We are all well aware that banners ads are pretty effective in directing traffic to one’s site. For you to fully harness the power of banner ads, you need to understand 5 best web banner ad practices that will put your online business well ahead of your competition.

1. 5 BEST WEB BANNER
AD PRACTICES

2. BANNERS EXPLAINED
 They are graphical images designed to attract
visitors by capturing their attention so that they
can click on them so as to get more
information.
 They are located either at the top or the
bottom of websites.
 They offer faster results as they draw people to
your site by capturing people’s attention.

3. TYPES OF BANNERS
There are a number of aspects that are
involved in web banners and this include:
 File sizes
 File types
 Size limits
There are three common types of banners:
 Static web banners
 Animated web banners
 Flash banners

4. STATIC WEB BANNERS
 As the name suggests, a static web banner is a
creative piece that contains texts and graphics
which are displayed on one-screen image. This type
of banner is either in jpg or gif format.
 ADVANTAGES
i. Widely accepted
ii. The file size can be kept low
iii. Can be viewed on most browsers without use
of plugins
iv. Non-intrusive in nature
 DISADVANTAGES
i. Can easily be overlooked
ii. Unattractive
iii. Hard to fit in a lot of details

5. ANIMATED WEB BANNERS
 Animated web banners on the other hand use
animation to deliver the message. This type of
banners are usually in gif. File format.
 ADVANTAGES
i. They are widely accepted
ii. Low file size
iii. Can be viewed by most users
iv. Can fit info in multiple frames
 DISADVANTAGES
i. Not interactive
ii. Ongoing rotation which is usually limited
can be annoying if not on a set cycle.

6. FLASH BANNERS
 Flash Banners are more sophisticated as compared to
the other two types of banners.
 In this type of banner it flows smoothly like a movie and
may also include sound effects.
 Flash banners are more interactive in that they have
buttons for the users to be able to manipulate the
banner.
 ADVANTAGES
i. More eye catching
ii. Interactive
iii. One can fit a story into the ad
iv. Delivers a professional appearance

7. DISADVANTAGES OF FLASH
BANNERS
 DISADVANTAGES
i. Requires for users to have flash player
installed.
ii. It burdens the web page making it slower to
load.
iii. Not accepted by all publishers
iv. It can annoy users if too intrusive
v. Expensive

8. BEST 5 BANNER AD PRACTICES
When you make a free banner for your website
there are a couple of practices that you need to
keep in mind:
1. Include a call for action
2. Create a sense of urgency or intrigue
3. Keep it short and simple
4. Don’t irritate your viewers
5. Deliver everything through the banner

9. CALL FOR ACTION
You need to make sure that your banner ad has a
button link that tells the users on what they need to
do. These calls for action may include:
 Click here
 Shop now
 Free download here

10. CREATING URGENCY AND
INTRIGUE IN YOUR AD
 It is important that you include a sense of urgency
or intrigue that will help encourage interested
people to getting taking action and clicking on
your banner ad.
 This can easily be achieved through the use of
phrases such as:
i. Hurry while stocks last
ii. Start now!

11. THE VIEWERS ARE KEY: DON’T
IRRITATE THEM
 When using animation, you need to make sure that
you keep the loop to a maximum of 8 cycles. This is
with the main message of the ad on the last
animation frame.
 When it comes to delivering everything to the
audience, you need to make sure that you not only
direct visitors to your site, but you also take them to
the particular landing page that they are to get
what it is you are promoting.

12. CONCLUSION
 It is quite clear that by using banner ads, you can
be sure to see more traffic to your company’s
website which will in the long run help you get
more sales as it is through web banner ads that
prospective customers will be encouraged to visit
the website and eventually lead to sales.
 Other than that, a web banner ad increases your
brand awareness and also influences future
purchase intent.
 By keeping the afore mentioned 5 best web
banner ad practices, you can be sure to achieve
this and more results for your website and
eventually your business.