Top Tactics for 2009

The Web will be the hottest tactic among advertisers and marketers in 2009 according to executives surveyed in January by Reardon Smith Whittaker. One-third of respondents said so, based on an open-ended definition of the term encompassing growth and interest. In contrast, only 5% said TV would be tops.

"Marketers rated tactics as 'hottest' based on client interest and perceived effectiveness," Mark Sneider, managing director of Reardon Smith Whittaker, told eMarketer.

Asked which tactics most interested the marketers themselves, nearly seven out of 10 said online marketing, and one-quarter said mobile marketing.

Still, despite years of rising client and marketer interest, actual spending on online ads trails TV by far, according to Barclays Capital. The company said broadcast and cable TV would combine to capture more than one-quarter of ad spending in 2009, compared with just under 10% for the Internet.