IAR: Online Ad Slump Still Stymies iVillage

Doug McCormick, iVillage's chief executive, extolled the company's reach in the lucrative women's demographic but admitted the advertising slump continued to hold iVillage back.

"Advertising as a sector has yet to recover and newer companies like iVillage have not been spared," McCormick said. "The advertising market had its worst year since the Great Depression and was hit harder than most sectors."

iVillage's revelation that Q3 2002 "revenue fell to $14.6 million, off nearly 20 percent from a year ago" contrasts with "a recent poll of 18 Online Publishers Association (OPA) member companies [showing] that third-quarter ad revenue grew an average of 35.7% over Q3 2001" that MarketingFix reported here.

iVillage is definitely learning that just because they've got a hot demographic doesn't mean they can sell long term high dollar contracts all the time. They truly have to serve their advertisers (and readers) better.