Display fundamentals

Why use display advertising?

With all the other ways to spend your advertising dollar, why bother with display? A fair question. Here are a few good reasons.

1. It’s where your customers are.

  • Time spent. One study found that US internet users spend 42% of their web time on content sites (OPA, Sept, 2009). So when you place your ad on a content site, you’re increasing your odds that consumers will take notice and absorb your message.
  • Page views. In the last year alone, total website page views have gone up 12%, and total page visits per user are up 6%.
  • Video usage. Average Americans are supplementing their TV viewing with 206 minutes of online video each month. (Neilsen: “Three Screen Report”, 2009) In fact, 71% of US ad execs say video ads complement TV ads. (eMarketer, 2009)
  • On the rise. 60% of marketers believe interactive budgets will increase – at the expense of traditional media budgets. (Forrester, July 2009)

2. It’s critical for influencing consumers.

  • Awareness.  Display ads show the benefits of your business to the right audience at the right time, piquing interest and putting your brand top-of-mind.
  • Consideration.  Display ads can be shown on sites where and when users are thinking about what to buy.
  • Conversion. Display ads allow you to offer coupons and other incentives crucial for driving sales. Furthermore, most display companies offer a suite of solutions to help you find the consumers who are most likely to convert in the first place.

3. It’s accountable.

  • Tracking. Display ads can be tracked and evaluated in more ways than any other media.
  • Lead generation. From signup forms to user tracking and beyond, display offers many ways to build your database of potential customers – and drive them to take action.
  • Insights. Data and reporting available makes it easy for marketers to fine-tune their display message with every click, conversion or interaction.

 

But why not just use search?
While search is excellent for many marketing objectives, display offers additional – and complementary – benefits to search-based advertising.

  • Awareness. While a search ad may help a customer in search of a particular item, what if someone isn't aware of your product or service, even though may have a need for it? Display ads help you connect with reach people further up the purchase funnel.
  • Working together. Display can help your search efforts by getting in front of consumers during their normal web activities, then triggering them to search for your product or service.
  • Better by design. Display ads sit within the content a user is looking for; search ads are designed to drive users away from the page on which they’re displayed.
  • More engaging. Unlike simple text ads, display ads give your message the power of sight, sound, motion and interactivity.
  • Brand continuity. Because they’re visual in nature, display ads can maintain the look and feel that users have come to associate with your brand.

 

Next in display fundamentals: Reserved and non-reserved inventory