Go2Net and SmartAge.com Simplify Online Ad Buying for 750,000 Businesses On HyperMart
PR Newswire - December 02, 1999 08:46
HyperMart Media Buyer Brings Affordable Advertising Programs To Small- and Medium-Sized Businesses
SEATTLE and SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Go2Net, Inc. (Nasdaq: GNET), a network of branded, technology- and community-driven Web sites ( go2net.com ), and SmartAge.com ( smartage.com ) today announced an agreement to offer highly targeted and affordable online advertising campaigns to members of Go2Net's HyperMart, Virtual Avenue and FreeYellow.com small business hosting communities. The HyperMart Media Buyer program is available immediately, for prices ranging from as little as $50 to $500, through HyperMart ( hypermart.net ), one of the Internet's largest communities of small and medium-sized businesses. Combined with Virtual Avenue ( virtualave.net ) and FreeYellow.com ( freeyellow.com ), HyperMart provides free Web hosting for more than 750,000 member businesses and is growing at the rate of more than 2,000 new member businesses daily.
HyperMart Media Buyer, powered by SmartAge.com, is an online advertising program developed specifically for small and medium-sized Internet businesses, which are in position to benefit from highly targeted online advertising programs to promote their respective sites at a fraction of the cost of traditional, larger-scale campaigns. It offers targeted advertising inventory from 15 classifications within the HyperMart Business Directory, including Computers & Technology, Finance & Investments, and Travel, among others. Larger ad buys are available by filling out an online form or by contacting the Go2Net sales team directly. As part of the agreement, Go2Net is promoting the new service throughout HyperMart and the Go2Net Network. To mark the launch of Media Buyer on HyperMart, first-time buyers will receive incentives such as bonus banner impressions with their first paid orders.
"HyperMart Media Buyer provides a specialized service for our rapidly expanding base of small and medium-sized member businesses, which stand to benefit from developing banner advertising campaigns in the most targeted and cost-effective manner possible," said Russell C. Horowitz, Go2Net Chief Executive Officer. "As we continue to aggressively grow HyperMart's critical mass of member businesses and extend the scope of our services, offerings such as the Media Buyer program will enhance HyperMart's leadership position in providing products and services tailored specifically for the small and medium-sized business sector."
"We believe there are tremendous synergies between HyperMart's growing community of more than 750,000 online businesses and Media Buyer, which continue to level the marketing playing field for thousands of small and growing online businesses," said William Lohse, President and CEO of SmartAge. "We look forward to extending our services to HyperMart and the Go2Net Network."
HyperMart Media Buyer is designed to be an entry point for small businesses looking to initiate online advertising campaigns. In less than five minutes, a member business can complete a customized ad buying process, selecting from a variety of targeting and pricing options. Once the ad purchase is complete, members can monitor and manage advertising campaigns from a centralized management center. SmartAge manages the administrative and customer care details, including order and payment processing, accounting, reporting, banner trafficking and link testing, screening clients' banners for inappropriate content, scheduling and delivering ads, and building links to clients and customer service.
About SmartAge.com
SmartAge.com ( smartage.com ) offers its community of small businesses twenty services, including SmartClicks(R), a free online advertising exchange program that delivers click-through rates twice the industry norm. SmartAge.com also works to facilitate its members' success through expert advice and community interaction. Since its founding in January 1998, its membership has climbed from 25,000 to more than 800,000 small businesses and is growing by more than 21,000 members per week. Led by CEO and founder William Lohse, former CEO of Softbank Forums and former President of Ziff-Davis Publishing, SmartAge.com employs over 90 professionals focused on the small business community. The company is headquartered in San Francisco with additional technical staff in Charlotte, N.C., and sales offices in Chicago, New York, and Boston. SmartAge.com was recently named a "Hot 100" private company by Upside Magazine and a hot pre-IPO by CNBC.
About Go2Net, Inc.
Go2Net ( go2net.com ) is a network of branded, technology- and community-driven Web sites focused on the categories of personal finance; search and directory; commerce and business services; and multi-player games. The Go2Net Network is home to many of the Internet's leading vertical brands, including: Silicon Investor in the personal finance category; Go2Net.com, MetaCrawler, Dogpile, and 100hot in the area of search and directory; HyperMart, Virtual Avenue, FreeYellow.com, Authorize.Net, Haggle Online, and WebMarket in the commerce and business services segment; and PlaySite in the area of multi-player games. The company's Go2Net Labs division develops Web-related software and innovative technologies to enhance the features and functionality of the Go2Net Network's sites and for licensing to other Internet companies.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the company's ability to grow its user and advertiser base. Actual results may differ materially from the results predicted and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the company's limited operating history, the competitive environment in which the company competes, the early stage of the Web as an advertising and electronic commerce medium, the company's dependence on advertising and sponsorship revenues, the company's dependence on strategic relationships to drive traffic to its Web sites, consumer acceptance of the company's new products and services, the company's ability to develop and integrate new technologies and services into its existing services, and the increased use of the Web for commerce. More information about the potential factors that could affect the company's business and financial results is included in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 1998 and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended December 31, 1998, March 31, 1999, and June 30, 1999, which are on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
CONTACT: Mark S. Peterson, Director of Public Relations of Go2Net, Inc., 206-447-1595, or mark@go2net.com; or Courtly Stevens, Sr. Public Relation Manager of SmartAge.com, 415-674-3787, ext. 5151, or cstevens@smartage.com.
SOURCE Go2Net, Inc.
/CONTACT: Mark S. Peterson, Director of Public Relations of Go2Net, Inc.,
206-447-1595, or mark@go2net.com; or Courtly Stevens, Sr. Public Relation
Manager of SmartAge.com, 415-674-3787, ext. 5151, or cstevens@smartage.com/ |
