I think Rick is looking for what attracts people to the website. Good customer service, fast cheap shipping, and low priced parts are a given, even though not all companies have this.
Ad's may help but I personally dont pay much attention to ads. Word of mouth is probably the biggest way to get your company out there. Its hard to find new company's on Google because its hard to sort out all the garbage. I personally dont read magazines, so the ad's in there dont really do it for me either. I mostly rely on what other people say on forums. The names of the companies and the experience they had. Its a good way to get your name out there just have to make sure you stay consistent so no one goes around giving you any bad reviews.
Another thing I look at once I reach the site is page layout, I use 50resto a lot because I like the page layout, with big pictures. Also detailed descriptions are important. Even though I find Summits website a little harder to navigate through I still use them a lot especially when I already know the part number for exactly what I am looking for, I also like how summit gives very detailed information like sizes, what does and does not come with the part, etc. If your really looking for some notoriety maybe some local television commercials haha, maybe even local newspaper (if anyone even reads those things anymore) or craigslist.
Hope that helps.