10 Banner Ad Design Practices to Get More Clicks

Today's ecommerce businesses have numerous options when it comes to marketing and attracting customers. If you're not using web banner ads in your marketing strategy, you might be losing some of your audience to your competitors.

Banner ads are images that advertise products or services – they are embedded into web pages and link to the advertiser's site in order to drive traffic to it.

Most companies use banner ads in some way or another, as they are practical, cost-effective and it’s easy to measure their effectiveness.

This article will focus on providing valuable design tips for creating clickable promotional banners that convey your business message and invite audiences to visit your site.

Why use banner ads?

Banner ads are one of the most popular forms of online marketing. When designing such ads, marketers utilize simple business psychology and tactics of attracting the targeted audience.

At the very least, these ads grab the audience's attention and raise brand awareness. When deployed effectively, they will get your audience to visit your site and go through with a conversion.

The effectiveness of your banner ads will depend on how well they are designed and how accurately have you targeted your audience, as well as how often you analyze their CTR and make data-driven improvements to your campaign.

What types of web ad design can we create?

There are two main options to choose from when it comes to web banner design: static or dynamic.

Static banners

It’s easy to create a static web banner design as it only consists of a static image. However, while they are simpler to make, keep in mind that they’re also less effective than dynamic banner ads. To create a static web banner, all you will need a high-quality image, some eye-catching text and a call to action. You should keep your banner's size small and not make it too crowded with design elements. Consider adding a border to your static banner – it will give your ad a professional appearance and make it stand out more.

Dynamic banners

Dynamic web banner design is a bit more challenging. A dynamic banner can be similar to a static banner, but it will have multiple images with varying text. What’s more, dynamic banners can also include moving and interactive elements (animations or even mini-games), or even change depending on the user's behavior (for example, a different ad would be shown depending on whether the customer has visited your site or not). The conversion rate for dynamic ads is usually higher, but remember that they will take more technical skill and resources.

How to create banner ads that get more clicks

How can you create banner advertising campaigns that will result in more clicks? Here are some general guidelines to take into consideration.

1. Identify the size and placement of the banner

Once you have identified the audience for your ads, you can begin to understand where to place them to get maximum interaction. What sites does your audience visit? What’s their behavior like online?

Visitors may find it helpful to see a large banner for something they find relevant at the top or the bottom of the website's custom products catalog.

The location of your banner will also determine its form and size. These sizes make up to 89% of all banners:

• 300x250 Medium Rectangle (40%)
• 728x90 Leaderboard, (25%)
• Mobile Leaderboard 320x50, (12%)
• 160x1600 Wide Skyscraper (12%)

Remember to also consider what devices your target customers are more likely to use, as this will also influence your banner sizing. Ideally, the banner ads should adjust to any and all devices – be they mobile or desktop.

2. Create great banner copy

Once you have decided where the web banner should be placed, it’s time to create the copy.

The banner ad's copy is the text you include within it. The copy complements the visual, but is also an effective way to communicate to your audience and to encourage them to use your products or services.

Because banner ads have limited space, the copy must be concise, clear and to the point. Your copy can ask questions or pose problems to get people's attention. Or, you could offer a solution.

To increase conversions, highlight key numbers and create a sense of urgency. Note that the banner ad copy should be no longer than two sentences.

For example, if you sell custom pajamas on your online store, you could write a copy related to pajamas and sleeping. Something like “Don't Sleep Through Our Great Deals” or “50% Off Pajamas = 100% On Improved Sleep.”

Essentially, the banner content should be revolving around this topic to be relevant to the viewer.

3. Design the banner

Both content and design matter in banner creation. If the banners aren't appealing enough design-wise to pique visitors' attention, all content, promotion and linking to your site will be in vain.

You can come up with design ideas yourself by looking at your competitors' ads, or hire a professional designer to create your banner for you. If you opt for the latter, make sure to communicate clearly what goal you wish to achieve with your ad.

4. Pick a layout

The layout concerns the organization of elements on your banner ad, such as text placement and visuals. To grab people's attention, images should be the main focus of your ad.

Place the most important information on your banner ads first, followed by any extra content or supporting details. Copy should be arranged so the headline or most crucial text is displayed first and the subtext immediately after.

The layout should be visually organized in a natural manner, and not be overly crowded with various unnecessary elements.

5. Choose the right colors

You can influence people's emotions and grab their attention by using the right color. Therefore, there’s a lot of value in researching color psychology and incorporating it into your web banners.

