let me get this straight.. you think companies are spending billions every year on advertising without any proof, ROI figures, just solely from the seat of thei

let me get this straight.. you think companies are spending billions every year on advertising without any proof, ROI figures, just solely from the seat of their pants without any research, studies, etc? I assume because a company like Walmart, for example, with a profit margin of 3%, is so flush with cash they just throw around $600 million+ every year without any thought. Amazing. I own an ecommerce store, 10 years. I can tell you that internet advertising does more than pay for itself if you control the costs, track the sales that result from it, etc (which is standard practice in internet advertising). That's why when GM said they spent 10m+ on facebook with a very poor ROI, it was big news. Advertisers will test new platforms like facebook, and when they fail to perform, they will abandon them very quickly. Google has lasted this long not because advertisers are stupid, but because Google's Adwords has a positive ROI.