Display Ads are highly debated on their effectiveness. A simple Google search for “Display Ads” will give you plenty to read on both sides of the argument. This article, along with the articles that will follow, are not going to be more fodder for the debate. Lets agree that that display ads are another component to online marketing, and all components have their time and place.
Arguments can be made that display ads are a money pit, yet still millions of clicks go to display ads each day. The better question to ask when evaluating the effectiveness of display ads is:
Diversify is a buzz word being used more and more frequently in online marketing. It means something like “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket”. The key is to determine a strategy that will allow you to pursue SEO, PPC, Social Media, Content Marketing, Email Marketing… and the list goes on.
Display Ads are a branch off of the PPC tree. Relying solely on Display Ads as your only form of marketing would be silly. However when you consider the benefits of incorporating display ads into your internet marketing campaign, the benefits can be great.
Knowing the average CTR (Click Through Rates) and setting realistic expectations will help you in determining if Display Ads are a good fit for you. Lastly, remember that on the Google Display Network, you PAY PER CLICK. If your ads are not getting clicked on, your not paying, SO EXPERIMENT!
Display Ads appear across the web in a variety of places. The majority of the ads relate back to the Google and Microsoft Advertising Networks. However there are tons of display ads that appear across social platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn.
On top of that, we also see ads that appear specific to a website and hosted by the website. Search Engine Watch (a great example) has advertising space available for purchase on their website. If you are an internet marketing company, this space would be valuable to you because visitors of Search Engine Watch could potentially see your ads at the opportune moment in the buying funnel. Purchasing ad space on a specific website is part of what is referred to as “media buying”.
Remarketing or Retargeting is a great way to improve ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). The opportunity in Remarketing is that when potential buyers or leads visit your website and leave without purchasing, we can track them across the web and display our ads specifically to those who have already visited your site and expressed interest.
Researchers say that it takes, on average, 7 interactions with your brand to make a sale. With Remarketing, we can expose these potential buyers to your brand with display ads geared specifically for them.
The purpose of this series isn’t to teach you display ad management, rather it is on the first and arguably most important first step: Designing Beautiful Display Ads.
"*" indicates required fields
