Direct mail powerhouse ADVO (AD)
this week took a stake in Netserts.com, an advertising magazine
aimed at driving traffic to Web sites, in an effort to further capitalize
on the rush of dot-com dollars to offline marketing.
Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
Netserts.com takes ads from e-commerce players, places them in a magazine,
and distributes the publication to more than ten million households a
month, billing it as a guide for online shoppers.
“We are pleased to announce this exciting new venture. As e-commerce
continues to grow and evolve at a dramatic pace, on-line businesses are
increasingly challenged to attract traffic and transactions to support
their business models,” said Gary Mulloy, ADVO’s chairman and chief
executive officer.
“Our investment in Netserts.com will further strengthen our core
capabilities in these areas, and provide us with a vehicle exclusively
dedicated to dot-com advertisers.”
The ADVO investment will give Netserts.com a boost in several ways. First,
it is expected to increase the company’s reach and frequency, since ADVO
has agreed to bundle the Netserts.com magazine with its direct mail
advertising packages, which reach 60 million households a week. ADVO has
also committed to helping develop Netserts.com’s Web site, which is
currently rather weak, to align it with the offline effort. In addition,
Netserts.com will have access to ADVO’s prodigious sales infrastructure.
In a separate development, ADVO’s SuperCoups subsidiary has extended its
pact with CoolSavings.com for a
three-year period. The partnership allows SuperCoup merchants to reach
consumers through coupons and offers on the CoolSavings.com Web site.
