Have you heard of Internet Marketing? It is the term used to denote advertising that is used to sell goods and services on the Internet. There are many different types of Internet Marketing. They are affiliate marketing, banner ads, blogging and blog marketing, email marketing, interactive advertising, pay per click advertising, and search engine marketing such as search engine optimization (SEO).

What started as traditional advertising on a web site to sell products has turned into a multi-billion dollar business. In fact, the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers said that at least $7.9 billion was spent in the United States during the first six months of 2006. By the end of the year, they had predicted that about $15 billion, if not more, would be spent.

What doe numbers like this mean? This proves the importance of the Internet for marketers and online advertising. Whereas advertisers used to focus on markets such as television, radio, and printed material such as newspapers or magazines, more and more are looking towards the Internet to help them improve profits. Search advertising, advertising that is done mainly by making sure your web page appears near the top of search engine rankings, remains the largest revenue generator for Internet advertising. This is done through the use of keywords and key phrases. When someone searches for a certain word or phrase, the sites that are ranked higher with the search engines appear first. If they have banner ads, blogs, or pay per click advertising, they will get more of the advertising dollars than sites that are lower ranked.

But, other forms such as video ads are starting to attract more attention and bring in more money for advertisers. Podcast advertising is another great way for companies to advertise their services and products through Internet marketing. In 2006 alone, $80 was spent on podcast advertising. That number is expected to be five times as much by 2011.

The United States is not the only country benefiting from Internet marketing. In the United Kingdom, over one billion pounds was spent on online advertising in 2005. Internet marketing has become so popular that the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in England is also thinking of using Internet Marketing to supplement its income. The company has estimated that it may be able to make as much as 48 – 105 million pounds with advertising revenues generated by Internet marketing.

As we enter 2007, researchers believe that more and more businesses will use the Internet to advertise. Studies show that advertisers will spend approximately $8.3 billion on paid search ads alone. That is over a billion more than last year. With the Summer Olympics and United States Presidential election taking place in 2008, researchers believe that as much as $22 billion could be spent on Internet marketing.

Is all this online advertising actually making a difference? Studies point to yes. In 2007, it is expected that online spending will reach a new high of $20 billion dollars.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_marketing

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/29/internet_advertising_booms/

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/31/advertising_revenue/

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/10/04/online_ads/

http://www.emarketer.com/

http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?1004635