Adwords is running a special. If you spent $10 or more they will put your ads in next month's Time magazine. So just for that, i'd try it out.
Where do you see that deal? For the original poster, Adwords is generally better than banner ads as you can target more specifically. Users are much more likely to click an ad (and buy a product) on a relevant ad to their search term, rather than seeing a random ad on a website. It's basic marketing - Push vs. pull advertising. A very crude explanation can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push-Pull_strategy . With push, you show a user an ad that they may or may not be interested in. With pull (adwords), a user has somehow demonstrated interest in what you are selling before they see your ad. As for the difference between adwords and sending flyers in the mail... Completely different tactics & media (online vs offline). If you can't figure this one out, not sure if AdWords (or any marketing) is right for you.