After the Marketing editorial team finally settled on the 10 (well, 11) Ones To Watch for this year, someone noted the preponderance of digital and new media expertise among them. For an instant we paused and looked at each other: Was it too much?

But only for an instant. It wasn’t too much at all. It was perfect.

Much of the future of this industry will be written online, in new and emerging media, on channels that only sprung up yesterday and others that will spring up tomorrow. The young people profiled on the following pages will be the ones writing some of the most exciting chapters.

Whether they’re creating websites, spreading word-of-mouth buzz in the blogosphere or moving mass brand strategies online, these professionals, all under 30, have already turned heads across the industry and seem destined to do so for years to come.

The Ones To Watch selection process begins with reader nominations (up considerably from 2008). The final selections are based on the broad criteria of vision, innovation, financial clout and leadership.

Ones To Watch: