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Banner Ads

Banner Ads

Definition

A banner ad is a form of advertising delivered by an ad server and embedded in a webpage. Normally rectangular in shape, a banner ad is intended to generate traffic by linking directly to the advertiser’s site.

Image of banner ad on YouTube.com

Source: YouTube.com

Due to a number of factors users can overlook the presence of banners which is referred to as banner blindness. As a result it is recommended to avoid designing assets that look like banners as they can often be mistaken for banners and ignored. However, companies use a number of strategies to counter banner blindness including using animation, sounds and locating banners on the left rather than right of a page. See banner blindness.

The homepage of Cheekybingo.com below has a number of banner-like assets which many visitors will ignore because they think they are banner ads. This can also result in a high bounce rate.

Image of Cheekybingo.com homepage

Source: Cheekybingo.com

Resources:

Conversion marketing – Glossary of Conversion Marketing.

Over 300 tools reviewed – Digital Marketing Toolbox.

Credit:

Ad icons created by Freepik – Flaticon