and not to be sold on something. Besides, most people don not even look at ads anymore, let alone click on them! Do you?

You must develop a master marketing plan to find your target market, focus on that niche and market away. Here are the top marketing mediums utilized today by savvy online marketing strategists:

- Web 2.0 (social sites like MySpace, Facebook and Youtube)

- Pay Per Click Advertising (Google Adwords, Yahoo)

- Article/Ezines

- Email Marketing

- Press Releases

- Banner Advertising (as long as part of a complete strategy with other forms or marketing)

Focus on 1 or 2 at a time until you become proficient at generating at least 200-300 leads a week to your site. Then move to the next one or two until you master those.

A word to the wise, it is not easy to market online and there will be a learning curve, so buckle down and stick to it. Once you can master 2-3 of these techniques, your traffic will flow steadily. Focus on content, focus on diversity and focus on identifying who your target audience is and market with their needs in mind. Be the ball Danny! Be the ball!

As a marketer, your job is to get people to your site by crafting the ultimate marketing plan. Then it is up to the sales person to convert those customers once they get there. Best-case scenario, you will not have to wear both hats!

Good luck designing your mastermind online marketing strategy!