When ever we visit customers, this subject gets talked about a lot. But all the hearsay and guesswork was quelled recently when industry circulation figures revealed that readership for magazines, news papers and the like had taken a battering for the first time ever in the history of modern print.

The real crunch slammed home when the figures showed that the percentage spent on online advertising had increased six times faster than any of the traditional media. That's a big jump in anybodies language.

But the weird thing is that, the same reports show, the average punter spends around 15% of their spare time online and yet sales companies spend less than 5% of their advertising on this market. One possible explanation comes from established companies not wanting to change. The old, "If it's not broke, don't fix it" routine. But like a half flat tire, sometimes you don't notice it until you are well away from any place of repair.

Consider the fact that most young people prefer news on the internet. They view it as faster, more up to date and easier to search and find. Also consider that most businesses are online. Staff prefer to look up a phone or address online rather than thumb through a couple of huge door stop books. Yet management insists on expensive Yellow Page ad's while ignoring low cost online activities.

Check your budget. It's time to seriously reassess your advertising dollar and where it is being spent.