Cost:Depending on where you advertise, a newspaper could run you hundreds of dollars. With radio and television advertisements, you're looking at even more.

And then there's the question of getting to your target audience. Let's face it, fewer and fewer people watch network television these days or read local newspapers.

So, what's your alternative?

Well, if you sell home improvement products, you can advertise on HGTV or TLC, or one of the other similar channels. Then there's the question of when you advertisement is going to run. To have it air in prime time means paying prime price.

In the case of an online video, cost can be kept minimal. If, using the home improvement example, you want to show carpenters the virtues of your new widget, a video can be made cheap. All you need is a simple set, the tool, and some equipment. If you or another employee does the demonstration, you don't even have to hire an actor. The important thing is to present the product honestly, and highlight its features. Posting videos to social networking sites like YouTube is usually free and the great thing about that too is that the sites are free to join. Free membership means a wider audience for your video and thus more publicity for your business how good is that for a freebie!

Target audience: If your company sells baby furniture, then a bunch of retirees seeing your advertisement probably won't help you much; unless they decide to buy something for the grandkids. If you buy newspaper, television and/or radio advertisements, you can end up preaching to the wrong choir. You end up wasting your money and their time, not a good thing for the future of your company.

With online videos, you can assign appropriate keywords to it. Then, when someone in your target demographic does a search for a video, they'll get a hit on yours.

Time: This has to do with the time that the advertisement will run. With a newspaper, you can run it a day, a week, or more; the same with television and radio ads. Yet, the point is: eventually, the advertisement will stop running. In the case of a video, once it's posted, it can truly take on a life of its own. If done right, a video can become quite popular, and then it will just keep getting hit after hit.

Public Perception: You want your customers to view your company as being on the cutting edge, even if all you make is baby food. These days, people want to do business with firms that are forward-thinking. So, by advertising on the Internet, you will create the perception that your company is just that, high-tech and looking toward the future.

By using a video presentation to highlight your company and what it can do for people, you'll be making a very clear statement: we embrace technology Video Publishing: There was a time when only the largest, most successful companies could create Internet marketing videos. The productions costs were high, the potential viewers were few, and thus they were merely a promotional message and product placement.

Now, today, with the technology available, high-quality videos are possible for greatly reduced costs, and with the potential to reach, well, the world.