The Interactive Advertising Bureau and Price Waterhouse announced that the amount of money spend in Internet advertising rose by 30 percent in the U.S. last year, to a record $12.5 billion. It was led by keyword search ads, with a 41% share. Display advertising followed with 34%, showing that branding online is becoming more prevalent. Online ads continues to grow even more, with a 34% increase in the last quarter from a year ago.

Put in simpler terms, at a 34% clip, the amount of spending could DOUBLE roughly every 2.12 years. It's also significant growth in the advertising industry where spending grows 4% per year. More and more companies are seeing the benefits of 'fishing where the fish are' by moving their budgets online. Are you?

As a side note, this same day, Google's results were announced, sending their stock up to $437, with a 96 percent gain in revenue to $1.58 billion for the quarter. Why? Online marketing works!

Also have a brief article to share, that explains some of the reasons search engine optimization has become so popular. Read it at eMarketer. Many Internet users equate top positions in search results with BRAND QUALITY, and believe them to be leaders in their field.