Kevin asked the question on his blog today: Do e-commerce sites generate demand? Or are they just helpless, waiting for other marketing to generate interest?

It’s not that simple, of course, but Kevin’s touched a critical point: A web site, on its own, can’t generate demand or sales. But it’s a critical step along a continuum that starts when someone learns about a product or business and continues through (hopefully) to a purchase.

A website is part of an overall campaign that, properly executed, can generate demand. You separate the web site from the rest of the equation at your peril.