Article Surfing Archive

To create your own great banner, you only need five (5) simple things:

1. Size according to standards. Always keep to the standards. Having a bold, huge banner would look good and attract more attention than any graphic design ever would. Nevertheless, if everybody is doing it, what would be different about you then? As one designer have said: "I know that if your ad is slightly larger it may get more attention but if we all start doing this where will it stop." Sticking to the standards is quite the norm. Some sites would even require you to create your banner according to the regular standards of. So it is still better to design your banner this way than to revise it later on.

2. Great content equals great banner. Aside from a great graphic design, your banner should also have content that equals your banner. This must be short, simple, and very direct- something that captures your objective and purpose. Most of all, it should be able to catch attention.

Banner ad contents are made to be direct and short because there is simply not much room for a lengthy discussion of the information you want to get across. In addition, not everyone would want to read or try to read what you have written in there. So keep it at a minimum. Don't over-indulge. Get the help of your friends and family to come up with what it is you want to say, but in a few words. You might even create a special saying that you could use to identify you from the others in your field.

3. Color and animation that match. Your website should have color and animation that match in all the pages. The colors should be eye catching and easy to look at, while graphic design animation should be made simple and short for easy download. No matter how animated and catchy your banner, it would be lost to someone who has already clicked off the page before it could even be started. Just make sure that your ad downloads quickly on an accelerated connection. And always assume that different people have different connections. Some may have DSL; others may have a slower provider. Whatever it is, make sure that your download time is reasonable.

4. A call that produces action. Contrary to popular belief, people are still highly susceptible to suggestions, and that according to studies, call to action words still work. So try to integrate call-to-action-words like "call now", "click here", or even "buy now". This would help you convert your site to income and fast return of investments.

5. Critique from family and friends. A web designer once said that the best place to sample your web site would be your family and friends. They would be able to give you a positive or negative feedback just because they are the ones who would want you to succeed. Also, they wouldn't be shy to tell you outright if you're banner stinks. So go ahead and employ your lovedones to critique your design. It's free anyway.