Tips to create banners that make people rush to your website

The internet world has made banner advertising a popular and widespread form of advertising where practically all the websites have one or the other form of banner advertising on it. Though it is thought that the effectiveness of banner advertising on the web has declined, there are many tips, which if followed, prove to make people rush to your website!

People have no time to wait. So make sure the banner ad uses only a small file. This is because a large. gif or. jpg file takes a few seconds to download, wherein the visitor may have either left the page or just scrolled down the page without seeing the banner. And if people don’t see your banner, they are sure not going to click on it! So make it a point to restrict your file size to below 10K or 15K;it may be difficult, but where there is a will, there is a way! Make it a point to have a call to action on your banner. This means having the words ‘click here’ or ‘sign up now’, where you guide the user to click on the banner. The main reason this has to be included is that people are so used to off-line advertising where people just see banners, without having to do anything. They are usually not aware that they have to click on the banner to find out more! So make it a point to have a call to action on your banner ad to improve the effectiveness of the banner.

People are always more attracted by moving elements in a banner. As the whole idea of banner advertising is to grab the attention of the reader, using small animation in the banner is sure to achieve this. However, make it small because if the file for the animation is large, then its downloading time will be long. This tries on the patience of the web user and may annoy them. When annoyed, they may also just leave without clicking on the banner. The incorporation of some sort of fake element in the banner also makes the banner successful. There are many fake elements’ banner designers can use like fake scroll bars, fake text boxes and fake submits buttons. When using fake elements, the web user think that they are clicking on a link to another page when clicking on a fake scroll bar, when in reality, they are actually clicking on a banner with a picture of a button and text link.

When designing the banner, use bright colors like blue, green and yellow as they have a higher CTR than black and white banners. The color red should be used sparingly. It is quite advisable using the word “free” in the banner as you are bound to get more clicks this way. Of course, you should decide on this free offer, according to the object of the banner ad. Show the reader that clicking on the banner will prove to be beneficial to him or her. You could place questions like ‘do you want more traffic’ or ‘need help with taxes’ in the banner, wherein the answer is found on your website. People don’t have the patience to read long banners; so keep them short. When people click on a banner, they want to go directly to the web page to find the information they want. They don’t have the patience to end up on the home page to go hunting for the required information.

Another important point to be remembered about banner advertising is to place the banner on sites that target for your target audience. This means, that if you have a banner for a new golf club, it is of no use placing it on a site dedicated to software. Visitors to this site will not be interested in the banner, thus leading to no clicks on the banner, and thus a waste of your money. Emphasize the benefits of your product, and not it’s features, as this is what interests a visitor more. It is always better to test your banners by designing several banners using different styles and messages. Run each banner for a week or two, and collect data on its click through rates. Then analyze the data to determine what is common among the successful banners. You can then refine your banner ad accordingly and test them again.

Use all these tips in your next banner ad, and you are bound to find some improvements in its popularity with more people rushing to visit your site!

Increase website traffic starting today

To fully integrate the Internet, Business and Profit into a successful model you will need another component: Traffic. Almost every article about making a website successful includes the importance of generating traffic.

We all know that at the core of it all traffic is the most essential thing to an internet based business' success. Aside from ensuring that you have a great product to sell, and you have your business’s internal organization, like product distribution, well taken care of, it would be time to get to the heart of things, generating website visitors.

If you already have a site and you think that you're not getting the traffic that expect or need, then it's time to reconsider where you’ve been focusing your resources. To be successful in this very competitive business, you always have to be a step ahead of your competition and increasing your flow of potential customers should probably have started yesterday.

It's an old adage but it still holds true: Timing IS everything. With generating traffic, you should always be on your toes and be a day ahead of everyone. Never think of tomorrow as a starting point, think of today as the day. Ideally it should have been yesterday.

To help you out in generating more traffic for your site, here are seven surefire ways to start increasing it starting today.

1) Optimize your website around proper keywords or keyword phrases.

For most websites the highest volume of traffic will come from search engines. The higher your website appears on results pages the more likely you will see increased visitors. Selecting and using the right keyword for your website is a key component to search engine optimization.

2) Invest in good advertising with Search Engines.

Google’s Adwords and Yahoo’s Search Marketing programs provide great advertising opportunities that can generate highly targeted traffic. Although this is an excellent way to jumpstart your traffic it does cost money. While some website owners shy away from spending money to increase traffic, it is important that you at least consider it. Consider getting professional assistance. When done correctly, search engine marketing can be very cost effective. When done poorly it can just be very costly.

3) Build one-way and reciprocal links to your website.

Links to your site have a two-fold value. First, they provide ways for people to find your website as they visit related websites. Second, they help boost the importance of your website's pages in search engines like Google and Yahoo!. Consider requesting link exchanges with other websites that have similar (but not competing) content. Also, look for opportunities to build one-way links like leaving comments on other websites and blogs.

4) Use Viral Marketing.

Viral marketing allows you to spread the word about your company and product for little or relatively low costs. This is a marketing method that can be quite effective; you can attach your company’s name, product or link to media such as a funny video, an entertaining game, an interesting article or something that will create ‘buzz.’ The goal is to get people interested enough to pass the content, and your link, to others. If done correctly you can create a virtual army of people willing to promote your business.

5) Join forums and online communities and become an active participant.

Look for forums that are relevant to your products, services or expertise. Review existing comments and offer insightful reviews, comments or assistance. Again, this builds your expert status and provides another great opportunity to include a link to your website in your signature.

6) Write and publish relevant articles.

Submit original articles that are highly relevant to your website's content to highly ranked article distribution sites like EzineArticles or Article Dashboard. For instance, if you sell animal toys write articles about how to select the right toys for your dog. Use the resource box to include a description of your site or services and most importantly, include a link to your website. Articles not only provide links back to your website (see method 2) but also help establish you as an expert in your field.

7) Lastly, produce newsletters or e-zines.

Newsletters can be an invaluable way to get leads of potential customers and provide a way to turn those leads into loyal customers. By offering newsletters that contain valuable, unique content you can attract subscribers who are interested in what you're offering. If they find the information valuable they are more likely to turn to your website when they need a product or service.

There are many other ways to generate website but these are surefire ways that you can use to get started today. You only have customers to lose by not getting started now.