welcome, new web site owner!
You now have a new web site and everyone is going to see your message ...right? -wrong!
A successful site depends on the intended audience, the site's objectives and its content.
Many web sites on the net are "forgotten" sites. They are often forgotten due to inactivity likely due to a low number of visitors or to a lack of interest from the people managing the site.
A well built site is ready to draw an audience and help spread the site owner's message to the world -IF- the site includes interesting content! Take Google for example, obviously people find it useful. If many people find your content or application useful, then more will use it. A site that provides useful information or tools to people draws the largest audience.
It is not always necessary to have the largest audience. Sometimes a site simply needs to address a specific group within a limited audience pool.
Whatever the audience, the important thing to remember is that the content be found interesting by the user.
The site does not have to be flashy or full of images and other media to be attractive.
Again, visit google.com, its not the best looking site - yet it ranks as the most popular site in the world because people find it useful
After the site content, other factors can help determine the fate of a site.
Ease of navigation, a name that is easy to remember, proper layout and use of SEO, proper use of images, colors and media; even proper spelling can be a factor to success.
If you have just launched a site to draw an audience to your message, your products or your services; then you should have also begun to spread the word offline. Marketing the web site is like distributing flyers or brochures. The more you put into people's hands, the greater the number of responses you should get. Read "Spreading The Word" on this page for some pointers on a successful site launch.