The launch goes well, but the weeks go by. Distractions happen. Your participation drops, and results diminish. Results diminish and you get discouraged. Eventually, you're not checking your e-mail regularly, and not posting to discussion groups anymore at all. And when that happens, your online presence evaporates.

It's a sad and too-familiar sequence of events for online marketers. The excitement that followed the launch of your online marketing attack and its early success is hard to maintain. But what's the alternative? With thousands of people vying for attention on the Net, you have to keep up your marketing efforts or risk losing that presence and visibility you worked so hard to create.

Here are some ideas for maintaining your attack.

Avoid distractions by scheduling.
It's easy to become distracted by off-line events. People call, customers stop by, paperwork needs to be done and errands need running. Your online attack can get shoved to the back burner--or off the stove completely--if you think you'll simply "work it in" sometime during your day. Schedule a specific time every day for your online marketing activities. Mark off half an hour on your daily calendar for reading your e-mail, reading and posting discussion group messages, and maintaining other aspects of your attack. (Try first thing in the morning; that works for me.) Make a schedule you can live with and stick to it.

Keep up with online news.
Your marketing attack needs new ideas flowing into it to keep it fresh and vital. As you read discussion group messages or explore the Web, be on the lookout for new sources of information that can give you new ideas. For example, someone may mention a book or article that could stimulate new ideas for you, or a Web site may have a department or feature that sparks an idea about how you could enhance your own Web site. When you come across references like this, check, them out right away to see if they're potentially useful. It only takes a minute or two. If the resource looks useful, set a bookmark for it or note the address somewhere and then study it in more detail when you have more time. (I use the very end of the day for follow-up checks like this.) Surfing the Web and pursuing new resources you hear about are the best ways to get new electronic marketing ideas, and thereby maintain your enthusiasm for your own attack.

Read all about it.
Unless you spend a few hours a day online, you'll probably overlook at least some of the most interesting trends and developments each month.  Along with trends and interesting Net resources, these monthlies usually cover some aspect of online marketing in regular feature articles.

Your online marketing attack represents a significant investment, an investment whose value grows over time. Do everything you can to maintain it in peak condition.

•     Just Do It.
•     . . . Is It.
•     You Can Do It.
•     You're in Good Hands with...
•     Reach Out and Touch Someone.
•     Oh, I Wish I Were an . . . Weiner!
•     When You Care Enough To Send the Very Best.
•     Be All That You Can Be.

Why can we remember these phrases years and years after the marketing campaign ended? It's because these messages were repeated to us in "delicious" ways over and over again. "Delicious" means accompanied with vivid, beautiful images, lovely music, and great dramatic, memorable themes.

Let's look back at some famous slogans with respect to the needs of different psychological groups. Try to figure out your own best-customer psychological group before you develop your own slogan.

•     For very basic physical needs: "Soup is Good Food." and "Only ... Gives You a Total-Body Workout."
•     For safety, an "ego" prospect needs: "Air Bags Are Standard." and "When You Can't Sleep."
•     For belonging, a "pleaser" client needs: "When Was the Last Time You and Your Husband Met for Lunch?" and "... Brings the Computer Age Home."
•     For self-esteem, an "authority" customer needs: "Isn't It Time You Owned a ..." and "For People who Know the Difference."
•     Appealing to mature self-actualization principled needs: "Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life." and "Be All that You Can Be."

Selecting a slogan represents a lot of work; however, once selected it should almost never be changed. Remember you'll always be in "Good Hands" with what's-his-name.