Editor's Note: Make the Internet Work for YOU

Ten years ago, the Internet was full of promise. It seemed like you could sell anything online, throwing out all those old, outdated retail business models. Then, of course, came the dot-com bust, followed by the other assorted ups and downs of this decade.

Early on, the Internet was about throwing it all out there and seeing what stuck. Today, marketers of all kinds turn to the Internet with greater selectivity. As Rick Braddock of FreshDirect, who co-wrote the second of a three-part series on the impact of the Internet on the changing face of retail (see pg. 22), said recently, “The true power of Internet marketing is the ability to interact, to develop superior customer knowledge and real-time rhythm to significantly build one’s business.”