This post will be an expansion on a previous post (‘what are the Benefits of Internet Marketing to Customers P2) with evidence linking the comments I made and some examples to go with it. The new information will be in a darker colour.

Cheaper and More Flexible than Offline Advertising

Advertising online is particularly different from print advertising as it is cheaper to do so for any businesses. This is because for businesses when advertising on T.V it cost much more than if they were to advertise on their own website. This is because it will be FREE for them to advertise online whereas the print screen below shows the prices for using advertisement on T.V.

(http://www.thinkbox.tv/server/show/nav.1050)Also Internet advertisement is accessible for a longer period of time benefiting the organisations and the content of the advertisement can be altered any time, without having to get someone to change it or spend more money on it potentially reaching a wider audience. So Internet advertisement is cheaper giving the business an advantage but this also is benefited to consumers as businesses will have more money to spend for their customer service; this is because they can provide training for their employees, creating a better way of using their business website, quicker delivery and with more capital to spend will let organisations provide more range of products for customers.

ASOS’s advertisement is seen mostly anywhere on the Internet such as a banner of another website, on the list of ‘Sponsors Link’ on a Google page, on the side of your email box and of course on the ASOS website itself etc.ASOS as an only online business has many products available for their customers due to much more money to spend on stock.

ASOS uses this advantage of cheaper and more flexible advertising for providing their customers with a variety range of products; having to be able to upload any kind of advertisement anytime and to be viewed by consumers quicker and easier and also at anytime, this can include advertisement of new products, delivery options, or any changes made within the business or website etc benefiting the customers as they do not have to check for the new updates.

24/7 PresenceInternet marketing enables business to be accessed at any time of the day, beneficial for customers as they are able to search the internet for goods and products at a time that suits them. Customers do not have to spend quick time searching through goods on the internet like they have to do when a store is about to close at a specific time. The times most stores are open is the same

time most people work so they are unable to buy goods so they use the internet more often.

ASOS is an online business that is constantly open for the people to view; consumers can buy at any time of the day. They also have timings for delivery service which benefit the customers as they know when to stay at home and also they can track down any time where their products are. ASOS also uses this to get customers to give feedback at any time. Customers are able to comment on their products and service anytime this, advantage for customers as they can express their feelings and interact with the business personally.The image below shows the times for shopping stores that are located on the high streets. Compared to these times ASOS has a great advantage as they are able to keep their website open for 24/7 as the internet does not require any times. Customers are able to view their website any time without having to rush or wait to do their shopping.

Offer ConvenienceIt is so much easier and suitable for a customer to research a product on the internet than visiting a shop physically. Internet marketing offers convenience for the customers as they do not have to search all over a shop for a particular product which waste time instead they can use search engines to find a particular product. Some businesses have names and codes for the products so that customers that viewed it before can keep a track of it if they wanted to see this again in their next visit.

ASOS offers this to their customers as they provide search engines; the website is clear and not confusing which customers are able to understand the way the website works; the products have an identity code etc.

Below is a print screen of an example of ASOS allowing their customer to use ‘search engines’ for convenience, they will be able to type in a word that they will like to find which will help the customer to find things easier as the search

engines provide ways to simplify and reduce the amount of products shown. Also in the image shows that if you drag your mouse above the hyperlinks (WOMEN, MEN, and DESIGNER etc) a drop down list will appear with section of products. So if a customer was just looking for dresses it will be easier for them to click on the hyperlink that leads to the dresses.

If you already know the code of the product you will be then able to just type that particular code in the search engine. Most customers keep the product code for later purchase or to just be able to find the product through search engines for later.

Internet UsersIt is believed that people aged between 2-24 uses the internet more than any other age groups. This may be because they are taught the skills of using ICT technology at schools, and more experienced researching online. Online businesses tend to target their audience in a similar aged group because they have more skills using the internet and also the younger generation seem to buy online more.

ASOS has targeted their audience from 16-34 year olds as they know have used the statistics of this age group spends more time on the internet either buying goods online, on social networks etc. ASOS has Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Bebo where most internet users are spending their time on. This benefits the customers as they are able to get most out of the business as it is based online.

Above is an example of ASOS using Facebook to attract customer and making is more easy for them to search through ASOS website and without always going through their website for information and updates, ASOS will automatically send information through these social networks.

This image is a cropped version of the home page from ASOS located at the bottom of the page where it allows customers to join them in these other networks.

Growth OpportunityBusinesses are able to expand their products using the benefits of internet marketing for their customers. This is important for customers as they are able to get more out of a business such as a variety of products and services. They are able to use better website functions etc making it easier for them.

ASOS has grown in many ways. They provide many range of products and aim to add more, bringing customers more variety of goods so that they do not have to shop elsewhere and pay more for delivery due to the fact that the business do not have everything they want. ASOS attracts many customers using internet marketing and aim to become the online fashion business on the number one spot. This is a website address that links to the annual report 2009 of ASOS that give many examples to the information above. (http://www.asosplc.com/Doc/pdf/AnnualInterimReports/AnnualReport2009.pdf) below is an image of the annual report that proves that ASOS aim is to become the number one spot.

More BenefitsNot only can they use Internet at a time to suits them, but they are also able to compare brands, prices and buy goods and services without having a face a single sales person! This enables them to make a calculated decision free from sales pitch or emotional persuasion, so their decision is more likely to be clarified and deliberated. Buying over the Internet is quick, convenient and private. There is no need to drive anywhere, fight for a parking space, or battle through crowds of other consumers all doing the same thing. And indeed because of lower overheads for companies selling on the Internet, consumers are able to benefit from lower prices as these lower costs are often passed on to the consumer in the form of discounted prices.

These benefits are all related to ASOS as they have the same benefits to customers.

Improve CredibilityThis is where customers are able to improve credibility for the business as they can send feedback to the businesses.

ASOS has Facebook, Bebo, Twitter and Bebo where customers can write comments and opinions. ASOS has also got a forum where customers can do this.

This image shows that internet marketing allows ASOS to use this method to get crucial feedback from their customers, these also benefits the customers as they are able to give their opinions to the business and also ask for information and ASOS will send back reply mostly there and then.

AvailabilityIt is an advantage for customers to be able to access businesses website easily without having to put passwords, or going through security. If the products and services are available in certain way it will be easier for customers to view them for example putting the dresses apart from shoes so that customers would not have to search through many pages one by one to find what they want.

ASOS’s website can be viewed by anyone by just typing in their web address, they do not have any age restrictions etc. ASOS provides many varieties of products and services this is why they made it simple for customers to view these with high technical function on the website i.e. hyperlinks. This makes it better for customers as they can browse for their products at a quicker time and find things easily. ASOS has also made more products available and services.

This is an image of most common search engine, if a customer was to type in ASOS in the search engine the first link connects to the website. Below image is showing that each section in ASOS is separated to make it simple for their customers.

Better PricesOnline businesses are generally much cheaper than physical businesses. Organisations are able to provide much cheaper product online as they save money elsewhere in the business. Customers benefit from this as they can get their money worth and can buy the same kind of products in a store for lower price online. They would not have to pay for parking, or public transport fair etc.

ASOS prices are cheaper for the same products that are priced higher in stores. Also ASOS customers are able to view their price online and also compare prices with their competition so customers are able to buy from the lowest price business.

You do not need to pay form parking, transport when using ASOS website as everything is seen and purchased through the internet.