The purpose of this marketing on the internet is that Web site is to provide an overview of the dramatic way that the Internet is impacting all aspects of marketing. Internet marketing activities are organized according to the five categories outlined in the table below. These categories represent the full scope of marketing as the discipline is most commonly defined. How marketers research and gather information about customers: How marketers make strategic decisions about each of the four elements of the marketing mix.

The product is much more than just the physical good that becomes the possession of the customer. It is everything about the purchase experience that a customer finds satisfying. When a customer buys a new computer, for example, the product consists of not only the tangible computer, monitor and cables, but also the information provided by the computer salesperson, the instruction manual, the warranty, the follow-up technical service, etc.

The Internet provides organizations with ways to greatly enhance the extent to which a given product satisfies customers. Clearly, online firms can engage in marketing activities and services that enhance their product-offerings in ways that traditional, in-store organizations cannot. The Internet will have a huge impact on how products are distributed to customers especially on the distribution of those products that can be digitized. This is because when online shoppers enter their credit card number and purchase a digital product, that product can be sent to them directly and immediately over the Internet.

Of course, all computer software is in a digital format, and thus could be sold and distributed to people directly on the Internet. Finally, computer software is not the only type of product that can be distributed via the Internet. Of course, words and pictures lend themselves to digitization; and most major newspapers and magazines already are distributed to online customers every day. Most of these are free. Internet advertising is especially powerful in its ability to target specific, appropriate segments of customers.

The Internet and related technology have already demonstrated a profound effect on the personal selling process. Salespeople today carry around laptop computers that connect them to their own company's databases when they are out on sales calls. This provides them with the ability to provide the customer with extensive, relevant information almost immediately. Via the Internet, individuals can obtain free, printable coupons from a wide variety of companies.

The Internet can potentially have a dramatic impact on the price of goods and services; however, it is debatable whether the end result will be lower or higher prices. Links to two conflicting arguments are presented below. The Internet is a communication medium that efficiently brings parties together, and thus can and does provide buyers with access to a larger number of selling firms. This should foster competition among firms and drive prices down. Because of the Internet, firms will now have to compete against other firms that were once not competitors -- perhaps because these other firms were thousands of miles away.

It is true that a firm's geographic location is practically irrelevant in cyber shopping. First, firms realize mutual dependencies, and are unlikely to engage in destructive pricing behavior. Further, consumers are willing to pay higher prices for increased selection and shopping convenience, which on-line shopping clearly provides. An important point, however, is that on-line seller generally had not yet been able to charge a premium for the differentiated goods they sell via the Internet. At the present time, prices of products bought on-line are about the same as those purchased at conventional retail stores.