Net marketing is the way of the future
Written by Shirley Lichti for The Record, December 15, 1999

The Internet's impact on marketing over the past decade has been tremendous. It allows companies to rapidly communicate with their customers, to create a global presence, and to sell their products and services online.

Recent estimates suggest that Canadians will spend between $300 million to $450 million buying merchandise online this Christmas. IBM Canada's research shows that one in five Canadians are planning to do at least some of this year's Christmas shopping online.

So what's in store for the future? "The Internet will be ubiquitous. It will be everywhere, all around you. You won't even know when you're on it," says Bryon Thur, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for The Galileo Group of Kitchener, an e-business consulting firm.

For example, Thur says we will see "buy" buttons on the remote control for Web TV. Lawn sprinkler systems will be connected to the local weather network and will not water our lawns on days when rain is forecast.

Thur pointed me to a recent article in Wired Magazine that discusses how Sony Corp. has changed its business strategy to embrace Internet connectivity.

While the old Sony sold standalone products, the new Sony will sell connections. By the year 2000, almost all of its products will go to the Net without using a personal computer.

Another article in Canadian Business magazine suggested the next big wave of connectivity may not come from Web TV or personal computers, but from video game consoles.

The big three game makers - Sega, Nintendo and Sony - all have "super consoles" on the market or on the drawing board. Can you imagine the day when your children take a break from playing Pokémon on their Game Boys to get email?

Many companies are busy working to weave the Internet into our every day lives. For example, NCR's Financial Services Knowledge Lab has come up with a prototype microwave oven allowing you to perform banking procedures using a touch screen on the door. The microwave would be wired to the Internet using signals transmitted over hydro lines.

Other wired kitchen appliances include garbage cans that scan bar codes, make up a list of items used, and then transmit the list to the grocery store. Or refrigerators that remind you when items are close to their best before dates.

Closer to home, Kitchener's TimeLine Media Corp. has introduced Internet-based, audio-interactive screens installed at the self-serve pumps of several Pioneer gas bars. The screens broadcast news, weather, stock quotes, traffic reports, and commercials.

The capability also exists for a device that would scan cars as they drive up to the pumps. It would identify the vehicle type, then broadcast an appropriate commercial message. For example, someone driving a sports utility vehicle may see ads about outdoor activities or camping equipment. The same system allows consumers to request coupons, based on the commercials they have viewed at the pumps.

Thur says there are currently about 150 million Internet users in the world. By 2001, that is expected to grow to 707 million.

Of the current users, only eight per cent are from Canada. However, about 38 per cent of Canadians are connected to the Internet, which is the highest per capita connectivity in the world. No wonder so many businesses today are pursuing e-commerce strategies.

While the way we access the Internet may change, the main concern for companies today is making their web sites more effective as marketing tools. Thur offers the following tips:

• Invest wisely. Use professionals to develop your Web site. A $500 site is not likely going to generate online sales.

• Continue to invest in maintenance of the site as well as promotion of your site. Perhaps the most important, and most overlooked component of e-commerce, is site promotion. A functional e-commerce site is like a retail store. Without a proper marketing strategy in place to ensure shoppers find it, it will not succeed.

  This means being well-linked on the Internet in search engines, having a well-defined brand strategy and site concept, using traditional support materials (e.g. brochures), and placing ads on the Net as well as in traditional media such as magazines and newspapers.

• Service is just as important in e-commerce as in brick-and-mortar settings. This means promptly answering e-mail questions, providing telephone support, shipping products quickly, and providing ample information on shipping costs, return policies and other details customers should know about when making a purchase.

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