Do you remember when you first heard about Google? There was no giant marketing campaign, no big media blitz to celebrate the launch. Just lots of word of mouth from people who knew about the site, had tried it and had been blown away by its ability to bring up accurate search results.

Out went Lycos and Infoseek, and all of a sudden everyone who was anyone online was using Google to find the information they were looking for.

I have to admit, these days I use Google's home page a lot less. That doesn't mean I don't use Google at all. I still use it when I'm still looking for something new but today, for the most part, I know which sites I like. Probably about ninety percent of my time online is spent at the sites I've already visited, respect and trust to give me the content I want.

There are a couple of lessons there, I think. The first is that it's important to pay plenty of attention to returning visitors. Sure, you need to advertise and market yourself across the Web but it's the loyal fans who are going to spread your name, visit for free -- and are likely to click on your ads. They're the ones who trust you the most and are most interested in your content.

The other lesson is that those sites that you like best are doing well for a reason: they're doing something right. When you're wondering how you can improve your traffic, get more repeat visitors or earn more clicks, they're the first places you should look for inspiration.

Obviously, you d

on't want to copy them. You still want to be unique and appeal in your own way. But a site that you find interesting and enjoyable is likely to be attractive to your readers — the people who like the things you like.

Take a look at the layout of the sites in your favorites list. Check out the sort of content they like to publish, how they arrange it and how often it's updated. Try to see whether you think their ads are in the best places or how they could be improved.

When you're looking for case studies and examples of what to do right online, start with the sites you like. Use those sites as a guide and your users should like you even more.

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