Small and medium-sized businesses believe their websites help drive revenue generation, according to a nationwide survey of 1,032 leaders of small and medium-sized businesses, reports eMarketer. Interland's Spring 2005 Business Barometer found that two-thirds of business leaders credit their business websites with either generating revenue directly or influencing offline purchases.

When asked to select three marketing tools critical in driving business for their companies, respondents opted for community relations first, at 55 percent, with websites second at 47 percent and public/media relations third at 31 percent. Email marketing ranked sixth at 21 percent, and search engine keyword marketing was eighth with 18 percent.

Some 94 percent report that their businesses have internet access, and seven out of 10 say that email is a very or somewhat important part of their business. Some 24 percent of the businesses surveyed said they are using e-commerce features - such as online payment transactions, online business forms or email requests - to sell through their websites, and 42 percent say they derive more than a quarter of their monthly revenue from their internet presence.