Quality suppliers can't expect to succeed in e-commerce without advertising their Web sites. I t's difficult to watch TV, listen to the radio or read a magazine these days without being deluged by ads for dotcom companies. One of the few places you aren't exposed to many dotcom ads is in the pages of quality magazines. But because there aren't very many new quality suppliers, there isn't as much pressure to devote massive resources to e-commerce. The economy is booming.
Manufacturers can barely keep up with increasing demand.
With such a burgeoning economy, you'd think that there would be plenty of room for new quality suppliers. But there are very few new entrants in the field. In fact, as the recent Mahr-Federal merger illustrates, the quality industry seems to be consolidating. Many of our advertisers have complained to me that they've invested heavily in designing their e-commerce sites and are having dismal returns. They've reduced their display advertising, direct mail, trade show and direct sales budgets to build spiffy e-commerce Web sites.