The other day I was reading my deodorant applicator. “Join the Wetness Protection Program” it said, with a website.

The Wetness Protection Program has a banner ad on the Arrid website.

Does Your Boss Stink?

Is Your Ex a Drip?

Report Them.

Become an Agent for the Wetness Protection Program.

As a freelance copywriter, I spend a lot of time working with clients to create a community of resources for clients and leads. Just as I want all of my readers to keep coming back to Life on Avenue Z for freelance anecdotes, small business tips and daily antics, my clients want their clients to come to them for information.

But we have to be realistic here, people. Raise your hand if you want to join the Wetness Protection Program (which, pathetically, is a broken link). Come on now, will you ever join Slurpee Nation? Do you subscribe to the Prilosec newsletter for tips on avoiding heartburn and news about NASCAR (not kidding here)? Have you taken the Ritz Cracker Personality Quiz?

All companies these days want blogs that people visit, newsletters that people enjoy, resources that people use. Each time a consumer sees a company as a helpful (or entertaining) resource, revenue is sure to follow. But we as consumers are overwhelmed with the number of offers to join company communities.

Newsletters are great for reaching out to consumers and keeping your name in front of them. These days don’t be surprised or discouraged if your open rate is decreasing with the increased competition for attention in an Inbox. If you continue to deliver relevant content to the right people, your newsletter efforts can pay off.

Blogs are excellent for SEO, but it takes a lot of effort to build a community around a corporate blog. If a potential customer is searching for information about a product you produce and lands on your blog, you should consider that a triumph.

White Papers and Tip Sheets work well to establish credibility in your industry, but don’t be surprised if people ask for them and don’t read them. It’s hard for a potential customer to delve into all that information when he is occupied with making a living. But having answers and resources on hand is always valuable. Hint: give your white papers and tips to your sales staff so they can become go-to people for their customers, and compile resources on CD for handouts at conferences.

Fun and Games — There’s a chance your funny video will be circulated to thousands or millions of people, but again you’ve got a lot of competition. And you should measure the conversion rate that your amusements produce… just because people find the Pepto-Bismol Dance Machine game amusing doesn’t mean that people will buy your diarrhea medicine.

Thus, when I am helping a company set up a blog or create resources, I urge them to make the information helpful, searchable and relevant. But I lower their expectations about the number of people who will visit daily to get the latest news on web-to-print techniques or mass text messaging advice.