NASA, for example, benefited from widespread media coverage of its Mars Pathfinder mission, which has helped garner the mission's Web site roughly 750 million hits. Others have discovered that marketing and outreach are an important part of Web management. After all, the Web is huge. In July, the Internet Software Consortium counted more than 56 million computers hosting information on the Internet. E-mail has become one method of making people aware of an agency's Web site offerings.
Some agencies ask people to sign up to receive updates about new features of Web sites.
The General Accounting Office, for example, issues daily e-mail updates with links to new reports and decisions. Some agencies also make sure their Web address is on every document they issue. Cynthia O'Connor is HUD's director of Web marketing and outreach. O'Connor says her focus is on building relationships with HUD's customers. To that end, she promotes HUD's Web site at conferences, state fairs, home and garden shows, and home-buying fairs.