Web Banner Design Tips

Here are a few web banner tips that I would like to share with you all. To create a good banner you should always look at it from the perspective of the viewer. That said, let me detail the tips for web banners.

Web Banner Tip #1 – Nothing beats a good eye-catching punch line

When thinking of the copy for a banner; you need to spend a lot of time in creating a catchy phrase, something that will arouse the interest of the viewers and entice them to click on the banner. The punch line should be a small phrase, just a few words and should be visually appealing (correct usage of colors and fonts).

Web Banner Tip #2 – Good copy

A successful banner has excellent copy. Be sure to spend ample time thinking about what would interest the surfer. Another rule of thumb for good copy is to keep it short and simple. The text should support the banner punch line and should be informative and practical, making the viewer curious or bringing out a smile. Preferably, the copy should end with the same catchy phrase as on your web site unless the banner punch line is the same.

Web Banner Tip #3 – Relevant content in banners – not XXX

Make sure that the pictures displayed in the banner are relevant to the products/services you are offering on your site. A woman in a skimpy bikini would surely attract the attention of male surfers and get a click but, if your site sells electronic goods, the visitor is sure to leave your site before making a purchase. You, thus, end up with high-click thru and negligible sales.

Web Banner Tip #4 – Including logo and web site URL in banners

If your ad campaign is a brand building exercise, it is advisable to include BOTH the logo and the web site address in the banner. For other types of banners, you might like to include the two, but make sure that they don’t dilute the banner punch line or the copy. In such cases, it’s best to keep the logo and the URL together either on the right or the left side of the banner. The logo should be made small and the URL can be displayed in a very small font size.

Web Banner Tip #5 – clichés work!

Statistics show that the best call to action on a web banner is the trite phrase “Click here”. Its very presence increases the click-thru rate. The phrase should be displayed long enough (2-3 seconds), preferably in the last frame of an animated banner and can itself be animated – made to blink or change color.

Web Banner Tip #6 – Web banner file size

Keep the banner file size to a minimum. The reason is simple. Since banners are generally displayed at the top of web pages, they should load before the visitor has a chance to scroll down grabbing immediately. However, decreasing the file size of banners leads to tradeoffs in animation and the number of colors used (in animated GIF banners).

Take a look at 2 animated GIF banners I have created – Click here. Both banners have a lot of animation, as depicted by the number of frames, but the file sizes small. This is because we have optimized the banners, specially the number of colors used.

Banner file size depends several factors like the length of the animation (in case of Flash), the amount of animation, physical size of the banner etc.
To know more on how to compress and optimize images click on one of the links below:

• Optimizing GIFs
• Optimizing JPGs
• The GIF compression algorithm
• The JPG compression algorithm
• When to use gifs and when to use jpgs

Web Banner Tip #7 – How long should an animated banner run?

Studies have shown that a typical web surfer spends less than 10 seconds looking at the top of a web page. Thus, a web banner has to display all its content in this time. The call to action, which would usually be in the last frame of an animated banner, should be displayed within this time frame, else the banner loses its efficacy.

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