Why This Blog?
I have spent 13 years in the Internet Industry. Some observation and lessons from those years:
1. Digitization is transforming everything it touches. Photography and music have already been transformed beyond recognition. The print/newspaper business is undergoing its own transformation. TV will follow.
Just as the corner record store and the photo lab have been delegated to our memories so too will the daily newspaper and our concept of prime time TV.
2. More and more people are using the Internet as their primary source of information, entertainment and communication. With the advent of the mobile Web the Internet will become ubiquitous and the trends wrought by digitization will accelerate.
3. Despite these transformational trends in how we communicate and how we consume media, only 7% of advertising dollars in the US are devoted to the Internet.
4. The online business model is a work in progress. Many, companies that were previously profitable are still trying to determine how to remain viable in a digital world.
5. Marketing in its broadest sense is still playing catch up with the rapidly evolving digital world. The ad business as defined by the big ad agencies and “Madison Avenue” is still fixated on the 30 second spot as the anchor of all marketing campaigns. Most chief marketing officers are happy to comply.
Like it or not the disappearance of the corner music store and the daily newspaper point to the fact that marketing and advertising as traditionally executed will have to change dramatically. This eventuality is written.
Still a young industry:
It is 15 years since the launch of Netscape (October 13, 1994) and the first banner ad (Hotwired on October 25, 1994). Think of where the automobile industry was in 1900, 15 years after Karl Benz built his 1st gasoline-powered internal combustion engine.
These are the early days of digitization and the Internet industry will continue to make strides towards developing sustainable business models.
This blog is my input to the debate on how we as an industry can move towards a more balanced digital eco-system that enables many more businesses to thrive profitably in our digital world.
