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| The digital interactive media, which include online database services, the Internet and the World Wide Web, CD-ROM catalogs, magazines, kiosks, and interactive television, represent a revolution in the making. From an advertising standpoint, these media offer an opportunity to develop customer relationships rather than volume. These media are still in flux, but they're growing at an exponential rate and offer an array of challenges and opportunities for advertising creativity. The commercialization of the Internet really began with the commercial online services that offered a large subscriber base to potential advertisers. However, the Internet itself dwarfed the online services in potential since it reached so many people around the globe. Once Web browser software became available, it made the Internet user-friendly to noncomputer specialists. Similarly, search engines made sites on the World Wide Web available to PC users with just the click of a mouse. When people began migrating to the Web, so did advertisers. The first banner ad was sold by Hotwired magazine. Web users tend to be upscale, college-educated men and women. This is an ideal target, especially for business-to-business advertisers. This group is rapidly broadening, which will make the Web even more attractive to many mainline advertisers. People currently access the Net through Internet service providers, cable modems, and satellites. The most common, though, is by dial-up modem through an ISP. The most common types of Net advertising are banners, buttons, sponsorships, interstitials, and classifieds. Like all media, the Internet has many advantages and disadvantages. Most Internet advertising is sold by CPM. Some, though, is sold by click-through or results. In some cases, marketers conducting commerce on the Net take a commission on what is sold. Direct mail attracts nearly 20 percent of all ad dollars. While it has historically been the most expensive major medium on a costper-exposure basis, it has also always been the most effective in terms of tangible results. Marketers like direct mail for its accountability. There are many types of direct-mail advertising, from catalogs and brochures to statement stuffers. One of the great features of direct mail is that it can increase the effectiveness of ads in other media. However, direct mail has many drawbacks too—primarily its cost and the junk-mail image. The two most important things that affect direct-mail success are the mailing list and the creativity used. The direct-mail piece normally goes through the same production process as any other print piece. The size and shape of the mailing package, as well as the type, illustrations, and colors, all affect printing costs. |