There are a lot of ways Web sites make money, but one of the main sources of revenue is advertising. And one of the most popular forms of Internet advertising is the banner ad.
A banner ad is simply a special sort of hypertext link. Banner ads are essentially the same thing, except that instead of text, the link is displayed as a box containing graphics (usually with textual elements) and sometimes animation.
Because of its graphic element, a banner ad is somewhat similar to a traditional ad you would see in a printed publication such as a newspaper or magazine, but it has the added ability to bring a potential customer directly to the advertiser's Web site.
A banner ad also differs from a print ad in its dynamic capability. It stays in one place on a page, like a magazine ad, but it can present multiple images, include animation and change appearance in a number of other ways.
Banner advertising advice
1. When thinking about a banner ad; you need to spend a lot of time in creating a catchy phrase,
something that will arouse the interest of the viewers and entice them to click on the banner. The punch line should be a small phrase, just a few words and should be visually appealing.
2. Make sure that the pictures displayed in the banner are relevant to the products/services you are offering on your site.
3. Please make sure that you deliver what you have promised in the banner - and point it out quickly on your site;
else the visitor would simply click on the "Back" button of their browser, never to return again. It might also generate some negative publicity!
4. If your ad campaign is a brand building exercise, it is advisable to include BOTH the logo and the web site address in the banner.
5. The ideal file size of a web banner is 100kb or less - the lesser, the better. The reason is simple. Since banners are generally displayed at the top of web pages,
they should load before or with the main page text and grab the viewers' attention immediately.
6. Animated banners generate almost 30% higher click-thru rates than static banners. The main drawback is that animation results in larger file sizes.
However, optimizing an animated .gif banner by decreasing both the number of colors used and vertical color change, one can bring the file size below the required value.
7. Unless you have done thorough research on your audience preferences and behavior patterns, its highly unlikely that a single banner would be sufficient
for your ad campaign. We believe that you should start with 6-10 banners. You should keep rotating the banners and as the ad campaign progresses
and you'll come to know which banners are generating higher click-thru rates
Different measures are more important to different advertisers, but most advertisers consider all of these elements when judging the effectiveness of a banner ad.