Confronting proliferation ... in online media: An interview with Yahoo!’s senior marketer

Cammie Dunaway explains how she is preparing for the future by shifting the company’s marketing dollars to vehicles whose returns can be measured and by fostering intellectual curiosity.

McKinsey Quarterly, June 1, 2007 — Since Yahoo!’s initial public offering, in 1996, the company has been a headline maker. Its share price gyrations over the past decade epitomized the dot-com boom, bust, and revival. More recently, Yahoo! has garnered attention while grappling with the gathering strength of Google in the online search and advertising business. Beneath the headlines, Yahoo! is also part of a fascinating marketing story. The company’s Web site, an important port of call for advertisers shifting their spending online, represents one aspect of the increasingly complex environment facing marketers today.