Pics Mix Time for a pop quiz. Which would you prefer to look at, a photograph of a friend or a table of numbers describing that friend? Most of us would prefer seeing the photograph rather than a table of specifications describing the person, even though both would be accurate descriptions. Colorful photographs can convey an emotional message with less effort on the part of the viewer than data or long paragraphs of text.

Excite-ing By the time you read this, the news will probably be wrapping fish in most media buyers' and planners' kitchens. Excite@Home is going to be selling keyword and channel inventory on a bid basis. Nope. It's not Christie's, government construction contracts, or even AdAuction. It is Excite, and it may be the future for big brand site ad pricing. Decades of media buying tradition are out the window. Jim tells you what to do about all this.

Opt-In E-Mail As A Service Opt-in e-mail advertising is the most underused form of Internet advertising. Click-through rates are higher, targetability is excellent, and it is completely voluntary. Start with the attitude that opt-in e-mail is a genuine service that the customer will appreciate. Make it targeted and succinct. Gently remind that it was requested. Then, if your product is subject to variations in price, timing issues, and providing good information, you may have a winner on your hands.

The New Trade Press Most of my journalism career was spent in the "trade press." I worked for editors who tried to channel what small groups of people -- TV executives, MIS managers, or business marketers -- were thinking about. They tried to get me to answer questions before they were asked, sometimes on as much as a three-month lag time. It amazes me how often it worked. But now this model of trade journalism is changing.

It's no surprise that leading direct response ad network Flycast has just introduced yet another groundbreaking service to add to its ever-expanding menu of Internet advertising tools. It's called Flycast Valet, and it may very well change the face of the web. Valet is Flycast's new e-commerce initiative that will make shopping-focused content available for its 1200+ network affiliates to allow them to take part in the current revolutionary online buying bonanza. Here's how it works: Participating affiliates will drive their own traffic to a portal-like area that's specifically branded to them. Visitors can then search for products to buy (across 18 different categories), read product reviews, participate in auctions and classified ads, place a search in the directory…and more. Much more thanks to Flycast's relationship with billion-dollar content distributor Infospace.com, which offers up all of this good stuff and will keep it up and running. Think of Yahoo!'s Shopping channel. Now picture traffic being driven to it from sites representing 41% of the Web (Flycast's share)! Wow. Valet affords an incredible opportunity for both network affiliates and online advertisers alike.... Affiliates win because they share in the revenue. They also get to offer sweeping content and further build their relationships with their own customers. And advertisers can enjoy yet another opportunity to take advantage of Flycast's incredibly broad reach with affiliate programs, category and keyword ads, sponsorships and more. An added kicker is that visitors will be driven to the site from a prompt (from the affiliates' home sites) to "go shopping" so their presence means they intend to make a purchase PLUS where they came from will define the types of products they're interested in. The addition of Valet makes Flycast a complete online advertising solution with three comprehensive offerings -- its original extensive banner ad network, e-mail marketing network "eDispatch"...and now Valet. As always, Flycast's the first to respond to a need with a well-planned opportunity. Check out the details for yourself at http://www.flycast.com/ or e-mail EVP of Marketing Lyn Chitow Oakes at lyn@flycast.com.

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