The Kelsey Group report, titled "Local Commerce Monitor," found that penetration by online and digital media among local advertisers -- meaning the proportion of local advertisers who have used digital or online, to any extent -- increased from 73% in August 2008 to 77% this year. Meanwhile, the proportion of local advertisers using any kind of traditional media fell from 74% to 69%.

Even more noticeably, digital and online's actual share of local advertising in dollar terms jumped dramatically, from 22% to 37%. The disproportionate increase in volume (15%) juxtaposed with the more modest (4%) increase in the number of local advertisers using the new media suggests that a subgroup or vanguard of tech-savvy local advertisers is embracing digital and online advertising in a big way. This movement is especially telling in light of an overall decrease in ad spending by local advertisers, which cut ad spending by 23.5% over the same period.

The Kelsey Group's findings on local advertising echo another study by LinkedIn's Research Network and Harris Interactive, which found that national advertisers are spending less ad dollars on print in favor of online. The LinkedIn-Harris poll of 1,015 top executives at ad agencies and their corporate clients from June 22-June 30 found that while the number of advertisers using print and online are still roughly equal -- 88% and 92%, respectively -- the trend lines for the two media are headed in opposite directions.

According to the same LinkedIn-Harris poll, some 74% of advertisers that use Internet say they are using it more than they did one year ago, while 49% of advertisers that use print say they are using it less. Another 41% of advertisers that use print say their spending has remained steady with a year ago. On the upside, 54% of advertisers that spend money online do so as part of a broader, multimedia campaign strategy, versus just 14% that only advertise online.

The poll also had some good news for mobile advertising, which has struggled to find its footing in the U.S. market: 69% of advertisers that employ mobile advertising say they are using it more than they did a year ago, suggesting the medium has proven itself -- at least to marketers willing to try it.

Radio and TV are roughly even, according to the LinkedIn-Harris Poll, with the proportion of advertisers that use radio and/or TV exactly even at 46%. Both are also experiencing slippage, although not as much as print. Among advertisers using radio, 46% say they are using it the same amount as last year, and 43% say they are using it less. Also, 48% of advertisers that use TV say their spending is even with last year, versus 38% that say they are spending less.

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