Twenty years ago if you owned a business or managed one, your choices for getting the word out were varied but they all had one thing in common: they reached a limited audience and the cost was very high relative to today's potential reach on the internet.
So consider yourself lucky!
These days you can reach people exponentially for a lower cost; you can build clientele and establish a level of service that can anticipate the needs of the customer and provide you with important data on both your potential and real customer, allowing you to potentially create distinctive marketing channels--all-important to many organizations interested in captivating their audience and building business.