Marketing is a subtle combination of science and art. Marketing was complex even before the web showed up. Before the web, channels were rapidly expanding. Before the web, consumers were becoming skilled at recognizing junk mail envelopes from real correspondence. Before the web, we were getting good at tuning out pervasive ads and commercials. It was all a marketer could do to cut through the noise to get our attention. And if it was hard before the web, it sure isn’t getting any easier with it.

Now that the web has arrived, the science and art of marketing has become an even more a complex puzzle of interrelationships. If cable television multiplied channels, the web explodes them. If print magazines and newspapers were pervasive, blogs and online news sources are uncountable. And it's not just an expansion of the things we know; there are entirely new technologies to evaluate: online video, blogs, search optimization, search marketing, social media, and mobile advertising, not to mention building and maintaining websites.

What's more, the marketing environment is not just growing outwardly. We, as consumers, are changing inwardly in how we relate to products and brands. We're less influenced these days by what companies say about themselves because we're learning how to build opinions based on much broader sources of information that were previously unavailable. When we travel, we don't limit ourselves to the brochures on a travel agent's shelf. We consult TripAdvisor to read what actual people who've been there and done that have to say. When we buy electronics, we have more than ads in magazines or even Consumer Reports to rely on. We read Amazon.com recommendations and CNet reviews to find out the real scoop. We participate in consumer forums, and consult our online "friends." We're changing as consumers, and brands have to reevaluate how they market to us.

Being a marketing adviser in today's complex marketplace is challenging, to say the least. But if you love marketing, there has never been a more exciting time, with so much potential and opportunity. This year, most of our Web Smart newsletters have highlighted elements of disruption and opportunity. While the Internet is making a marketer's job more complex, the fundamental shifts are ultimately setting the stage for marketing to get much better--better for sellers and better for consumers. We've entered into the early days of a new marketing era. The promise is rich and real. But keeping up with these changes, especially given the speed at which they come, is not easy. Marketers must navigate a complex marketplace.   next >