Online advertising forms: Which one should it be?

ONLINE ADVERTISING Traditional banner ads, native advertising, or video ads? When choosing the right form of online advertising, marketers have many options available to them. This article is published in the current issue 6/7 2015 of "Marketing & Communication" The following are the most popular variants of online advertising forms and their advantages and disadvantages:Standardized advertising banners The classic form of Internet advertising is banner ads. The advertising is integrated into the website in Flash, GIF, JPEG or rich media format. Over the years, various standard sizes have become established for these advertising banners. The IAB Switzerland Association, which among other things aims to establish standards in digital advertising, defines four classic banner formats:- Fullbanner, 468 × 60 pixels- Leaderboard, 728 × 90 pixels- Wide Skyscraper,160 × 600 pixels- Medium Rectangle, 300 × 250 pixelsAdvantages and disadvantagesThe advantage of standardized advertising banners is that they can be played out across a large number of channels, as most online sites offer these advertising spaces. The advertiser can therefore achieve a large reach with minimal effort. The other side of the coin, however, is that these classic advertising banners attract little attention from the user and the click rates are generally low.Special advertising bannersMeanwhile, there is a very wide range of advertising banners that do not correspond to the classic format. One example is the wallpaper. This is one of the largest advertising media available. It completely surrounds a web page with advertising for the same product. Another example is the "Layer Ad". This advertising medium is placed on its own layer above the actual website. IAB Switzerland names the following special formats that have become established in Switzerland:- Exp. Wide Skyscraper,160 (300) × 600 pixels- Exp. Leaderboard,728 × 90 (300) pixels- Exp. Rectangle,300 (400) × 250 (400) pixels- Monsterboard, 460 × 400 pixels- Wallpaper,728 × 90 & 160 × 600 pixels- Layer Ad, 400 × 400 pixels- Billboard, 970 × 250 pixels- Wideboard, 994 × 250 pixels- Halfpage-Ad, 300 × 600 pixels- Wallpaper XL, 994 × 118 & 160 × 600 pixels- Wallpaper XXL, 994 × 118 and 245 × 600 pixels- Maxiboard, 194 × 118 and 245 × 600 pixels- Maxi Skyscraper(Monsterskyscraper)

A wallpaper from Swisscom on blick.chAdvantages and disadvantagesMore special advertising banners achieve more attention and higher click-through rates. "Wallpaper" ads, for example, achieve a high response from website visitors due to their large size and extensive integration. This can generate good CTRs (click-through rates). The problem is that such advertising media are often perceived as annoying. The layer ad, for example, is a rather intrusive form of advertising; this not infrequently causes the user to leave the website. In addition, the special formats are only supported by selected websites.Mobile AdvertisingWith the steady rise in smartphone and tablet usage in Switzerland, advertising via mobile devices is increasingly coming into focus. Mobile display advertising with static or rich media banners is just one of many options. Other options include branded apps, video or audio advertising, mobile activation via print or TV, and location-based advertising.Advantages and disadvantagesNowadays, smartphones or tablets are personal items that are carried around all the time. This results in high accessibility at almost any place at any time. The possibility of personalization in mobile advertising means that wastage is relatively low, as every potential customer receives advertising tailored to his or her customer profile.Due to the fact that mobile devices have a personal added value for the user, combined with the high level of accessibility, unwanted advertising messages are considerably more annoying than with other sales channels. In addition, the user can hardly ignore them. The small size of the display also imposes restrictions on advertising formats. The technical hurdles for a successful mobile campaign are also usually relatively high.

Thanks to the smartphone boom, mobile advertising is increasingly in demand.Native AdvertisingNative advertising attempts to capture the attention of users by offering them content. Basically, the idea is to present the user with paid, exciting articles within the editorial environment or in relation to the editorial environment. As a rule, these contributions are on an equal footing with the editorial content - they can therefore be commented on, rated and "pushed" into the top lists. IAB Switzerland names six basic possibilities for Native Advertising:In-Feed, Paid Search Results (e.g. AdWords), Article Recommendations (Widget), Promoted Listings and In-Ads.Advantages and disadvantagesSince "native advertising" offers the user content with added value and is not recognized as advertising at first glance, its effectiveness is increased. All the features of a web offer can be used, and the positive user experience is transferred to the product or the company. Also important: Native ads are usually not blocked by ad blockers and are also displayed in a mobile-friendly way.The similarity to editorial content can also lead to the user rejecting this form of advertising if it is not transparently marked. In addition, advertisers have less control over what happens to the post. User reactions in the form of comments, for example, can also be negative. In addition, there is of course the challenge of generating content that is relevant for the user.Video AdvertisingIn video advertising, promotional video clips are displayed on websites or to match other (editorial) video content. Online videos are booming: According to eMarketer, video advertising will achieve sales of USD 9.59 billion in the USA alone by the end of 2016. IAB Switzerland distinguishes between the following forms of video advertising:- In-banner advertising / in-page advertising: Advertising clips that are inserted in a classic advertising space on the advertising website.- In-stream advertising: Advertising clips that can be seen as part of the streamed video content, similar to television.Advantages and disadvantagesVideos generally generate a high level of attention among users. They offer a solid basis for a longer dwell time and are well suited for transporting emotional statements.However, the inventory in the area of specific video platforms is quite manageable in the Swiss market, and the contact prices are high. Unsolicited playback of videos can also be perceived as annoying. Finally, the production of the videos is also associated with hurdles.

Videos generate high attention from the user. Author: Simon Wolanin