Additionally, consider the environment in which your ads will be displayed and its color scheme – will your ad stand out, or blend in with the interface? Or maybe the colors will be too disruptive and annoying for the site visitors?

These and more considerations are vital when designing your perfect banner ad. 

6. Design visuals

The image and visuals can be the focal point of your design. An excellent visual should complement your ad's copy in every way.

You can use photos, creative graphics, or even presentation templates to create visuals for your website banner ad designs. Depending on your chosen layout, the visual elements can be the central focus or the background of your ad.

Hiring graphic designers or photographers is a brilliant choice if you don't have the experience to create professional images for designing banners. These creatives will help you build your brand awareness with stunning, high-quality visuals.

7. Remember typography

Typography in banner ad design is important to convey your message, and it requires the use of appropriate font pairings and colors.

Note that script fonts are more challenging to read at first glance. Because they are more straightforward, sans-serif and serif font combinations work well.

8. Add a CTA button

Many customers don't take action even after they have read the ad copy. If you don't include compelling calls to action in your web banner designs, this is a sign that you aren’t implementing them effectively.

These CTA strategies will help you increase click rates:

• Use action-packed text such as "Start your Free Trial" and "Download this eBook."
• You can create a sense of urgency and set a time limit with words such as "Now."
• Instead of using second-person speech like "Get Your Free Template," use first person (“Get My Free Template”).

9. Animate your ad

Dynamic ads with GIFs and animations grab more attention than static ads. Although these ads can be challenging to pull off, they don't need to be too extravagant.

Simply make sure that there’s at least one moving element, but that it's not too obnoxious, as that can have the opposite effect than what one wishes to achieve.

10. Export to the correct file size and format

The last tip for making an effective banner ad is to export and save it in the correct format.

Your ad must be at least 150 KB in size. Small file sizes will speed up the website's loading of your ad. Websites take longer to load large files, which causes the audience to scroll past them, sometimes without ever seeing them in their entirety.

Your ad file format must be JPG, PNG or GIF. Most websites would not support your ad if exported in any other format.

What things could harm your advertising banners?

You can begin your web banner advertising efforts by considering the eleven key factors that we have discussed above.

Now, let's look at some common beginner mistakes that could harm website banners. Here are some common examples:

●      Example 1: Missing logo

An advertisement banner design won't get many clicks when missing its logo design. This can make viewers suspicious and unable to associate the advertisement with the right company.

●      Example 2: Confusing copy

The purpose of an advertisement banner design is to make the reader understand the content in a matter of minutes. Otherwise, readers will skim the entire thing and move on. To ensure easy reading, keep the main text brief and concise.

●      Example 3: No action without prompting

Make sure you clearly state what clicking on your ad will accomplish. Will clicking your banner take the user to an online store or give them a coupon? With no clear message, web banners make it suspicious for the viewer and make them less likely to click on the banner.

Other general tips for banner design

• Brand consistency: Try to design your ads according to web ad design best practices, but also stay true to your brand. This improves brand recognition and should allow many people to easily recognize the advertising company by its design.
• Integrated layout: The layout should be adapted to the pages on which your ads will appear. Your ads should appear integral to the website, not as a disruptive component.
• Keep your eyes on the basics: Advertisements must attract attention, and many marketers do this in unconventional ways. Even if you adhere to standard guidelines regarding font and color choice, it’s still possible to create web banners that are unique – just keep all the basic guidelines in mind. 
• Be aware of color symbolism: Colors may cause different reactions from viewers and activate other associations. When choosing colors, consider who you’re targeting. A green-brown color scheme can indicate environmental friendliness if you sell organic products. Or, in their advertising, beauty products use pale pinks and blues.
• Make sure you invest enough resources: You shouldn’t attempt to design your advertising materials if you don't know enough about graphic design tools. A poor advertisement can cause more damage than good for your brand.

Final thoughts

Banner ads can be a powerful tool for businesses wanting to increase sales and drive website traffic.

These tips will help ensure that your banner ads are successful and deliver results. You can experiment with different visuals, fonts and colors until you find the right one for your brand. Banner ads can promote any product, campaign or service.

You can create memorable experiences for your customers that result in a conversion. That's it! Even if you’re not a professional designer, or are too busy with running your business, you can always hire a creative who will design clickable ads for you.

We hope this article has helped you on your journey to create high-performing, unique ads!