Display advertising – a form of paid advertising – is one of the most popular forms of online marketing. By placing ads on websites and other digital platforms, companies can target specific audiences with tailored content.
A type of online advertising that combines text, images, and a URL that links to a website where customers can learn more about products or purchase them. There are many ad formats. These ads can be static with a single image or animated with multiple images, videos, or changing text (also called rich media ads).
An advertising campaign can pursue different goals. Some display ads provide information about the product, while others aim to entertain and engage through simple games or puzzles. Banner advertising is a common form of display advertising, frequently used for awareness campaigns.
Digital advertising is changing the face of the marketing industry. To remain competitive in this evolving market, you need to master digital marketing in all its forms. One of the easiest ways to start is with display advertising.
Display ads vary significantly in terms of target audience and functionality. Below is an overview of the different display ad options and their features.
Most display ads you see today are remarketing ads, also known as retargeting ads. Thanks to the trend toward ad personalization, retargeting campaigns are now widespread.
According to Accenture Interactive, 91% of consumers prefer to buy from brands that remember their interests and make offers tailored to their needs. Retargeting ads do exactly that, and they're easy for brands to implement. Here's how they work.
A dynamic remarketing campaign is an effective way to keep your brand present in the minds of customers who have already shown interest in your offer.
Google considers remarketing a subcategory of personalized advertising, which can be effective if you segment your audience to provide a better user experience. Personalized ads target consumers based on demographics and the interests they have shown online.
You can even create ads that display personalized product recommendations based on users' recent interactions with your website.
In addition to remarketing, Google offers four different types of personalized ads. Each of these takes into account general user behavior and preferences, rather than interactions with a specific brand, as a targeting option.
With affinity targeting, your ads are shown to consumers who have demonstrated an active interest in your market. These affinity groups can be relatively broad, such as "car enthusiasts" or "film lovers," allowing you to reach a large number of people.
With smaller, custom affinity groups like "long-distance runners" and "orchid growers," you can more precisely define the interests you want to target. Keep in mind that narrower groups will reach a smaller audience.
Custom intent and in-market ads target consumers who are actively searching for products or services like yours. They reach fewer people than affinity or custom affinity targeting, but those who see your ad are closer to making a purchase.
Similar audience ads target people whose interests or characteristics match those of your current visitors. To create lists of new, but similar, audiences, Google compares the profiles of people on your remarketing lists with those of other users and then identifies commonalities.
Instead of targeting your ads based on user profiles, contextual ads are displayed on websites according to specific criteria, including:
You can leave these decisions to Google or play an active role yourself by focusing on specific topics.
Google lets you choose from a list of topics and target your ad to the relevant pages on the Display Network or YouTube. You can also specifically exclude topics that are underperforming or irrelevant to your message.
Topic targeting is very similar to affinity targeting, except that your ads are matched with websites rather than users.
If you want to choose the websites where your ad will appear, targeted website placement is the best solution. You can select entire websites or individual pages within websites.
You can even combine placement targeting with contextual targeting. With this approach, you select a website and let Google choose the most relevant pages for your ad.
No form of advertising is ideal for every business. Before deciding for or against display ads, you should weigh the pros and cons.
Unlike native ads, which mimic editorial content, display ads are clearly advertising. While this means they are sometimes ignored on principle, it also means that the audience immediately recognizes that they are seeing a message from your brand.
Most display ads are based on visuals, not text. Your audience doesn't have to read through an article or infographic to get to your brand message, as is the case with content marketing or native ads. Even if people scroll past these messages, they still leave an impression.
Compared to other forms of digital advertising, display ads do not require complex integration with publisher websites. They can be placed on almost any website that is part of the participating advertising network without requiring extensive technical expertise.
A well-planned digital advertising campaign can help you reach your target audience at every stage of the decision-making process, from awareness of a need to readiness to purchase. All you need is knowledge of targeting methods.
For example, if you sell household appliances, you could run targeted ads to reach people who have searched for new stove or washing machine models. You could then cast a wider net by placing a contextual ad on home improvement sites, real estate blogs, or even parenting forums.
Although relatively few people click on display ads, they allow you to reach the largest segment of your target market. Their reach is just as extensive as traditional advertising, but less intrusive. A display ad is far less disruptive than a TV or radio commercial, especially when linked to relevant content.
Consumers today believe that advertising is more frequent and intrusive than before. Overt advertising bothers many people, and when they are annoyed by online advertising, they often use ad-blocking software so they don't see it at all.
Display ads are a common advertising medium in online marketing. They are designed to convey your message as quickly and easily as possible, but their brevity can be a disadvantage. For example, they often don't provide enough information to fully convince the user.
Venture capitalist Gilad de Vries has found that display ads are most effective when they lead viewers to longer content, such as a landing page with more details about the advertised product or service. While display advertising is useful, it's probably not the true powerhouse of your marketing strategy.
Click-through rates for banner ads average around 0,1%, which is lower than for many other forms of online advertising. This generally leads to lower conversion rates.
Most people see banner ads early in their purchasing decision, which is why they are best used as part of a long-term marketing plan. Your display ads can pique a potential customer's interest and prepare them for later, more in-depth content.
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