There are many types of Internet advertising, most take place through individual websites and others utilize email as a vehicle to deliver ads. Here we will highlight four of the most popular methods of internet advertising.

Contextual advertising takes advantage of the user’s search result or their existing interest in the subject they are reading about. Contextual ads are based on keywords in the user’s search or the keywords that may be found on a given page. Many times the ads are links in the text, for example, if someone is reading an article about cars then the word tires may be a link to a website that sells tires.

With affiliate marketing an advertiser will develop an ad campaign and place the campaign in the hands of other publishers. The publishers will range in size and popularity, but each one will reach it’s own select market. With affiliate marketing the publisher is usually paid based on ad performance and as a result of some type of conversion.

Email advertising is one frequently abused method of advertising. When used legitimately can be a highly effective avenue. The accepted and approved method of email marketing is to build an “opt-in” marketing list. This list consists of users who have knowingly requested that you send them information. There are many ways of building your mailing list, but due to the niche marketing factor, they are very successful.

Behavioral targeting is the result of tracking a users patterns of behavior and feeding them ads based on the type of sites they frequently visit. If someone is an avid hunter and they visit hunting forums and firearms sites, they may be sent an ad for a camouflage clothing company.

When choosing your method of internet advertising you will want to take into consideration the size of your budget, the habits of your target user, and the effectiveness of each method.

Direct marketing is a marketing discipline by which an organisation communicates directly with customers to generate a response, transaction or sale. It is a tried and tested method which has become popular throughout every kind of business and almost every country in the world. The most common techniques of direct marketing are telephone sales, solicited or unsolicited emails, catalogues, leaflets, brochures and coupons. An important aspect of a successful direct marketing strategy is hinged upon the compilation and maintenance of your database of personal information regarding potential customers and clients.

Direct marketing is a strategy that enables you to target specific groups that are relevant to the product or service your business is selling. This can be seen as a huge cost saving to a business as the direct marketers only spend money on what is required in order to reach their particular target group. This not only reduces expenditure but saves time as the direct marketers are not attempting to influence people who have absolutely no interest in or need for their products or services. This method generates a much more positive response than other marketing strategies because effort applied by the marketers concentrates on specific and pre-qualified target groups.

By targeting a relevant and specific audience immediate results can be achieved. Results can be predicted accurately with direct marketing as it can be seen as a ”numbers game.” By running a few simple tests a direct marketer can determine a close estimate of what percentage of this target will respond to the offers. The biggest benefit of direct marketing to consumers is the reduction of junk mail as they will only receive marketing material on the products and services that are of interest to them.