Be it by desktop, tablet or smartphone more and more consumers are making purchases via ads they see on the Internet.
As they say, the numbers don’t lie as 1Q 2012 saw the highest first-quarter revenue ever generated via Internet advertising ($8.4 billion) according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau – which was over $1 billion more than in 1Q 2011 ($7.3 billion).
As to where the bulk of that revenue comes from, as per the Associated Press, most of it comes from Google and other text-based ads.
In the press release announcing the findings, Randall Rothenberg, President and CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, said the reason for the increase is due to the fact “more online consumers than ever are taking to the internet to inform and navigate their daily lives.”
He also sang the praises of those responsible for the ads themselves, saying marketing and advertising agencies are “…wisely investing dollars to reach digitally connected consumers.”
Meanwhile, Sherrill Mane, Senior Vice President, Research, Analytics & Measurement of the Interactive Advertising Bureau said the results speak to the fact that “… digital media captures consumers’ imaginations, and marketers increasingly turn to interactive advertising to successfully speak to their customers.”
While I would agree with the fact that marketers and advertisers are doing a good job of creating ads that engage consumers, hence the increased revenue, I would caution any marketer and advertiser to not put all his eggs into one digital basket.
Think about it… how we do know that people are not responding to Internet ads as a result of something they saw offline via TV or print or direct mail, etc.?
My point is the key word is integration – offline and online integration.