Ad Guru Rich LeFurgy Joins AdKnowledge as Consultant

Internet advertising veteran Rich LeFurgy has joined Palo Alto, CA-based AdKnowledge as a consultant to establish and chair the company’s Strategic Advisory Board.

In his new role, LeFurgy will advise the management team on sales, marketing and product opportunities, as well as on partnership and acquisition deals. He will continue as chairman of the board of the Internet Advertising Bureau and chairman of the FAST Forward Steering Committee, a broad-based Internet industry coalition that was formed by Procter & Gamble in August 1998 to accelerate development of online marketing.

Scott Kauffman, president and CEO of AdKnowledge, described signing on LeFurgy as a milestone in the business momentum of AdKnowledge, which has been experiencing rapid growth since the introduction of its ROI Advisor product in October. AdKnowledge markets an end-to-end Web advertising management system for marketers and agencies, and ROI Advisor provides a reliable way to measure and optimize the return on Web advertising.

“Rich is an influential pioneer of the Internet advertising industry and a true visionary,” Kauffman said. “His broad network of contacts coupled with his thorough understanding of the traditional and Internet advertising industries will prove pivotal in this period of rapid growth that AdKnowledge is experiencing.”

LeFurgy, a 20-year advertising industry veteran, was one of the early evangelists for the potential of Internet advertising. LeFurgy also serves as a consultant to The Walden Group.