A slew of targeted-ad campaigns and special promotions online could make this Valentine's Day worth more than $2 billion.

Valentine's Day ranks second only to Christmas as the favorite holiday of e-commerce, and this year's lovefest is expected to generate online sales of more than $2 billion, an increase of 32 percent over last year, according to BizRate.com. The Gartner Group (IT) also projects $2 billion in online sales, a 25 percent increase over the $1.5 billion the research company tracked in 2000. Valentine's Day is the fourth-biggest occasion for both the floral and candy industries. This year in the U.S., candy sales alone should top $1 billion, and 110 million roses will be bought on Valentine's Day. Men plan to spend an average of $40 for Valentine's Day – twice what women will spend, according to a poll conducted by Market Facts for the National Retail Federation. The poll also found that 37 percent of respondents plan to give flowers and 31 percent plan to give candy for Valentine's Day. Some 72 percent of respondents plan to give greeting cards, and 58 percent plan to take their significant other out that evening. Online advertising for flowers, candy, makeup and jewelry ramped up in anticipation of the holiday, according to Leading Web Advertisers. In its ranking of the heftiest ad budgets, LWA saw spikes in ads targeted to men that feature gift items for women, many of them appearing on male-oriented sites. For example, cosmetics retailer Sephora.com ran 99 percent of its Valentine's Day ads on music download site MP3.com (MPPP) . That was 167 percent more ads than diamond retailer De Beers, which ranks as the second-biggest Valentine's Day advertiser online. Other top advertisers include FTD.com, Godiva, Tiffany, Victoria's Secret and Zales jewelry store. BizRate cautions that a slowing economy has forced e-retailers to rely on such promotional tactics as waived shipping fees, bonus gifts and 30-day delivery guarantees – all designed to drive traffic and build customer loyalty.