-By Kenneth Hein, Brandweek

NEW YORK A-list American business executives are extremely receptive to media and advertising, according to the "U.S. Business Elite Study" conducted by Ipsos MediaCT here.

Fifty-five percent of top execs are willing to buy a product based on an Internet ad. TV ads are also influential, as more than 43 percent of the 2,390 respondents said they had made a purchase based on a TV spot. Magazines (about 42 percent), newspapers (37 percent) and radio (18 percent) followed.

These findings are eye-opening considering the "huge dollar volumes" involved in these decisions, said Hugh White, vp of Ipsos MediaCT. "They are making decisions for their companies. At home they are buying what we expect: high-end cars, expensive vacations, LCD TVs."

The "Business Elite" are defined as executives with 250-plus employees. The average respondent was 52, with a salary of $400,000 and a net worth of $1.7 million. They were interviewed online and through the mail between February and July of last year.

This highly desirable audience is still into old media. Eighty-eight percent read the most recent issue of a print publication, 70 percent watched a network TV channel the previous day, and 59 percent watched cable.

They are consuming digital media in greater quantities as well. During the prior month, 70 percent received a daily e-mail alert/newsletter, 49 percent watched a broadband video, 31 percent read a blog, and 23 percent downloaded a podcast.

"Informed intelligence is what they trade in," said Milton Pedraza, president and CEO of The Luxury Institute, New York. "They need to know who is acquiring who and doing what in what part of the world. They have BlackBerrys, you name it; they are connected."

More than half visited a Web site because of an online ad, 47 percent did so because of a magazine ad, followed by 43 percent led there by TV.

"Decision makers who are targeted correctly will click through," said Pedraza. "Luxury firms should advertise online more."

The business elite aren't afraid to spend. Almost 43 percent take vacations costing more than $3,000 per person, and a quarter own vacation homes and jewelry in excess of $5,000. About 14 percent have a watch worth more than $3,000.

"They are drawn to high-quality and well-branded products and services, both for business and personal use," said White.