Web banners also called Banner ads are everywhere on the internet. You see them when you visit different blogs and websites but might hardly notice them. They aren’t only useful for websites to function effectively, they are also important for adverts and promotions of products and services.

Like any other graphic design, web banners have to be compelling with attractive and fancy designs that fit the trend. Also, another essential factor to consider when creating a web banner is which size to you. Web Banner Sizes can have a major effect on how effective your display advertising works – the impressions, the click-through rate, and other bottom-line results

If you want to find out which banner size is suitable for your marketing goals, this article will show you all about effective website banner sizes and how to choose a website banner size that will increase your profits.

What is a web banner?

Web banners (banner ads) come in two shapes – squares or rectangles. They are graphics embedded on a website (host) with the intention of attracting traffic to another website (advertiser). They contain the logo, message, slogan, and symbols of the advertiser placed on strategic, attention-grabbing positions on the host’s website. It uses text, images, and multimedia objects to promote the advertiser’s brand, products, services, and special offers.

Website and blog owners can make money by selling banner spaces on their websites, allowing the advertiser to increase its visibility to the website’s/blog visitors. Web banners are often displayed on website headers, footers, sidebars, or between content. Online banner ads can be static or animated depending on media and user intent.

Banner ads have been existing for over two decades. In fact, they were some of the first forms of online advertising that surfaced on the internet. Yet, digital advertisers have a love-hate relationship with them. While some find them intrusive, others find them compelling. Check out some YouTube banner ideas.

Love them or hate them, they still play an important role in advertising.

Why is it important?

Web banners are powerful for increasing traffic to a website by linking them to another website, and when the placement is done correctly, there’s a high chance the visitors will be interested in the product or offer. They are also effective for creating brand awareness or product awareness.

Some of the benefits of banner ads include:

• Increase brand visibility: banner ads are instantly noticed on any website. Interestingly, because the brand logo, product, and offers they show will often appear at different places and periods, they become easily recognized especially when designed effectively. So, you can easily use them to increase your brand visibility and awareness by using this ad format.
• Increase sales: web banners have great potential to get you more sales. When placed on the appropriate section of the website and in the appropriate size, customers will get attracted enough to click through to make a purchase. Even if they don’t purchase you can still have their data for retargeting.
• Create a sense of urgency: When you place a mouth-watering offer or irresistible product discount on your ads accompanied by time-sensitive graphics such as a countdown clock, a large number of website visitors will rush to click through your ads.
• Gather prospect data: Website banners are effective in building a list of potential customers. These ads can help you identify those who are interested in your product or service, those who made a purchase, and those who haven’t. With this information, you can create a list of prospects.
• Cut down ad cost:  unlike other ad forms like social media campaigns, TV ads, newspaper ads, or press releases, banner ads are cost-effective and easy to set up. All you need is to contact a web banner design agency with your requirements and you’re good to go.
• Create more memorable ads: unlike static image ads,the flexibility banner ads offer allows you to create ads that leave a memorable impression on website visitors. You can add animations, slideshows, or streaming media to your web banners to create more captivating ads.
• Measure your ads effectively: web banners allow you to track the number of people who saw your ads (impressions) and click-through rate (engagement). This information will help you figure out how effective your banner is, what to improve, and what to change.

Now you know that website banner are powerful for advertising your brand, products, and offers to customers. You stand a better chance of increasing your brand awareness with as many impressions banner ads gather. But all these depend on using the right web banner sizes

Why do you need the right web banner sizes?

In design and advertising, using the right size is important to how your ads perform and get the best results.

The effectiveness of display advertisement is also heavily reliant on choosing the right web banner size. However, not all sizes are equally effective. When creating your web banner, you have to bear in mind the purpose and the users. This will help you maximize impressions and click-through rates.

Although in reality, the difference in the sizes of display ads isn’t large, the banner size can affect how users see and interact with it. 

Google ad sizes, also known as Google banner ad sizes, are the several types of banner sizes suitable for AdSense- the network of Google websites. Google display network allows publishers to display a variety of different-sized ads on their site. Getting the right banner size increases your interaction efficiency- how many people click on the ad and how many are converted into customers. So the size of the banner ad plays an important role in helping you get the maximum results. That’s why Google has also given direction to the ad sizes will bring more impressions than others.

