Business Use of WWW

How does WWW differ from other media?

Media Interactivity Comm. model Linear Control Presentation Reach
Billboard N 1 to many L N P L
Newspaper N 1 to many L Y P LRN
Magazines N 1 to many L Y P LRNG
Direct Mail N 1 to many L Y P LRNG
Radio N 1 to many L N A LRN
T.V. N 1 to many L N AV LRNG
WWW Y Many to Many N Y MM G
Table key:
Linear: L (Linear), N (Non Linear)
Presentation: P (Print), A (Audio), V (Video), MM (Multi-media)
Reach: L (Local), R (Regional), N (National), G (Global)

Traditional Media Model


Marketer--------Medium----------Target Audience
   ^                                  |
   |                                  |
   |                                  |
   |          Feedback                |
   ------------------------------------

WWW Communication Model


Marketer----------WWW-----------Target Audience
Top-down vs. mediated environment

Who has access to WWW

A review of the following studies:

Key advantages of WWW for doing business.

Five distinct business applications of WWW.

Promotion

  • Information rich
  • Demand pull
  • Unobtrusive
  • Experience
  • Media integration
  • Products include:
  • Examples

    Customer support

  • Reducing traditional overhead
  • Additional product information
  • Additional feedback mechanism
  • Examples

    Retailing

  • Comparison with other non-store retailing, particularly TV and catalog
  • Payment Issues
  • Security Issues
  • Reason to purchase now
  • Cost of transaction
  • Scalability
  • Examples
  • Technology

    Internal and distribution channel communication (intranets)

  • Scalability
  • Cost
  • Ease of use
  • Platform independent
  • Collaboration
  • Ease of Information access
  • IT Integration
  • Information distribution efficiencies, time and money
  • Network computing capability
  • Demand pull information
  • Examples

    Market Research

  • Consumer
  • Competitive
  • Economic

    Nine "things to know" for effective WWW design

  • Balancing file size and using graphics
  • Limiting options on a page vs. number of levels of pages in a site
  • Page length
  • Use of navigational devices
  • Site branding (backgrounds and conformity etc.)
  • Understand browser has control of information consumption
  • Information and design currency
  • Editorial rigor
  • Hook, a reason to return on a regular basis

    Marketing a WWW site

  • To Find
  • To Return

    Issues to be resolved

  • Cost of access
  • Reliability
  • Infrastructure
  • Equipment complexity
  • Security and payment issues
  • Regulation

    Potential use of WWW in the future

  • A micropayment economy
  • Multimedia integration
  • The Oracle Network Computer
  • Perfect competition
  • Portable WWW devices

    "Television will never be a serious competitor for radio, because people must sit and keep their eyes glued on a screen; the average American family hasn't time for it."
    New York Times at the 1939 World's Fair

    Sites