Internet marketing methods are as diverse and varied as traditional ones, if not more. However, like with anything else, there are advantages as well as disadvantages with this form of marketing. It is notable, however, that the advantages do tend to outweigh the disadvantages when using these methods.

One of the biggest advantages of internet marketing, or i-marketing, is that it is a cost-effective way to get your message across. Say, for example, you have a beauty product and wish to advertise it on a women’s beauty, health or fashion website (which would be how you target your demographic), the host of that particular website is going to charge you per page impressions, pay-per-play, pay-per-action or pay-per-click. This is a fraction of the cost you would pay for print or outdoor advertising, and the reach can be measured as far more considerable.

Feedback is much more measurable with i-marketing, since the advertiser requires that the host calculates each unique page impression, that is to say how many people have clicked onto the page. As such, the advertiser is guaranteed a precise measurement of how many people have clicked onto their banners, skyscrapers or whichever size and form they have purchased.

i-Marketing is also one of the easiest advertising forms to design, because the resolution needed to go live is less than that of print. With print models, one has to worry about pixilation and so on, but with i-marketing, something as low as 150dpi (dots per inch) can still look smooth and clean; whereas print requires a minimum of 300dpi before going through the motions to become a hard copy.

That brings us to another big advantage, no hard copies needed. Going live online is a much easier way to get your message across than to wait for the printers for hard media.

Disadvantages of i-marketing are not quite as varied as the advantages, but are not to be underestimated. The first is that the website creator, as well as the advertiser, needs to know what they are doing. The skills needed are slightly more than print media, since the advertiser is liaising with publishers are opposed to printers in hard media.

The second disadvantage, quite a significant disadvantage, is that security is lower online. For the extremely skilled hackers and crackers out there, listing too much information about your business feeds their need to steal or get into personal accounts and so on. One is advised to show scrutiny when listing information online. Furthermore, the host site the advertisement is on needs to be completely secure so your money is not wasted.

Because of the growing popularity of the online medium, competition will be a bit more aggressive when it comes to i-marketing, so the advertiser must make sure he/she is prepared to rise to the occasion and always aim to defeat the competition.

Despite the disadvantages here, i-marketing is rapidly gaining momentum in several very lucrative industries.

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