If your potential customers are likely to be using the Internet on a regular basis, it's worth looking at how you can attract them by advertising on the web. There are several online advertising methods you can use - some of which are more expensive than others, and some more effective. Popular types of online advertising include:
1. Pay per click - Search engines place your website on their front page and you pay a set amount per click-through. Sites like Overture also run bids for certain keywords - the more you bid, the higher your site appears on the first page of the search results. Properly run, these campaigns can bring a lot of extra traffic to your website. Follow this Pay Per Click link to see how the Web Marketing Group can help.
2. Search engine optimisation - This is an online advertising service provided by many web media companies. They will look at your target audience, your competitors and the keywords for your business and optimise your website content so that it has a much better chance of appearing on the first page of the search results. You will pay a fee to the consultants for this service. Studies have shown that many searchers prefer to use the "natural" listings provided by the search engines, rather than the paid-for listings. Find out more about our SEO products
3. Banner adverts - Usually horizontal bars across the top of a web page, they offer colour, graphics and often animation, together with the ability to click through to the advertiser's own website. Banner adverts have been reducing in popularity lately, as research shows that users don't stay interested for long enough to read all the animation, although static ads with a simple message are still effective.
4. Sky-scraper adverts - Similar to banner ads, these advert spaces run vertically down the left or right hand side of the page, allowing the advert to stay in view as the user scrolls down the page. They can also be animated and employ click-through to move users to the advertiser's site. As they are larger spaces, sky-scraper adverts are more expensive than banner adverts.
5. Sponsorships - Website sponsorship can come in two formats; regular sponsorship where the advertiser has a space to place the logo and company message, and content sponsorship where the advertiser has limited control and submits their own content to the site as well as having an advert on the page. These sponsorships will be for fixed periods, and need to be on targeted websites to reach the right audience.
6. Online directories - The online equivalent of Yellow Pages, or Industry Directories, these give you basic or enhanced listings on the website. Your details will come up if your sector, location or company name is searched for. Enhanced listings will allow users to click-through to your site. Online directory listings are often offered in conjunction with an entry in the printed version of the directory.
7. Pop-ups and pop-downs - These are the small windows that appear when you first get onto a website. Pop-ups appear on your screen in full, pop-downs appear on the bar at the bottom of your screen and you have to open them to get rid of them. Surveys have found that most Internet users find pop-up adverts intrusive and annoying.
8. Interstitial adverts - these adverts, sometimes referred to as Bridge Adverts, pop up as you move between pages on a site. You have no choice as to whether you view them or not, although you can close them down. Research has shown that click-throughs to advertisers' sites from interstitial adverts is greater than from banner adverts or traditional pop-up ads.
So, with more ways than ever to reach potential customers via the Internet, it's important to make sure that you adopt the best online marketing mix. Since 2000, our unique WebTrafficker solution has taken the risk element out of online advertising strategy to provide online competitive advantages and serious return on investment to a range of clients - large and small. Talk to The Web Marketing Group today and discover how we can help your business.
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