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In this edition of Web Enlightenment we'll be talking about how watching big companies and what they are doing can help you as an Entrepreneur. Are you prepared for the shift ? Perhaps you don't even know what the shift is ? Read on...

This newsletter focuses on giving you practical, interesting insights into how to successfully use technology as a tool to improve the way you do business. Bridging the gap between knowledge and understanding that all entrepreneurs have will help you make money online.

Please hit reply and let me know what you think - I'd love to hear from you.

All the best,

A 44.6 Billion Dollar Tribute to the Shift
...what is your plan for the shift?

Recently lots of folks have been talking about Microsoft's 44.6 Billion Dollar takeover bid for Yahoo. I am not a fan of Microsucks by any means and while I enjoy anti-trust discussions as much as the next guy the part that is relevant for entrepreneurs is the testament to the shift.

Microsoft has purchased many companies in the past - geeks like me joke that they have never in fact invented anything, they just eat competitors good ideas - but they've never taken on debt to buy a company before. Their huge cash reserves ( 21 Billion Dollars) have always been a critical part of the dominance strategy. Why would they change this winning strategy when having such a huge amount of cash on hand has been so critical for them in the past? They recognize the power of the shift and know they must respond.

The shift is the change in the way advertising dollars are spent, moving from print and other traditional forms into online advertising. This has been going on for more than 10 years now - but as predictions continue to be fulfilled and we see online ad spending exceeding TV in major markets the shift is no longer a prediction but a fact. In 2008 Internet spending will exceed 10 percent of global ad investment for the first time ever.

Here in the US about 40% of ad dollars are spent on Television, which is in fact roughly equivalent to the amount of time consumers spend consuming it. About 10% of the dollars are spent online , which is about half the time folks spend online. The other 50% of ad revenue is spent on print media, which is far in excess of the amount of time people spend on it.

Online ad spending rose 17.8 percent in 2006, while print advertising saw a 14.4 percent decline in the same period. In the UK online advertising has already exceeded what is being spent on TV. Depending on who's growth rate prediction you believe the same thing will happen in the US around 2011. This is why newspapers are all so focused around online efforts (more on that and an announcement below).

The Internet offers advertisers more (and better) tools to track the performance of their spending, and geeky improvements continue to make it better every day. This means that any economic downturn - with the accompanying overall reduction in ad spending - will in fact increase the rate of the shift.

Whether Microsoft buys Yahoo or whether they get rescued by Google or some other cash rich company - the shift and the accelerating pace of it will continue. No one is arguing about the shift trend or the incredible growth that will happen year after year - they may spend lots of time analyzing and arguing about the pace at which it will happen - but no one is arguing the fact.

The shift is not about hope or the promise of the future - it is a reflection of the changing habits of consumers and they way they consume media, the same people who are your customers.

So what does all of this have to with Entrepreneurs and your websites?

If you are like many Entrepreneurs the web became critical at some point after you ignored it for a period - most folks developed their first websites in a hurry. This usually meant that you had to "find" the money from a special projects fund or other surplus.

Today most Entrepreneurs continue to have two separate accounts in QuickBooks (or the like) - "Internet" and "Advertising". This simple mistake will bite you where it hurts, you need to change how you think about these expenses.

When the "Internet " cost is separated from the "Advertising" cost it is impossible to manage your shift rate. These accounts must be merged into one expenditure. The first year you bought them "computers" may have been separate from office equipment but they aren't today.

Suppose you have an ad budget that is 10% of sales - say $20,000 a year. You work with this budget and make adjustments to it as you find success in some ads and failure in others. You need to include the fact of the shift in your planning. If you spent $4,000 on the web this year (in line with consumer patterns) you should expect that amount to increase to five or six thousand next year while your spending on print decreases by the same amount.

Putting your money into the most effective ad is not a statement of philosophy or a bet on the web - it is just good old plain business sense.

Make a plan for your companies personal shift rate and how you plan to manage it today. Entrepreneurial companies should be spending at least 20% of their budget on the web and increasing that percentage every year.

In the words of Benajmin Franklin (1706-1790): Drive thy business or it will drive thee.

The EPpy Awards is a 13-year-old program sponsored by Editor & Publisher and Mediaweek that honors the best Web sites offered by newspapers, television, magazine and radio companies. Each year more than 400 entries are submitted in 35 categories. The awards are presented at the Interactive Media Conference and Trade Show, May 14-15, 2008, at the Rio in Las Vegas.

It is with great pride that I announce that yours truly has been selected to be a Judge this year. For those of you attending the conference I look forward to seeing you in Vegas Baby!

You can see my name in lights by clicking here - ok, this link is really just for relatives but go ahead and click if you are in the mood.

Speaking of speaking...
Places to be if you want to get enlightened

My next seminar is Wednesday February 27th - at the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce offices in Farmington Maine. The Three Things - free and open to the public. Please RSVP to the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce office: info@franklincountymaine.org or (207)-778-4215

For early risers I'll be speaking tomorrow at the Wilton Community Breakfast at the First Congregational Church at 6:30 AM. Free and open to the public. Breakfast is being cooked by none other than my friend Representative Tom Saviello.

As always you can see all of upcoming seminars by clicking here.