How to Increase Click Through Rate on Your Display Ads
If your read my last post, learning how to increase click through rate for your banner ads is something that may be of interest. With the industry average CTR hovering around 0.1%, display advertising can be a serious waste of money. But, don’t fret! Here are five ways to help your display ads achieve above average CTRs and drive traffic.
How to Increase Click Through Rate
- Keep Your Ad Above the Fold
The location of your display ad on a publication’s site can have a major impact on the amount of clicks you receive. In fact, ads above the fold have been found to have up to a 36% higher click through rate than those below the fold. - Stand Out From the Page
The purpose of a display ad is to attract attention. But, if your ad blends in with the page on which it’s being displayed, it won’t get much attention at all. Avoid this pitfall by considering the design of the site you’re advertising on as you build your creative.
Amy Schumer’s movie may not be gaming related, but this ad is an excellent example of how to increase click through rate by designing creative to stand out. As a viewer, your eyes are drawn to this ad even before the content of the site!
- Choose Wide over Tall Ad Sizes
There is a reason Google recommends wider banner ad formats over their taller counterparts. These formats are more “reader friendly,” and therefore garner more clicks. When choosing between standard ad sizes, opt for 300 x 250, 728 x 90 and 300 x 600 sizes for PC and 320 x 100 for mobile when possible. - Add a Call-to-Action Button
While it may seem crazy, simply adding a call-to-action button to your display ad can dramatically increase your CTR. That’s why companies like Blizzard always add “Play Free,” “Learn More,” etc. buttons to its ads. For more tips on how to optimize your CTA button, visit my post on CTA button tests.
Blizzard uses a “Play Free” CTA button to drive more clicks.
- Use Rich Media Over Static Images
It’s a known fact that movies are more engaging than photos, so it makes sense that rich media ads (animated GIFs, Flash files, etc.) are more effective than static banners. This is especially evident when one compares rich media’s average CTR of 0.44% to the 0.1% average CTR of static banners.
4 Comments
Decayed Games
about 9 years agoHey Emmy, thanks for this. How would these differ if we were talking facebook ads instead of ads for a website?
Emmy
about 9 years agoHi there! Thanks for the comment and great question. Because of options Facebook gives you to set up an ad (i.e., you can't just build a 300 x 250 and upload -- you must adhere to Facebook's ad manager platform), there are definitely different best practices. I haven't written a blog post on this topic for Indie Game Girl, however, HubSpot has an excellent post on the topic, as well as a free eBook. I would suggest checking both out here. Hope that helps!
Cedric Markwatson
about 9 years agoCTR plays a vital role in any online ads. If you don't know how to increase CTR, it means you are waiting both money or time. In this post, Emma, you have mentioned all points very clearly that can be understood by layman quickly. Thanks for sharing your experience with all of us.