IMPLICATIONS OF INTERNET ADVERTISING ON NEW MEDIA ENTREPRENEURSHIP: A BOON OR BANE?

Abstract [English]

Internet advertising implies advertising using the internet as a platform. It is a marketing strategy which deals with attracting web traffic and delivering marketing messages to appropriate targets using the internet as a medium. Internet advertising has no doubt positively revolutionized the sector of commerce. It has simplify and made more effective the communication between entrepreneurs and their potential customers. This study discusses among other things the advantages of internet advertising which include: reaching significantly more people than the traditional advertisement media at a cheaper rate for large scale businesses especially the international ones. But on the contrary, internet advertising can expose marketing materials of a competitor which can be copied by anyone and use for purposes detrimental to such competitor’s business. This paper argues that since there is no censorship on the internet, it is difficult or at worst impossible to scrutinize and regulate advertisements online making teenagers and young children to be vulnerable. This study proffers that one major threat that internet advertising may need to combat is policy. It is not that internet advertisement is illegal, but the freedom associated with it becomes limited when policies are formulated day by day. Also, from another perspective, the internet itself has become a threat to internet advertising due to emerging measures to curb and control unsolicited messages and adverts to be specific. This paper concludes that the level of optimism as regards the future of internet advertising is on the rise as it responds rapidly to technological advancement. There seem to be a very bright light at the end of the tunnel as internet is reaching to the nooks and crannies of the globe. So far, internet advertising has the highest ROI and is promising to improve, and at worst to maintain the status quo. Therefore, there is no doubt that alongside potential challenges, internet advertising holds for a bright future.