Online Forecast

Consumer Goods/Volume 2, 2000 In 2000, the Internet became a mass-market medium; reaching 51 percent household penetration in the US, with increased cannibalization of off-line media, gender parity, less income disparity, and a growing number of users from ethnic minorities. Consequently, consumer goods advertisers have begun to embrace the Internet to support the traditional marketing activities of brand building, brand reinforcement, sales promotion, and market research. Jupiter believes this dynamic will continue, with consumer goods advertising reaching $1.7 billion by 2005. To date, consumer goods companies have been more aggressive with direct marketing initiatives than with advertising, using Web sites and partnerships to promote viral marketing, advertorials, and the early stages of couponing. However, as these activities continue to develop online, consumer goods media buys will follow, as manufacturers use advertising to lend support to a wide range of online promotional strategies.