IN THIS ISSUE:
• Display Advertising
• Drive Traffic to Your Web Properties
• Accurately Target Your Prospects

Display Advertising
Increase Your Online Advertising Effectiveness

Display advertising is graphical advertising on the Internet that appears adjacent to content on web pages, instant messaging applications, email, etc. These ads can include text, logos, pictures, or rich media like video. Even if potential customers don't click on your ad, they are still exposed to your message, logo and business image.

How does display advertising benefit your online marketing initiatives?

• Immediate results. Online display advertising is generally used to enhance brand reach, but it is equally effective at generating a direct response.
• Targeted advertising. You can utilize a full spectrum of behavioral and contextual algorithms, demographics, site based targeting or geographical locations; enabling higher conversion rates.
• Monitor your marketing. You can track the performance of your ad campaign daily to measure metrics such as impressions, clicks and conversions to calculate ROI.
• Cost effective advertising. You can reach a wide audience with a small advertising budget. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising campaigns require you to pay only when someone clicks on the link in your ad, not for the number of impressions.

The "first impression" is crucial. A display ad should draw curiosity, attract the immediate attention of Internet users/website passersby, and encourage them to click on it. Using the right mix of visuals, colors and copy, your ad can stand out among millions of others.

Tips to improve the conversion ratio of your display ads:

• Keep it simple. Multiple messages in a single ad are confusing. One or two main ideas along with a compelling offer will suffice.
• A clear and succinct call-to-action. Your call-to-action should be easy to see, strong and must coincide with your campaign goal. Put your call-to-action on a button. For example, "Click Here", "Buy Now", "Get Started" or "Search Now".
• Improve creative quality. Use videos or interactive ad units to grab attention. Good design should highlight the content in a visually appealing manner.
• Include keywords in your ad. One of the basic (but often overlooked) strategies is to include the keywords assigned to an ad in the title and description. So when someone searches for these keywords, your ad is most likely to show up.
• Avoid broken link(s). Check and re-check all links to make sure your display ads take users where you want them to go. A 404 error page not only creates a poor online user experience, it also damages your brand image.
• Professional designs yield better results. Even if your goal is not branding, your advertising should look sleek, professional and engaging. Get a professional designer rather than doing it yourself.
  

Online advertising means thinking out-of-the-box - viral marketing can bring great results! Freely downloadable e-books, attractive wall papers, animated banners, free samples and iPhone apps will provide cost-free brand promotion. Customers will spread your message further via their blogs, social networking pages and smart phones.

An online advertising strategy must ensure that you are accurately targeting prospects. Here are some tips to consider.

• Avoid clutter. Don't advertise on a webpage that already has too many ads. Your message will be lost with so many others competing for audience attention.
• Placement. Specify the placement of the ad on the website. While home pages may get a majority of the traffic, ad placement on subject-specific pages can help hone in on your target.
• Ad exchange. Carefully review "free" online advertising offers. For example a "free" banner ad developer may want reciprocal links or ad placement on low quality websites.
• Accurate links. Ensure that the ad takes the user to the most appropriate page on your website (i.e. the page with relevant information rather than simply the home page).
• Self-serve advertising. An increasing number of ad companies/networks are offering self-service ad choices. Some options are Facebook, AdReady, AdBrite and Add It All.
• Contextual advertising. Some companies/ad networks will place your ads in search results pages and other relevant websites (using a network of partner sites). They typically allow you to bid on a set of keywords, and your ad is displayed until the budget limit is reached. Try Google Adwords, Yahoo! Search Marketing, Microsoft adCenter or Ask.com.
• Product/service search engines. Special product search engines can be used to find specific products or services. Products are usually ranked according to how much the advertiser pays. However, the user can also sort the search results by price. Some popular search engines for this are www.shopzilla.com, www.nextag.com, www.shopping.com and www.tripadvisor.com.

Even though social media has stolen the limelight in recent years, display advertising spending continues to grow. Contact your local WSI Consultant to manage your display advertising campaign - get leads, get results, get ROI.

Remember to Register For Our Next Webinar on April 7th and Download Your FREE Copy Of Our Latest Whitepaper:

"Display Advertising - The Billboards of the Web"