YouTube is not just for classic media clips, cute pet tricks and bizarre dorm antics anymore. With a YouTube link on your web site and vice versa, you have a new marketing tool. But do not be so crass as to post blatant infomercials about your small business.

“What you want to post is something that the people on YouTube will find interesting or useful and will therefore watch,” says Michael Miller, the Indianapolis-based author of YouTube 4 U (Publishing in Que, 2008)

In his book, Miller cites the example of a pottery business that posted a how-to video on throwing pots on a potter wheel. “That’s what gets them in the door and then you direct them to your Web site from there.”

The fifth tip is the marketing strategy that has worked for many, including our friend Jenn. This knowledge and more is included free of charge when working with SnapsWeb.

Podcasting is a relatively simple technology that is being taken quite seriously by some Fortune 500 companies. All you really need to get started is a decent microphone, a digital recorder or recording software and simple audio editing software.

Podcasts allow you to make the most of your inner impresario, plus, your show and the subscriber audience it may lure can give you an edge over competitors.

“Podcasting is still unique enough in many industries that it can allow you to stand out a bit,” says John Jantsch, a Kansas city, Mo., Marketing coach and author of Duct Tape Marketing: The World’s Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide (Thomas Nelson).

“Podcasting makes a ton of sense for many small businesses for several reasons,” says Jantsch. “A voice, rather than simple words on a paper can convey emotion and personality. It’s much easier to connect to that.”

Jantsch offers this tip for the podcaster trying to bring attention to his business: “Invite a key strategic partner to be a guest on the podcast and you’re likely to get the attention of high-level experts, authors and even prospects.”

These days there are hundreds of online classifieds. Larger ones would include Craigslist and Ebay. Posting on such sites can be very profitable. This marketing tactic works for some businesses and not others. Also some sites work better for specific products and services, or products only and services only.

“Online classifieds are the cheapest most effective marketing strategy for a small business.” Says Jay Levinson the author of Guerrilla Marketing: Easy and Inexpensive Strategies for Making Big Profits from Your Small Business (Houghton Mifflin Company, 2007) Jay says, “Post your ads to as many classifieds as you possibly can, the worst that can happen is nothing.”

When choosing what service to advertise on keep in mind how big your city is, who your demographic is, and if you have a budget for these services. 99% of classifieds are free for the reader. Most classifieds charge a fee to post ads online just as they would in newspapers. These fees are generally very small and you will usually make your money back with one new customer. Other classified services such as Craigslist and Classifiedads.com are free in most cities.

Entrepreneurs who blog can reach a new audience by writing in a conversational way and showing the human and personal side of their business, according to William Beutler, senior online analyst for New Media Strategies, a Web 2.0 marketing firm in Arlington.

“Make your industry interesting to people by writing in a conversational manner,” he says. “Give people a glimpse into a world they don’t know.”

Beutler believes new businesses can benefit greatly from blogging. “There’s still an untapped audience in a lot of industries that are just starting to grow,” he says. “You have the potential to establish yourself as an expert in the field just by being the first person to write something interesting about your field.”

A few questions to ask yourself, does your web site describe your product or service in a succinct, compelling and visual fashion? Does it answer potential customers’ needs in, say, less than 8 seconds?

“Once they click to your Web site, you have between 5 and 8 seconds to convince them you can help,” says Larry Bailin, CEO of Single Throw Internet Marketing in Wall, N.J., and author of Mommy, Where Do Customers Come From? (Larstan Publishing, 2007)

Your home page should include the bare essentials, Bailin says. “People are looking for what they typed in, with calls to action,” he says. “It’s critical that you address their issues on your home page. Get to the point and get rid of anything that doesn’t need to be there.”

Your Web site should be easy to navigate and straight to the point, and a “Contact Us” button should be prominent. To be more effective make sure your phone number is in an obvious place on every page.

Also, make sure your site appears high on search engines’ results pages. By including key words and terms in the sites code and meta tags and descriptions, your site will appear higher up on Google and other Search Engines. These days, a good web designer will be able to handle simple search engine marketing as part of the design and programming package. Still, it is up to you to know the best way to describe your products and service to potential customers and turn them into qualified sales leads.

“Don’t think too much about the bells and whistles,” warns Balin. “Think about the connection that you’re going to make and the way you’re going to help people. Make it clear to them and you will win every time.”