How effective is online advertising?

Online Advertising is now considered the most effective use of your marketing resources.

Prior to google (pre 2005) all traditional media were effective in reaching prospective customers. Flyer for sales, Yellow Pages for services, Newspapers for local retailers, Radio for listeners, TV for regional and national advertisers.

google has upended the advertising industry. Today, 95% of North Americans use google an average of 9 times per day, to source anything and everything they need in their lives. google is used for research, for product reviews, for hiring service businesses, for reviewing businesses, for how to fix something. Any business should put the majority of their efforts into having the best website / user experience and visibility to help grow market share.