The Growth of Online Advertising

Online advertising is quite simply advertising which appears on the internet. It has proved to be a successful marketing method and a way to increase income. There are different forms of online advertising; some more acceptable than others.

Spam is an unwelcome and annoying form of online advertising. Spam is the same as the junk mail you receive in your mailbox. The only difference is that it's sent to your email address instead of your home address. Some businesses have no qualms about using spam as an online advertising method but it builds a bad business reputation.

Other frowned upon methods of online advertising include programs known as spyware or adware. These applications can switch a browser's home page, usually to the homepage of the advertiser, without the computer owner's permission. These programs can also cause pop-up ads to appear seemingly at random. By using this method, a business can cause an ad to appear every time a person visits a website - any website.

More acceptable forms of advertising include opt-in email marketing, banner advertising and search engine advertising among others. Using a welcome and acceptable form of advertising increases your chances of success.

Who Uses Online Advertising?

Online advertising is used by most businesses, no matter how big or small. Even a local mom and pop type of operation may have a web presence. The internet is a force to be reckoned with and smart businesses realize that there is money to be made. Of course, bigger businesses have more money to spend but it doesn't take a lot of money to benefit from online advertising. The amount of money any business spends depends on the type of advertising.

Acceptable Forms of Online Advertising

The internet is a visual medium and online advertising is often most successful when utilizing visuals. This can mean anything from colorful banner ads to a full-blown flash presentation. The key to successful online advertising is to grab attention without being overly intrusive. Current popular methods of online advertising include:

Banner Ads - Banner ad online advertising is one of the first advertising methods used on the internet. Banner ads are also easy to create.
Floating Ads - This form of online advertising is seen as intrusive by some people. Floating ads appear to float or move across a user's screen while viewing a webpage. They can be distracting.
Interstitial Ads - This is a relatively new form of online advertising which has grown in popularity due to Flash and other similar programs. Interstitial ads are like television commercials on your PC. They usually appear before a main page loads or they're placed in some other spot on a webpage.
Interstitial Ads - This is a relatively new form of online advertising which has grown in popularity due to Flash and other similar programs. Interstitial ads are like television commercials on your PC. They usually appear before a main page loads or they're placed in some other spot on a webpage.
Pop-Under Advertising - This is one of the newest and most controversial forms of online advertising. Unlike pop-up ads, pop-under ads are sneakier and less intrusive. They don't steal the attention away from the main web page as pop-up ads can do. Instead, a window will open up in the background with the ad in it and will be instantly minimized so that the user can continue to look at the original web page only to find the ad later. The attractiveness of pop-under advertising has to due with it's relatively cheap cost. At around $5 per thousand impressions, it is an attractive alternative to other forms of online advertising.

Advances in technology also mean advances in online advertising. More businesses have started taking advantage of streaming video when it comes to their online advertising. Who knows? Pretty soon, advertisements on your computer screen may look no different than those during the commercial breaks.