You would think choosing the business model for a website would easy, but from what we can see, most companies don't have a clue.

Your website may serve as a means to market your products or services, but above all, it must function as an effective advertising vehicle, and succeed in giving your company name recognition..

First, let's examine some of the more popular forms of advertising as they existed before the WEB, URLs and e-mail addresses.

• Billboards
  
  • Goal: Long Term
    
  • Designed to create visual recognition for a company or product through frequent exposure
    
  • Simple format - Little or no text - or a short text message without other visuals
    
  • No immediate contact is required - and rarely asked for - between the consumer and the advertiser.
    
  • Viewer has no control over the time spent viewing - usually seconds
    
  • Effectiveness is measured by public awareness of product, company or message
    
    
• Magazine Ads (Major Ads)
  
  • Goal: Long term
  • Designed to generate public awareness of the product or company by creating a long term visual image or emotional response on the part of the viewer
    
  • Almost always part of an overall ad campaign with saturation through placement in many different magazines.
    
  • Almost always visual
    
  • Text if used, enforces the visual message.
    
  • No immediate contact is required - and rarely asked for - between the consumer and the advertiser.
    
  • The viewer stumbles across the ad by accident.
    
  • The viewer may merely only glance at the ad or read the ad depending on interest.
    
  • The viewer may return or seek out the ad if it is of interest.
    
  • Effectiveness is measured by public perception of the product or company
    
    
• Newspapers
  
  • Goal: Short Term
    
  • Designed to generate a need or want that will produce a physical response from the reader within a short period of time. (visit the store, place a phone call, or write a letter)
    
  • Visual - Text and pictures
    
  • Time sensitive (today's price might not be here tomorrow)
    
  • Effectiveness measured in sales
    
    
• Radio
  
  • Goal: Short term
    
  • Strictly audio
    
  • Designed to generate a need or want that will produce a physical response from the listener within a short period of time. (visit the store, place a phone call, or write a letter)
    
  • Time sensitive (today's price might not be here tomorrow)
    
  • Relies on frequent repetition of message to achieve results
    
  • Listener has no control over when or where he will hear message
    
  • Effectiveness measured in sales or name recognition
    
    
• Television
  
  • Goal: Short term / Long Term
    
  • Combines Visual and Audio
    
  • Designed to generate a need or want in the audience that might produce a physical response at some future time. (buy the product)
    OR
    
  • Designed to generate public awareness of the product or company by creating a long term visual image or emotional response on the part of the viewer
    
  • Can be Time sensitive or not
    
  • Relies on frequent repetition of message to achieve results
    
  • Listener has no control over when or where he will hear message
    
  • No immediate contact is required between the consumer and the advertiser.
    
  • Effectiveness measured in sales or public awareness
    
    

Each of these methods of advertising have at least three things in common - none require that the consumer seek them out, - none are under the direct control of the viewer/listener/audience/consumer - and all rely on repetition to get their message across - none of which can be applied to the WEB.

"Agressive Advertising" is repeatedly parading information before the eyes and ears of a passive audience that did not ask for the message. On the WEB, you have one chance to connect with your visitor.

Next: The WEB Model