Following on from e-customer service , the novelty of a business which sells to customers (exclusively, primarily or partially) through a website has now worn off. E-businesses can no longer hope to generate customers, income or profit by internet hype and burning someone else's cash. Amazingly enough, investors are now looking to invest in businesses that make business sense. In hindsight the logic of spend spend spend to obtain a large number of customers on the basis that sometime in the future profit can be made from them has been shown to be misguided . Many e-tailers have spent hundreds or even thousands of pounds of investment on marketing and advertising costs alone to acquire just one new customer. Current techniques in use can be very costly and include: Radio, TV and print advertising . The most expensive and least direct way to get new customers but can reach widest possible range of potential customers. Web advertising . Includes banner ads sponsorships, classifieds and buttons. The price of banner ads has plummeted reflecting questions on even indirect influence on purchase decisions. Fifty-two per cent of web users surveyed claimed they never click on banners. The European on-line ad spend for all types of web advertising is estimated at Euro 943 million for the year 2000 and is projected to rise to an estimated Euro 5.5 billion by 2005. Online ...