Internet marketing:
ad banner advertising
Once the darling of online
advertisers, ad banners have acquired, during the past year,
a reputation for producing no results. Today, many advertisers
are categorically eliminating this advertising vehicle from their
online marketing mix. Should you do the same? Is this reputation
well deserved or is it just the result of clever promotional
tactics used by companies offering competing online advertising
solutions.
One thing is sure, gone are
the days when ad banners generated click-through rates in the
double digits. In fact, recent findings suggest that click-through
rates are just below the one percent mark. While the average
click-through rate for ad banners is among lowest in Internet
marketing, advertisers should not forget that ad banners are
probably the most misused online marketing tool today.
Part of the problem has been
a lack of clear objectives, a lack of understanding of the prospects'
informational needs, as well as the failure to look beyond the
design element of a banner. Despite the fact that they target
different market segments, promote different products, and advertise
different companies, most banners look the same or use the same
type of message "Free stuff, click here." This similarity
has desensitized web surfers to the point that the stimuli is
no longer strong enough to reach the threshold that will get
them to act on the information presented (i.e. read and process
the banner's message, click to visit the advertiser's site, etc...).
The fact is that ad banners
still offer the best value because they can, in very specific
situations, produce great results at a fraction of the cost of
other marketing tools. Think 2 to 7 percent click though rates
are a thing of the past? Think again. Advertisers who carefully
develop a strategy that defines who sees their ad banners, at
what stage of the decision-making process, how frequently and
in what sequence, will be rewarded with outstanding results.
Find out what
works and doesn't work in ad banner advertising. Get your copy
of the advancis® web marketing guide. (click here
for details)
|
|
