In a recent episode of 30 Rock, Liz’s personal assistant, Cerie, overhears two characters discussing a commercial spoof they’re working on. The twenty-something Cerie stops, looks quizzically at her coworkers, and asks, “What’s a ‘commercial’?”

Sure, it was just a scene from a sitcom–a joke, an exaggeration of the truth. But it’s not so far-fetched to imagine a future without traditional advertisements like television commercials. Already the face of marketing is changing dramatically, with inbound marketing and owned media creating a shift in the way consumers hear about companies and products.

In fact, the phrase “death of advertising” has been thrown around for quite awhile now. This video discussion from the Motley Fool brings up a great point. Out of a one-hour TV show, 25 percent of the time is spent on advertising. Yet, would anyone be willing to spend a quarter of their online time watching ads? How about on a mobile device? Different mediums necessitate different approaches to reaching your audience.

According to this article, crowdsourcing, viral Internet campaigns, product placements and guerrilla promotions will soon make traditional ads a thing of the past. At least that’s the belief of Seethu Seetharaman, Professor of Marketing at Olin Business School. “Traditional expensive advertising is no longer effective given all the clutter, as well as the emergence of technologies, like digital video recorders, that block the ads from even being viewed, much less absorbed, by consumers,” he says.

While product placement is definitely on the rise, the biggest changes taking place are related to social media, mobile devices and the rapid spread of information. This evolution in the way we absorb media suggests that in the not so far off future, there really may be a generation of kids who will ask, “What was a ‘commercial’?”

Whether or not the demise of advertising is imminent, inbound content marketing is already proving to be more effective and less expensive. What is your company doing to reach out to and interact with your desired audience? At Accendo Digital we have an in-depth and well-rounded perspective of the internet, marketing and digital platforms, so we can help you develop the web strategy that will work best for your business. Contact us to learn how our Inbound Marketing Certified Professional can help you maximize your inbound marketing efforts.