Marketing the New Venture 239- The Internet changes your job. Information is everywhere, and if you can’t do your
job better because of it, watch out. - The distinction between Internet and non-Internet companies is fading. Clicks and
bricks is a model that works. Every business can use B2B networks to improve pur-
chasing. - The real wealth creation is yet to come. We were all too eager. These things take time.
The dot-com revolution may be dead, but the Internet revolution is just beginning.
Recent Trends
A number of recent trends in Internet marketing need to be considered by e-entrepre-
neurs. These may or may not turn out to be long-term factors, but they represent the
direction that Internet marketing is moving now:
- Securing a recognizable Web domain name is getting harder. Companies have
bought unused domain names and are waiting to sell or auction them to entrepre-
neurs, thus cashing in on their ability to spot a good name or a coming trend.^34 - Securing a good domain name helps a business, but more and more consumers are
becoming very security conscious and may resent any monitoring of their Web use.
As a result, they block cookies from being deposited on their computers, which
means that the consumer’s computer will not recognize that it has previously been
to a Web site. This makes it very hard to generate repeat business.^35 - Popular search terms are becoming increasingly expensive. When a new venture
uses a search engine like Google or Yahoo to present itself, it pays for the privilege.
Words are like real estate—there is a limited supply. Each time a customer search-
es by using a key word, the advertising that appears has to be paid for; displaying
the ad is no guarantee that the customer will “click through” to the company’s Web
site.^36 - Even if customers click through, there is the danger of “click fraud.” Because the
company is charged by the search engine firm every time a customer clicks through,
false clicks are expensive. Cyberthieves have generated “bots” that make fraudulent
clicks. These bots are software programs that are difficult to detect and easy to
change. Using bogus clicks, dishonest Web-site owners can boost their own revenue
and drain a company’s ad budget.^37 - Recommending one product when another is being searched for is a great market-
ing tool, but this cross-selling can annoy and offend customers. When Walmart.com
customers requested the Martin Luther King and Jack Johnson biographies on
DVD, they were offered “Planet of the Apes” and “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.”
Complaints came flooding in, and Wal-Mart removed its cross-selling recommenda-
tion system. The lesson here is to thoroughly test these systems.^38 - Affiliate programs enable entrepreneurs to piggyback on more popular but related
Web sites, but it takes real skill. Myriad sellers are out there attempting the same
thing. How does an entrepreneur stand out? An estimated 25,000 affiliates make a
living wage, but the vast majority earn almost nothing. Entrepreneurs may want to
use an affiliate network (like Peformics or LinkShare) to increase their odds and