Internet Advertising

Banners out, "push" in as Net advertising gains

It's a question as old as business, applied to the newest medium: "How do you make money at this thing?"

As the Internet continues to permeate the public consciousness, picking up scores of converts almost daily, advertisers continue to jostle for those surfers. And the rate of increase is eye-popping. More than 15 million households are currently hooked into the Net; Jupiter Communications estimates that number will climb to 57 million households by 2002.

Those are consumers with large disposable incomes, the argument goes, so folks are scrambling to figure out how to sell on the Net.

"There was a time when ad agencies would say, `What the heck is online?'" according to Stephen Walden, vice president of content and commerce for BellSouth.net, the Internet service provider subsidiary of the telecommunications giant. "Now they're saying, `Let's explore it and understand it better.'"

And leverage it to the marketer's advantage. Taking content from a magazine ad just won't cut it, Walden said, echoing a sentiment held by most Web followers. Even television ads aren't suitable fodder for Net browsers, because the mouse is mightier than the remote control.

Users come to the Internet armed with ideas of interactivity, seeking a more fulfilling entertainment experience than the boob tube. A recent study by Georgia Tech's Graphic, Visualization and Usability Center found that 37 percent of the people surveyed use the Internet instead of watching TV on a daily basis. What draws them there, experts say, is the wealth of information available -- information that can be sought out and tailored to the user's needs. The viewer is no longer a passive component of the equation, waiting for a TV exec in New York City to decide what can and can't be watched.

Thus, Web designers have begun to shun the banner ad -- the oldest and still most prevalent form of Internet advertising -- for different approaches more suited to the nuances of the Net.

The hottest word in the ever-expanding lexicon of Netspeak is "push," a simple little word that many in the high-tech industry feel will revolutionize and legitimize Internet advertising. Push technology is best understood by defining what it's not. "Pulling" refers to what Net users currently do: They click on an ad that strikes them as interesting. Push puts the power back in the hands of the advertiser; call it broadcast advertising with a twist.

Most notably pioneered by PointCast, push technology, well, "pushes" information -- be it news, sports scores, or whatever -- packaged neatly with an ad that rotates. The technology has limitations in the sense that only so many ads can rotate in a certain period.

"It's a very different buying model," said James Harris, the managing partner of Elemental, an interactive communications consulting firm that does Web development. "It will be half of the ad mix going over the next three or four years."

An even newer concept that advertisers and Web designers, including Elemental, are experimenting with, is the notion of service marketing. Advertisers lure consumers to their site with the promise of useful information, not just more information.

"We've found that people don't mind being lightly branded and getting the service," Harris said. "The Web is full of digital brochures. To attract people, you need to provide value. The Internet allows you to do things that TV or print won't."

One example of this new approach was Elemental's work with Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, which hired the Atlanta firm to build a Web site. Instead of running pages of information on the company's Zyrtec allergy medication, Elemental constructed an informational site that provides pollen counts for each city around the country. In the top left corner is a small ad for Zyrtec.

"The key is that you don't want to give info that's six months old," Harris said. "I want it to be six seconds old. It changes the whole nature of marketing." r