ok so everyone has that special day where there business has been planned tested and ready to get going.

so my question, what special events etc did you hold when you first opened your business, by this i mean with the intention of catching potential clients

how did you let the world no you were open?

Firstly, let me say what a great thread, just before i thread this one, i was going to open a thread named 'Start with a bang'

I would say that one of the most important things is run an opening offer to attract clients, you can talk about the launch of your company and talk a little about the offer. I would put this on every forum, directory and internet news website around. To help people lets start with a list of Internet news websites where by placing your article would help with first step marketing. Not only would this let the world no about your launch, but would give you great backlinks on high PR websites

www.w3reports.com
www.webmasterworld.com
www.webreference.com
www.internet.com

Regards
Impulse

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Good topic indeed, to tell you the truth, I didnt start any of my websites with a bang, the bang always comes afterwards
I usually rely on forums to spread the word, sometimes by submitting a press release here and there. But in my ecperience its always better to start with a bang from the beginning.

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Sohaib

Personally, setting up a contest that can be read on the splash page before the site even opens up is very effective in getting them to return due to interests. Another way is to start a contest or give something away to the person who can get the most posts or refer the most members to the community.

Yes, letting your visitors know what your site can offer them right off the bat can really attract interest.

Advertise Advertise Advertise. You need to build the buzz, and develop a lot of interest before you launch. I will never launch when I feel that there isn't enough buzz or interest. If you do, what is the point if you can't capture an audience?

If you launch without a buzz or developed interest, it'll go to waste, and you won't be getting the orders you had hoped for. I recently made this mistake, and its left me over $700.00 in the hole.

You may want to start some type of promotion also. If you offer multiple products on your site, see if you can have some type of co-promotion to get both of the products involved.

Good point Bryan, when I 1st started building websites, I never REALLY advertised them, which was a BIG mistake, I'll always have to think about an advertising campaign before the launch of a new website.

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Sohaib

I'm a big fan of building hype BEFORE the launch day.
Letting people know you're out there and will be launching soon can let the buzz build. I espically reccomend finding Joint Venture partners to help promote you. Find someone who has a similar product or concept that dosen't directly compete with you. Then work out some deal where you can each take advantage of the others traffic.