Paul persuades

Last year, online marketing brought presidential candidate Howard Dean to the forefront of the Democratic party.

But as quickly as the web made him, a viral video helped crush his bid for presidency.

This year, online efforts have served as one of the most prominent platforms for the '08 presidential election.

Republican candidate Ron Paul made headlines last week by raising $4 million online and another $200,000 over the phone in a single day, according to The New York Times.

Paul estimates the one-day haul gave him "$10 million worth of free publicity."

Paul's campaign is buoyed almost entirely by the internet. Supporters in different states hooked up through social site MeetUp.com.

As for raising $4 million in 24 hours: 28-year-old James Sugra, acting alone, posted a video proposing one big day of fundraising, while Trevor Lyman independently created thisnovember5th.com, which also featured the video.