One needs to understand and use this important online branding concept in businesses in the marketplace with the advent of the Web. Brands are under threat of losing their top of mind position in the Web world unless they make use of spiral branding and load the customer with brand information. This is where the Internet comes into play for spiral branding. Print, TV and Radio ads drive consumers to the Website.

The Web, due to its interactivity and also the state of mind of the consumer (he had willingly logged in and is hence receptive to information) holds the customers. This works beautifully for media companies with interests in print, TV and the Web. Print and TV ads drive customers to the Web and Web with its information on, say programmes drive customers back to TV. The word `spiral' describes the accelerating benefits of a positive feedback loop.

Bill Gates, for instance, often talks about the upward spiral of his Windows business. Because there is more software, customers purchase more Windows machines. Because there are more customers, developers build more software which attracts more customers. And around it goes and grows. The concept has undergone a transformation with the explosion of the Internet.

Two new things have happened to take integrated marketing to a new level. For one, the Web lets companies deepen their relationship with customers through interactive branding. For another, outbound e-mail allows companies to stay in touch with customers and bring them back to the through again. These new marketing capabilities let us do something that wasn't possible before - namely, to use each media to feed the others, in a positive success spiral. The spiral branding approach generates power from combining different media in just the right way.

For success each medium must be used to its best advantage. Television is unrivaled at creating a link between a brand and an emotion: "Iridium, Geography is History" for instance. However, this ad did not create any interaction with the customer. The technology was not understood and neither its potential by the consumer. While pricing might have killed Iridium, the consumer's lack of knowledge might also have been a contributing factor. The Net takes the customer relationship to a new level by delivering branded services inside the browser.

There are hundreds of possibilities: gift registries, online design center, shopping assistant, lease price calculator, and so on. These involve the customer and make them come for more. Netenterprises and clicks and mortar organisations need to understand that the Net and TV are two different mediums and that customer expectations on both these mediums are different. Trying a television spot on the browsers will not only slow things down but also irritate the visitor who comes to get things done. Generally customers do not enter a Website after seeing the URL on TV. They have to be encouraged and reminded and this can be done through e-mail. TV, print and radio are absolutely necessary to get customers to the Web for the first time at least. From there on e-mail can take over. A note of warning- do not use spam (mass) mail.

The Net enterprise needs a Web personalisation engine to understand individual customer preferences through click streams and purchase history and then send only relevant mail Organisations generally use the three-stage branding spiral. First TV, print or radio is used to get people interested and direct them to the Web. Second, the Web involved customers via specialized content and interactive services. Here e-mail addresses are collected. Finally, e-mail is used to remind and provide incentives for them to return to TV and the Web again. E-mail closes the loop and starts people around the spiral again.