The results of the UK Internet User Survey 1998 show that businesses, while being aware of the importance of having a website, are far from clear about how content affects, or potentially affects, traffic to their site, and consequently the transaction of business online. Websites need content. The Internet is an interactive and dynamic medium, and any website, whether corporate or not, should reflect that. People are not going to come back to visit a site, irrespective of how appealing the design or how easy the navigation is, if it's just a glorified digital company brochure.
Content comes in many forms.
It can be developed within the organisation, or it can be bought from an outside publisher. A number of websites provide daily updates on weather news and sport, however, as more and more websites are using news of sport and weather updates to attract people, the appeal diminishes and the Web becomes saturated with news and weather-driven sites. Content does not necessarily have to be relevant to what you are selling - it just has to be different from what others are offering. The appeal of general interest news and information bytes wanes as more websites adopt the same means to attract visitors. Websites offering services that are geographically specific or local in reference would benefit from publishing information that is specific to the focus of the community or special interest group.