You need to do more than just have a web site. To increase your online findability, and ensure a positive virtual first impression, you need to disseminate your business expertise on web sites and online forums where your best prospects congregate.

I discovered the strategy of publishing articles on web sites that reach my target market a few years ago. I’d just written an article about PR for small businesses and decided to publish it on web sites that reached independent professionals.

I researched dozens of web sites. Then I approached the webmasters and freely offered my article, with the condition that they provide my bio and a link back to my own web site.

A few weeks later, my article was published on dozens of web sites. Almost instantly, I felt the impact. My inbox filled with prospect inquiries. The number of subscribers to my mailing list jumped substantially. I sold more books, and I landed several clients.

In one instance, an online reader called me for an on-the-spot meeting. She requested a proposal from my company, even though she had almost finalized a decision to hire a competitor. "We came across your article, and it made all the difference," she said. "We knew from your article that you could help us."

Because of that one article, written and published on a web site four years earlier, I landed that major client, which was worth several thousand dollars in new business!

And this is no fluke or stroke of luck. This happens to me all the time as my online articles boost my search rankings, reach prospects, and attract other opportunities in my niche by simply getting my ideas out there.