Internet marketing teams should make sure they target their online campaigns at the audiences they are trying to reach, according to one expert.

Jack Wallington, chair of the Search Council at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), said targeting allows companies to get better results from their marketing efforts.

"You are hitting people that are actually interested," he explained, insisting that targeting and retargeting is "proven to improve the effectiveness of advertising".

His comments come after Yahoo! launched a new targeted online advertising package that brings together existing search targeting and retargeting tools and includes some enhanced features.

Mr Wallington said the product brings together search and display advertising for the first time, allowing companies to make their presence felt along the entire user journey.

According to a report by the IAB, spending on internet marketing rose by 21 per cent in 2008 compared to the previous year, while spending across the advertising industry as a whole declined by 0.7 per cent.

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