More and more people set up Internet sites to have a presence on the web.

Their interests and intentions vary greatly:

There's the hair dresser who feels he should not be left out and who can then print his website's address onto a business card or show it in some classified ad hoping it will attract visitors who later become new customers because they are intrigued by what he has to offer. While certainly today many customers just expect you to have a website, don't expect too much traffic on it and from it in these cases and certainly not many new customers unless you offer something truly innovative or something that simply sets you apart, e.g. a special treatment against dandruff etc. With some true customer testimonials you could even attract many new customers, provided it is really this type of customers you wanted to attract (i.e. those suffering from dandruff). You could then add more content on the medical aspects, on how dandruff was treated in history and the more content you add that sets you apart and gives people a feeling you are the expert, the more visitors and hence probably customers you might get.

A local bakery could present their different types of bread and cakes etc., or a restaurant could show pictures (but professional ones!) of their rooms, their menu, specials, or an "all-you-can-eat"-timeslot etc. (be sure to be specific enough from what they are allowed to choose from or you might invite criticism!) and they could have a monthly draw offering a price like a free candlelight dinner for two or as a bakery special rebates for people who purchase on their birthday etc.

Some just want to express themselves through a blog, but even some of those have turned that into a full-time profession earning more than before in their 9-to-5 jobs.

All this works to some extent, however, if you want to have global reach and need to compete against the bigwigs in your industry or if you "simply" have a completely new concept, it can be very tough to make yourself heard.

For this you need knowledge and techniques that go far beyond what a local barber or baker need to do. Mind you, they can rely on word-of-mouth and if they are in a smaller town (called Smalltown) in all probability they will figure at the top of search results for e.g. "barber Smalltown" since there aren't many and chances are their competitors are even less Internet-savvy.

Not so when you deal with issues of global reach - competition is not only fierce, losing or gaining a little in search engine listings can make or break a business or at least mean thousands to millions in revenue gained or foregone!