American Onslaught

The title of this post says it all. Really, who came up with the advertising model. I want to know. If you can shed some light on this I would appreciate it. But at this point who came up with it is a little like asking what killed the dinasors. It might be nice to know, but the real point is they are dead. And if companies keep following the advertising model for revenue generation they may find themselves in a similar way.

I think many realize that the advertising model was born form the newspaper. The first newspaper was printed in the early 15th century, and at that time advertisements were the most innovative way to reach consumers. Just think of it, at that point in history most of what people knew about what was going on in their community let along in the world was communicated by world of mouth. So newspapers were something everyone would want to read, advertisements and everything.

Over time, as it tends to happen, things begun changing. People were no longer as interested in reading papers let along reading the advertisements. Keep in mind, however, ads in newspapers took a long time to die but eventually they did. Now we are seeing the last stage of the, where the newspapers themselves are dying or committing suicide. Whatever you choose to call it, they are dying.

Before the final stages of the newspaper, of which we are seeing today, advertising hopped on the band wagon of another media. That media being radio. When the first ever radio broadcast happened on Christmas Eve 1906, they way people communicated changed. But other than the medium, the way business reach customers didn’t.

The same happened when the television hit the market. The medium changed, from air waves to video waves, but the message remained as an advertisement. Along the way there was some out of the box thinking, but most were content with the same old advertising method that has always existed.

Worse yet, the advertising model has been transfered to the internet. But why. What are we, the companies of tomorrow, still reaching customer and supporting our businesses with a business model that dates back to the 15th century.

There is no need for this. Start thinking outside of the box folks. We all recognize money needs to be made, but is advertising the best way to do this. No, its not.

At least for the Internet, subscription is an easy way to get steady revenue and make sure the you can continue to deliver. Subscriptions work because the consumer is getting a service and the business delivers top quality. This is a model not exclusive to the internet. Does HBO, Showtime, or Cable rig a bell. That is pay for television, a subscription business model. And it works, people pay and line up to do so. Maybe not as many people pay to watch Showtime as they do to watch the free networks, but they are likely more profitable or at least have the potential to be.

If the web business you are opperating does not lend itself well to the subscription model, then affiliate or resale model is always an option. Do what you do best, and let someone else do what they do best. There is no reason why two companies, so long as they are not indirect competition, cannot find ways to profit off one another. 

So if you are a website that rates tee-shirt designs they you cannot pair up with a graphic printing company to mutually benefit. You send the printing company business, they give you a percentage of the sale. 

Even if, for whatever reason, you are stuck on advertising, there are better ways to do it than just in the traditional manner. Think outside of the box, outside of the norm, on this one. Video games. Strategically placing products in a video game, whether you build it for the promotion or not, can still advertise the product but in a more effective way.

The message here is step away from the traditional. There is always a way to monetize a business. And if there isn’t then you might want to take a step back, an analysis that business.