Abstract Internet Background

The Internet in 2017 passed Television to become the biggest United States advertising medium,  according to Publicis Group’s Zenith Advertising Forecast.

Television advertising had been the leader in ad spending since before the turn of the century.  The category breakdown is:

• 35.1% Internet
• 34.7% Television
• 8.9% Radio
• 8.4% Newspaper
• 7.8% Magazine
• 5.2% Out of Home

One item to note, this study does not reflect the spend on promotional products or direct mail.

What Constitutes Internet Advertising?

Internet Advertising and Online advertising, are often used interchangeably. Basically, it refers to advertising on the Internet to deliver promotional marketing messages to consumers or businesses.

These can include, but not limited to:

• Social Media
• Pay-per-Click
• Display Advertising (Web Banner Ads)
• Search Engine Marketing
• E-Mail Marketing
• Mobile Advertising

What Does This Mean For Your Business

If you are a small to medium size businesses, you should be using at least some type of Internet advertising to connect with your customers and prospects. And you should have a targeted strategy to implement Internet Advertising on a regular basis.

Depending on your business, you may want to spend a higher percentage in one form than another. And you certainly do have to use every option at your disposal.  For example, I have many clients that use pay-per-click across Google or other ad providers on a regular basis with excellent results. Another of my clients has never used pay-per-click but has a huge presence in email advertising and social media.

And one other thing.  Internet advertising does not have to be expensive.  You can start small and increase your budget as you see results.

Keep in mind that Internet advertising, in most cases, shouldn’t be your only form of advertising.  There is still a place for traditional advertising in your marketing mix.

In the future, I will write a detailed blog post on each of these types of Advertising and how small to medium businesses can use them to their benefit.