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Banner Advertising 101: A Look at the Fundamentals |
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Banner advertising is a popular marketing technique to promote your company's products and services on the Internet. Creative, attention-grabbing ads will help you get results. The way you combine words, colors, graphics and animation are critical to your success.
Check out these tips to help you develop an effective banner ad:
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- Do Your Homework
When designing a creative piece like a banner ad, begin by identifying the best banner ads that you have seen. The easiest way to do this is to visit the major portals for your industry or targeted markets and look at the different banner ads. Try to identify at least three banner ads that catch your attention and your interest.
- Hone Your Message
Your main objective in banner advertising is to have people take a particular action after viewing your ad. A strong, clear message will help capture their interest. Clear communication requires that you understand your message, what you are selling and the benefit that you are offering potential customers. You will often want your primary message to be the strongest visual element in your ad.
- Keep the File Size Low
How many times have you had to wait on a banner ad before you could view a Web site? To minimize user frustration, you need to limit the file size of your ad. As a general rule a 468 x 60 pixel banner should be 12 kilobytes or less. The easiest way to achieve this is to limit the number of colors you use and save your banner as an animated GIF file.
- Less Copy Means More
Make your point in seven words or less. This is especially important for a banner campaign, where you are limited to a small visual space. Using fewer words means that you can make the font size bigger, which increases the impact of your message.
- Use Power Words
Use single words that immediately communicate a benefit such as "free," "unbelievable," "incredible," "affordable," "heartwarming." A brainstorming session will help you create a list of words that are perfect for your campaign.
- Pick the Right Visuals
Select images for your ads very carefully. Too few images will lead to a bland banner, while too many will destroy the desired effect. If you want to add an eye-catching graphic, royalty free stock photography is an inexpensive option. There are several Web sites online that offer these images. Using a drawing or chart with a limited number of colors is an effective way to catch the eye while limiting the file size.
- Don't Overuse Animation
If you plan to use animation in your ad, there are a few things to consider. You want the animation to draw the eye without offending the online viewer. When setting the animation speed, look for something that changes at a slow to moderate pace.
- Measure Your Success
It's important to monitor the "click-through" rate of your banner advertising to gauge if your message is drawing people toward the desired action you want. If your not hitting your click through rate goals, consider tweaking your message and updating your ads. A good technique for measurement is to link your banner ads to a specific landing page tied to your ad or marketing campaign.
Source: Microsoft Small Business Center
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