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If online marketing is the future, why are some marketers stuck in the past?

March 05, 2008 |

Online advertising networks have proven very effective in building brand awareness and generating demand. Yet, only 7.2% of the total amount spent on all U.S. advertising will be spend on the Internet in 2008.

"Of all the advertising platforms, the Internet is one of the few on an upward trend," says Wharton marketing professor Patti Williams. "But if you look in terms of the sheer amount of time most consumers are spending online and the amount of dollars being spent to reach them, it is still probably way under what it should be."

Indeed, as computer screens, mobile phones and other devices offer what amounts to billboard space for display ads, video and tie-ins to Internet searches, the advertising landscape is undergoing a major transformation. New media is growing at a fast pace, but industry analysts and Wharton faculty say senior marketers still lag in adopting the Internet and other digital technology to reach their customers.

Spending on Internet marketing is expected to grow 13.4% in 2008, but that will only add up to 7.2% of the total amount spent on all U.S. advertising, which is expected to hit $153.7 billion, according to TNS Media Intelligence.

Williams says that while the Internet provides advertisers with the ability to closely track consumer response to ads by measuring clicks or other online behavior, their reluctance to embrace the Internet may be due to uncertainty about how well it can shape broader brand messages.

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