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Display advertising is a key marketing strategy for bringing new traffic to your business. These ads can take many different forms, most popular are static banners, animated GIF banners, and HTML5 banners. In this article, we’ll discuss some tips to help you get the best results from your display advertising strategy.Here are 5 tips for effective display advertising:

1. Don’t Overwhelm the ViewerNo matter which type of display ad you’re creating, it’s important that you don’t overwhelm the viewer. Both the message and the design of the ad should be simple and clean.You need one clear call to action for your audience to follow. It should be easy for them to understand your message. So, don’t bog down the ad with unnecessary information or multiple product offerings. By giving only a single call to action, the viewer can easily choose whether or not to engage with it.Simplicity should also be brought into the design of the ad. Leave some whitespace to let the eye rest. Let the picture do the talking when possible. If you’re creating a video ad, keep it short and succinct. The bottom line is that you should keep things basic, simple, and easy to understand.Also, stay away from any images, patterns, or fonts that may be too complex or distracting. Good design is invisible. If the first thing the viewer notices is how crazy your font is, that means they aren’t really paying attention to your ad message.
2.  Create BordersWhen designing your ad, you have to create borders on all edges so that the viewer can easily distinguish your ad from the surrounding content. This can be done with something as simple as a thin, gray border all the way around the ad or it can be done with a little more nuance. Push colors and images all the way to the edges of the ad to naturally create these borders.Creating borders will do two important things. It will grab the attention of the viewer more easily because it stands out from the rest of the page. It will also help your ad get approved more quickly. The websites where your ad will be displayed don’t want readers to confuse your ad with their content. Designing ads to be easily recognizable from surrounding content benefits everyone.
3.  Make it Adaptable to Different DevicesFor an ad to reach the largest audience possible, it needs to be able to adapt to different devices and screens According to SEMrush, traffic is split pretty evenly among different devices: 21% on mobile iOS, 21% on mobile Android, 20% on tablet iOS, 22% on tablet Android, and 16% on desktops. If you create ads that don’t stretch or adapt to different devices, you’ll miss out on a lot of engagement.With the majority of traffic happening on one mobile device or another, start by designing your ads for mobile devices. Once you have the mobile ad created, adapt it to other devices, like desktop computers.
4.  Get CreativeThere’s a phenomenon called “banner blindness” that refers to readers’ tendencies to completely ignore banner ads to the point that they don’t even see them anymore. Obviously, this is a problem for advertisers.One way to overcome banner blindness is to make more creative ads. Catch the viewers’ attention with highly-targeted content, shocking and surprising images, funny or bold statements, emotional content, and carefully chosen color pallets that will catch the eye.The last thing that you want is for viewers to ignore your ad or find it annoying. When you make ads that are creative and engaging, people are less likely to scroll past them. So, have fun with your ads and get the creative juices flowing to see the best return for your hard work.
5.  Increase Engagement with Video and Animated AdsRecent studies have shown that video and animated ads result in increased engagement from viewers. According to Databox, this is especially true with Facebook ads. 60% of marketers say that video ads drive more engagement than images.If you want to experience high engagement with your ads, use videos and animated ads when possible. This can be as simple as an ad with components that transition in. It could be a GIF that only lasts a few seconds. Or, it can be a video with a script.If you opt for a longer ad, like a video, you should still try to keep it under 15 seconds. Any longer and the viewer will likely lose interest and move on. Also, to avoid annoying the viewer, make videos silent with the option to allow for sound and caption the video when necessary.

Display advertising is a popular and effective way to reach your audience. According to Statista, it is projected that over $63M will be spent on banner ads alone this year. With all of that cash going in, it’s essential that these advertisements are effective. Use the tips from this article to start improving your display ads today.Stuck in the design process? Designpax.com is always here to help. We’re banner pros who will get you moving in the right direction.