CREATION: Advertisers rely on new ad sizes: report

<p>Although 80 per cent of online advertisers use the full banner in </p><p>online campaigns, other ad formats account for a majority of impressions </p><p>and garner far greater exposure on the Web, according to a report by </p><p>AdRelevance. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The report found that most advertisers relied on buttons (short, micro, </p><p>medium and tall) and that different sized banners (half, short and </p><p>vertical) make up 63 per cent of all online ad impressions, while </p><p>standard banners account for only 37 per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"While the ubiquitous full banner continues to dominate when we look at </p><p>the percentage of advertisers using it and sites supporting it, it's </p><p>interesting to note that advertisers are increasingly relying on other </p><p>ad sizes and formats in their online campaigns," said the report. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The latest AdRelevance data shows that the smaller ad elements, such as </p><p>micro buttons, short buttons and short banners, are garnering more </p><p>exposure than the standard banner. While advertisers are creating more </p><p>full banner than other types, the other ads account for the majority of </p><p>impressions." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The report added that not all industries had the same technological </p><p>needs, particularly when it came to animation. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The automotive industry, for example, used image ads, while the </p><p>business-to-business (B2B) industry relied on form ads more than other </p><p>industries. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"It appears that while sites are making efforts to accommodate newer ad </p><p>technologies, advertisers remain grounded in the old standard - simple </p><p>animation and images. Although rich media is out there and growing, it </p><p>has yet to surpass the popularity of animated Gifs and Jpeg images. As </p><p>broadband and other high-speed connection solutions become more readily </p><p>available and online ad technologies mature, however, expect rich media </p><p>to be a cornerstone of all ads." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In another report, AdRelevance found the majority of online advertising </p><p>ads and impressions were geared towards branding. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The study found banner ads, in terms of positioning, awareness and </p><p>feature/benefit accounted for 63 per cent of all online ad units, and 54 </p><p>per cent of all impressions. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It also said that within branding categories, ads that generated </p><p>awareness garnered the most impressions at 33 per cent, followed by ads </p><p>positioning the brand at 20 per cent, and ads promoting benefits of a </p><p>brand at just one per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Among direct marketing ads, those driving traffic or 28 per cent of all </p><p>impressions were more prevalent than ads driving sales at 17 per </p><p>cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The report also noted that industries leading branding were: </p><p>entertainment, (where 73 per cent of industry impressions were devoted </p><p>to branding); hardware and electronics (83 per cent); retail (64 per </p><p>cent); Web media (63 per cent); automotive (56 per cent) and travel (54 </p><p>per cent). </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Meanwhile, industries focused more on direct marketing included telecom </p><p>(72 per cent of industry impressions devoted to direct marketing); </p><p>financial services (60 per cent), consumer goods (61 per cent) and B2B </p><p>(54 per cent). </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Online advertising is no longer about click-throughs. Although industry </p><p>and financial analysts have relied on click-through rates to gauge the </p><p>effectiveness of online ad campaigns, the market has finally realised </p><p>that click-throughs is not an appropriate metric for brand-oriented </p><p>ads," said the report. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Leading advertisers have already drifted away from the click-through </p><p>mentality of pure direct response marketing, as AdRelevance data shows </p><p>that a full 63 per cent of ads are banner-oriented. As streaming and </p><p>rich media come more into play, the Internet will increasingly function </p><p>more like a traditional branding medium - making advertising on the Web </p><p>more appealing to all, especially traditional companies who have </p><p>mastered offline brand management strategies." </p><p><BR><BR> </p>