Unique Content
You've seen this technique used. How often have you forwarded something you just had to share with your friends? This can be something entertaining (remember the dancing baby?) or educational, maybe even both. Maybe you can tie in a memorable event to your site. How do people use your product? Is there an entertaining way to present it?
Content is, as they all too often say, king on the internet. Keep this in mind at all times. Content will improver your rankings on search engines, keep your visitors coming back and drive your sales. Never neglect your content.
Are you writing articles and sending out a newsletter? Archive! You might be amazed at how often old articles will bring you business through the years.
Forums
Now, if you have participated in many forums, you know that they generally do not allow blatant advertising. This does not mean you can't advertise at all, just that you must obey the rules. Read the forum rules carefully for every board you want to be on. Most will allow you to have a link in your signature line but will limit the length to a few hundred characters. Don't overdo this, or people won't be interesting in what you have to offer.
Do not in any situation just pop in and tell people what you have to offer. This is considered to be a form of spam by many people, and will simply be deleted, ignored, or you may be flamed. This is a quick way to give yourself a poor reputation on a board.
Instead, be a part of the board. Ask and answer questions. Have fun, tell appropriate jokes, discourage others from abusing the board. Only post information about your business if specifically requested. Some boards may require you to refer people to your signature or ask people to email you even if someone says "I need a widget, who has one?" and you sell widgets. Once again, have fun, be upfront and make lots of friends.
If you have the time, you may also want to consider adding a forum to your site. It will take time to get enough participants to attract people to your forum, but it's a great way to get people to your site. Just make sure you monitor carefully for spam and trolls (people who come to forums to start fights), or you'll drive people away.
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