The next few posts will be introductory in nature to ensure we all know what some of the basic terms related to web marketing mean. First off, let’s make sure we understand the current state of the Internet and search engines which are the reasons web marketing exists. Some facts:

1. There are more than 172 million Internet users in the United States. There are over 700 million Internet users worldwide.
2. 66% of U.S. Internet users are between 30 and 65 years of age. That means they’re probably financially established.
3. 50% of U.S. Internet users are on broadband connections. Broadband users spend significantly greater periods of time online.

4. 84% of U.S. Internet users have used search engines. 48% use them several times per week. 32% say they can’t live without search engines. Total search engine use grew 55% in 2005 (I don’t have stats for 2006 yet, but we can probably assume growth held steady or is still accelerating).
5. The three major search engines are Google, Yahoo!, and MSN, in that order. Google is by far the most important search engine with roughly 50% of the market. Together, the top three search engines represent more than 75% of all searches made on the Internet.

Are you with me so far? What this all means is that the Internet is huge, it’s still growing quickly, and if you sell a product or a service then people are either buying it or  researching it online. Web marketing is marketing to those people who are online or driving people online to find out more about your product and/or service. And if you’re not doing it you’re probably missing out on a large opportunity.
If this sounds a lot like the hype you heard in 1999 that’s no coincidence. The difference between 2007 and 1999 is that what was hype in 1999 is reality today. It just took a little longer than many people expected to get there. That is partly due to society taking a while to get used to the Internet, and it’s also due to the slower than expected rollout of broadband services, which make so much of what was hyped in 1999 possible. Today, people who didn’t use email in 2000 are using it. The guy who said he would never get online is making purchases online. As broadband becomes more common and more people continue to use the Internet it will become even more pervasive than it is today. But if you wait another six or seven years to market to this group you’ll definitely be late to the party.

All that said, the Internet and web marketing isn’t necessarily for everyone. There might be 5% of businesses that can’t profit from having a website and using it as a marketing tool. I’m not sure what those businesses are, but I’m sure they’re out there. If you think you know of one post a comment and let’s see if I can’t figure out a way web marketing could help that business.