David Angell and Brent Heslop outline the advantages of "virtual commerce" in their book The Internet Business Companion. "Internet business opportunities can be broken down into two broad categories, marketing and internal operations". The benefits of cybermarketing, they explain, includes instant communication with customers, and exchanges and collaboration with colleagues via electronic mail and file transfer.
 
Additional benefits include the publication of business related information otherwise available in brochures and newsletters on the web, allow sales direct from the web, efficient distribution of information, and access to vast resources through databases such as directory information and libraries.

Who exactly is there and what are they doing? The question looms large because the answer increases minute by minute. Many sites are available to sell a product whether its a musical cd, a computer, coffee mug, or business suit. India based Skypak's Expression's service provides information on their cakes and other gift items which people may require; the purchaser knows the information available is accurate and up to date because the the company provides it directly. Formerly this information was only available during business hours and was obtained via a catalog, or communication via conventional mail or telephone. The information now available via the web remains up to date and can be accessed 24 hours a day; in essence it continues to be a marketer's dream.

This marketing dream continues and includes as many possibilities as there are web sites; in a sense it is priceless and inexhaustible. Many career centers where prospective employers post job openings and hopeful employees display resumes are available. Large malls now provide links to storefronts similar to a physical mall. Purchases can be made from L'Eggs, Sears, J.C. Penney, L.L. Bean and more 'stores' than can be counted.

The news, weather and sports provide current information on late breaking topics and almost all large publications (USA Today, Time, NBC, Entertainment Weekly, Ad-Age, and Sports Illustrated for example) have sites which reveal a portion of their current edition. Web businesses of information, chat rooms, surveys, and articles which exist in no other medium have appeared.

And advertisements appear throughout. They are for web information or other purchases, such as Ford and Honda, airlines or computer products. They work similarly to paper or audio and video advertising in that they rent the space in the hopes of attracting new customers. Communities often have web pages as well as theatre and symphonies, specialty food markets, hotel and motels both locally owned and chains, and the list continues indefinitely. The advertisements provide yet another link for customers; the firms who advertise on the web provide a service important to the audience of young to middle-aged, financially secure intelligent people. Airline information allows surfers to skip the lengthy telephone calls with an agent or the airline; a credit card books a flight. The computer information once available only to a select few has been opened to the web's world.

In the Datamation article entitled "The Web: Open for Business" Vance McCarthy outlines "Ten Top Business Tips for Your Web Project". He advises Web providers to consider the web as a "database-driven information store" that requires effective utilization of search engines, a site that is friendly and fast, effective grouping which he relates to the old adage, "location, location, location," aids in the creation of a sense of community, and does not just attempt to sell to customers but rather provides the consumer with important and timely information. Important considerations include delivery of valuable content, timely updates on information, and a site that is targeted to the user's requirements (the latter can be determined by asking for a guest book signature or registration.

Other valuable components of a site include the author's name or company information, and links to other sites that are either similar or related to this business. A very valuable resource is the provision of an opportunity for the surfer to contact the company, probably via e-mail. There is controversy between authors regarding the inclusion of a revision date on websites. If a date is left on a site revealing the updates are not timely, users will eventually cease to return. However, if the site remains stagnant, repeat visits will automatically be limited because there is no incentive to return.

The decision to incorporate the web into a marketing plan requires an understanding of current practices and the differences and similarities which are contained in the web.

To evaluate the economics of Internet-based marketing, you should compare the costs of traditional marketing options. For example, you need to compare the cost of placing an advertisement in a magazine with the boost of presenting information online. In many cases, using the services of the Internet as an advertising medium is considerably cheaper and offers more interaction with the customer. However, the biggest cost of Internet marketing is not the cost of presenting the information, but the labor required to dialogue with the market. This is because the Internet is not vast, homogeneous market, but a constellation of different virtual communities. Interactively participating in these virtual communities one by one will help you establish your Internet business presence and let you successfully tap into the Internet market as a whole.

During this planning process the concept of the web as world wide and never asleep changes some aspects of marketing. More detailed explanations regarding the background of the company would be helpful since it is possible that surfers may not have known of its existence before finding it on the web. Also questions that frequently occur in current marketing will need to be addressed; more information presented with the aim of reducing questions remains helpful. This is often done with more detailed descriptions of products or services and the addition of a frequently asked question section on the web site.

During the case study outlined by December and Randall, the corporation determines the following:

Our web can serve as a visible focal point that conveys important information about our company in a way that no paper source can. Current and prospective employees can find out about our products, company background, and current activities in one central location. Paper sources quickly go out of date or become unavailable, while our web's information can be updated instantly.

A preliminary design of both the home page and an outline of the components of all related pages would be the next step in web site design. A company logo may appear in a large graphic on the first page, but will be included on all other pages only smaller. A virtual template can be created to ensure the pages have a similar look, along with a small paragraph of explanation of who the company is and the related goals because web surfers can access a page without first going to the home page; the continuity makes a web site recognizable and allows the potential customer to move back to the home page with ease.

A story board can be helpful as the design continues; it is a map of each page, where it stands in relation to the homepage and other pages, and how it links both to and from in the possible cycles.

Although this does not constitute a change necessarily in marketing forethought, it does represent a transition to a new and yet not completely redesigned medium. Information valuable to marketing without the web flows into the concepts necessary for marketing on the web.