Banner Advertising

How do banner ads operate?

The basic concept of banner exchange is that if you show another site's banner ad (linked to that site) on your site then they will show yours (linked to your site) on theirs, hence giving your site exposure and the chance of a hit. As this stands it would simply be a reciprocal link agreement between two sites. Where a banner exchange scheme differs is that it is run by a site which holds a copy of your banner (or banners) as well as everyone else's in the scheme. When someone logs on to your site it downloads a banner (not your own) into a position you've chosen on your page and credits you with an exposure. The more exposures you accumulate the more often your banner will be exposed on other sites. The ratio is usually about 2:1 and the balance of exposures are sold off to whoever wants them (it's not too expensive). These schemes are free to join and only cost money if you buy exposures over and above the ones your site generates.

Do banner ads work?

They work if you can expose enough of them since click through rates are very low. This is partly because many people are irritated by banners so ignore them and partly because you have little control over who will see them - although some schemes do allow you to choose the type of web sites that you want them exposed on, giving some degree of targetting. So if your site doesn't earn enough exposures then the number of hits you receive will be low - unless you're willing to pay for extra exposures or have a site with a lot of pages. Another disadvantage is that they take extra download time and can detract from the look of your site - especially if they're at the top of pages, which is usually considered the best place to earn exposures.
The most common size for banners is 468 pixels x 60 pixels. Studies have shown that this size performs better for click throughs than other sizes. Studies also show that animation on the banner improves click throughs as do bright colours and a call to action such as "Click Here".

So are they worthwhile?

If you're site only has a few pages then probably not. To be worthwhile you need a site with plenty of pages to generate exposures. On sites designed to provide information or community based sites they don't seem too out of place, however on sites geared to sell, they may detract from your sales pitch.

Buying banner ads

You don't have to have banners ads on your site to use banner advertising - you can buy them to be exposed on other people's sites. Banners are usually sold in multiples of a thousand and prices will be quoted in cost per thousand (CPM). This is the cost to expose your banner or banners on one or more websites. The cost will depend on where they are exposed. On networks, i.e. banner schemes that expose banners on multiple sites that are signed up to the scheme, the cost tends to be fairly low. This is because targetting tends to be limited and therefore the click through rate (CTR) will be lower. The CPM for banners exposed on single sites tends to be higher since this allows precise targetting and higher click through rates.
The type of banner you choose to expose will depend on what you're trying to achieve. If you're trying to attract visitors to your site and image is important, then a graphic banner like the one above may be most suitable. However, for a hard sell a different strategy is preferred. The best click through rates are achieved using stealth banners exposed on chosen sites, as opposed to network exposure.
Stealth banners are banners that don't look like banners but blend into the site where they're exposed. If you know the site where your banner will appear then you can design the look and message of the banner to appear as part of the host site. The banner carries a message designed to hook the visitor (hopefully) and invite them to click for more information. The visitor is then taken to a purpose designed page on your site, designed to complement the message on the banner, for the hard sell. Below is an example of a stealth banner
stealth banner ad

Does smallbizonline set up banner ads on clients' sites?

Yes we can if required. We can sign you up to a banner exchange scheme and insert the required code in your pages as well as design a banner or banners to display on other sites.

For other ideas on how to promote your site check out Attracting Website Visitors