FightingIreland.com is an excellent example of using on- and off-line marketing techniques to promote a clicks-and mortar-business. Initially, Micromarketing developed the company branding, logos, stationery, flyers etc. We then developed a completely interactive site that includes:

• Home page.
• Clubs page, where clubs can add their training details for free.
• Events page, where clubs can promote their events, be it a grading, competition or visiting instructor -- again for free.
• Members page, where members can upload photos and videos of themselves or their clubs.
• Styles page: explains the differences between martial arts styles.
• Forum/Chat: two sections that enable martial artists to chat online.
• Shop with a wide range of martial arts supplies.

The site is designed to generate a community feel, and that is how it is promoted. It is a resource for martial artists which also sells products, as opposed to an overtly commercial site. This approach has succeeded in generating excellent site retention.

To market the site we used the following techniques:

Online

• Reciprocal Links - we offer a link to every club that signs up, and we request a link back. This has generated a large volume of incoming links which bring in traffic directly from Irish martial arts sites, and also improves Google rankings, as incoming links is one of their main ranking parameters.

• Newsletter - to use the free services on the site, the club/individual must register. This enables FightingIreland.com to target them with regular permission-based newsletters. These have special offers which do not appear on the site, which encourages members to give permission to send them the newsletter.

• SEO: the keywords on the site are optimised to generate the most effective search results in the major search engines.

• Site updates: the more frequently a site changes, the higher it ranks in search engine results. FightingIreland.com's site changes daily as new members sign up, new products are added, new comments are posted on the forum, etc.

• Google Adwords - FightingIreland.com also utilises an Adwords strategy to generate additional traffic to the site.

Offline

• Advertising: the site advertises in Irish martial arts magazines.

• Sponsorship: the site sponsors a number of tournaments throughout the year. Tournaments have proven to be a very effective promotional tool as competitors from around the country will attend, allowing Fighting Ireland to develop its brand.

• Press Releases: we also use a PR strategy targeting the sports press.

The above strategy has made FightingIreland.com one of Ireland's leading martial arts brands.

InspirationIreland.com is a site that promotes and sells Irish art.

The site is broken down as follows:

• Home page: an introduction to the site, with frequently updated images drawn from the site database.
• Gallery page, which is a directory of art galleries in Ireland.
• News page which keeps browsers up to date with the InspirationIreland.com world.
• Artists Section: an alphabetical list of Irish and Ireland-based artists. This section offers information on the artists, their history and inspirations. Works of art can be purchased directly off the site.
• Exhibitions page: a list of exhibitions organised by InspirationIreland.com.
• Suppliers section where art supplies companies can list themselves for free.
• Forum for artists to chat.

The CMS on this site enables the site owners to change every page as easily as sending an email.

However, the major labour-saving aspect of the site is that it enables users -- the artists -- to control their own information, upload their images, change their bios and so on. This is of major benefit to the site owners as it means that the majority of the site runs itself. It also means that the site is constantly changing, an element that improves search engine rankings.