COMMENT: More life left in the web as usage still on upward curve

<p>Some hard interactive lessons have been learnt over the past two </p><p>years. For a few agencies, the big takeaway has been that interactive </p><p>isn't worth much of their time. But while it's true that the internet </p><p>hasn't lived up to the early hype, the story is far from over. So before </p><p>people deem digital to be a marginal issue, it is worth considering a </p><p>few points that suggest interactive will indeed play a very important </p><p>part in the future of our industry. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>More users: During the dotcom heyday, the press provided an endless </p><p>stream of glowing accounts about the net's poster children. Today, it's </p><p>a trail of doom. During this time, what happened to the internet </p><p>penetration in Asia? No surprise - usage steadily increased, as it is </p><p>still doing today, making the internet a part of many people's daily </p><p>routine. Add to this the growth of the wireless internet in Japan </p><p>through i-mode and you have an incredible growth story that is still </p><p>continuing in most of the region. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Beyond banners: The internet has moved well beyond banners. Too much </p><p>attention has focused on click-through rates as the main barometer of </p><p>web success. Banners are the equivalent of direct response advertising </p><p>in the offline world. They are only one tactic for driving traffic to a </p><p>site. Online sponsorships, affiliate programmes and offline drive </p><p>efforts too are viable options. More importantly, the quality of the </p><p>client-consumer interaction on the site itself is the key determinant of </p><p>success. Unlike traditional communications channels that work in finite </p><p>units, interactive material can have open-ended user sessions that last </p><p>minutes or hours, if the content is compelling enough. Wireless </p><p>messaging is adding a pervasive angle to this consumer interaction. This </p><p>provides tantalising options for brand builders. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>An integrated channel: It's now clear that the net can be used as an </p><p>important tool for promoting customer relationships and prompting </p><p>activation. As more agencies get familiar with the creative palette of </p><p>the internet, this relationship building is happening in more creative </p><p>forms. Therefore, the internet is increasingly seen as a marketing </p><p>channel that should work in sync with offline channels. Companies are </p><p>using the web to complement other marketing activities, not supplant </p><p>them. Expect interactive to become a mainstay of most companies' </p><p>marketing mix, helping to build customer retention and loyalty. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Measurable returns: The future of one-to-one marketing is increasingly </p><p>focusing on addressable media, namely PCs, network appliances, PDAs, </p><p>cell phones, etc. All of these share the common characteristic of having </p><p>a return address. This enables marketers to measure, analyse, and </p><p>optimise communications, based upon specific response data from specific </p><p>consumers. This is an exciting prospect for clients demanding a </p><p>measurable return on all their communications investments. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Don't write off interactive just yet. There are many more miles ahead of </p><p>us still. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>