Mike,
Glad to see you in the forum.
Leverage has a broad definition and can be applied to time, money, advertising, exposure, goodwill, assets, and investment.
In the sense of online marketing, leverage is often confused with viral elements. So if you want a precise definition, online leverage is more closely related to duplication.
For example, if I have a goal of reaching 100,000 people and I have a list of 10,000 then by finding 9 JV partners with equal sized lists and running a promotion together, it can be defined as leverage; although to be honest I do not believe that this is a true definition or a true application.
For example, a basic definition of leverage is using a strong pole, and a correctly placed block to move a rock weighing a ton by myself. In this situation I am relying purely on my own skills and correct choice of pole and block to achieve results I would normally not be able to obtain since the rock weighs ten times as much as I do.
Using my definition above, if the rock is 100,000 people I have to then decide what is the pole and the block I will use to gain the desired result. I want to be able to move or motivate 100,000 people to buy my product.
If I have 9 more people helping me move the rock, I dont need a pole or a block. That isnt leverage. So then, to get leverage by myself, what do I do?
This demands some creative thinking. One answer is to 'rent a list' or to use and advertising service that would cost me say one cent per recipient. If we apply that to 100,000 people I would be spending 1,000 dollars on advertising which if targeted correctly would bring 5000-10,000 sales. This is purely using money as the lever.
Since I have rambled on a bit I will leave off. Thanks Mike for asking a very important question. And one with lots of answers
Cheers
Paul
http://advancedmarketintelligence.info http://netbizoptimiser.com