What are the most common banner ad sizes?

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has created standard web banner sizes which work across all advertising networks, including the Google Display Network (GDN)- which covers more than 2 million websites and reaches up to 90% of people in the world. These sizes are defined in pixels which refers to the smallest element of a digital image that can be changed.

Standard web banner sizes

Here are 18 of the popular web banner sizes:

1. Leaderboard – 728 x 90

2. Full banner – 468 x 60

3. Half banner ad – 234 x 60

4. Half-page ad – 300 x 600

5. Skyscraper – 120 x 600

6. Wide skyscraper – 160 x 600

7. Square popup – 250 x 250

8. Pop-under – 720 x 300

9. Square button – 125 x 125

10. Vertical banner – 120 x 240

11. Button 1 – 120 x 90

12. Button 2 – 120 x 60

13. Microbar – 88 x 21

14. Rectangle – 180 x 150

15. 3:1 Rectangle 300 x 100

16. Medium rectangle – 300 x 250

17. Vertical rectangle – 240 x 400

18. Large rectangle – 336 x 280

The above are common desktop website banner sizes. However, with the rise of mobile internet users, there are now other mobile banner ads that are smaller and fit for mobile users yet appear in similar positions as their desktop counterparts. Download your free banner templates at All Time Design.

Mobile ad Sizes include:

• Mobile leaderboard – 320 x 50

• Mobile banner large – 320 x 100

• Mobile full-page flex – 320 x 320

• Square – 250 x 250

• Small square – 200 x 200

Phew! That’s quite an exhaustive list of banner ads to pick from. Don’t fret. As earlier mentioned, not all banner ads are equally effective.

You’ll typically find the Leaderboard ad (728 x 90) on the top of a webpage above the main content. This is an eye-catching position. Because it has more ad inventory available from advertisers on Google, it can also increase your earnings if you have text and image enabled in your Google Adsense settings.

The rest of the ads, Large Rectangle (336 x 280), Half Page Banner (300 x 600), and Medium Banner (300 x 250) are also effective and are situated on the sidebar widget of a website or in the main content area. They also allow both text and image files.

Advertisers tend to use the Half-page ad (300 x 600) especially because it provides higher visibility due to its large size. It typically covers about half of the web page, making it suitable for increased engagement.

For mobile devices, the Large Mobile Banner (320 x 100) is the most effective because of its compact size.

Statistics show that only 4 banner ad sizes generate 89% of all web banner ad impressions:

• Medium Rectangle (300×250 pixel):

This banner size generates about 40%of all digital ad impressions. You’ll find this type of ad is mostly within web articles or blog posts. It is considered less intrusive than other ad sizes. Interestingly, it’s effective for both desktop and mobile applications. Because of its popularity, Google Display Network has created special requirements specifically for this sized ad, such as ensuring that website visitors are easily able to distinguish between content and advertising and making sure that there is a way for an individual to exit a page without having to click on the ad. Check out the guide to designing the website banner to boost sales.

• Leaderboard 728 × 90

The leaderboard 728 x 90 accounts for about 25% of all banner advertisements, the leaderboard is a horizontal banner typically displayed on the header or footer of a webpage. The ads that are featured at the header generally perform better than those located at the footer, since they’re often the first thing a user sees when arriving at the page.

• wide skyscraper 160 × 600

Also known as a standing banner, the wide skyscraper ad size comprises 12% of all banner advertisements. Although the rise of mobile apps is reducing the popularity of this ad format since it doesn’t translate well in those spaces. You’ll find these ad sizes on the sidebars of the web page.

Mobile Leaderboard 320 × 50 – 12%

The mobile leaderboard is the mobile counterpart of the leaderboard banner. You’ll find it either at the top or the bottom of a mobile website or app. This is the most used ad size for businesses that want to appeal to mobile users. And they do not occupy too much space compared to any other popular banner ads.

Now that you know the different web banner sizes and the standard banner sizes to consider when designing your own banner ad, there are some other key things to consider to get a high-performing banner ad.

Tips for designing a high-performing banner ad.

You can choose to design your web banner yourself, hire a professional designer, or use an online generator.

Whichever way you choose, don’t forget the following:

• Use visual hierarchy and balance

Banner ad design count on the visual balance of elements. Therefore, before finalizing a website banner size, consider these four basic elements.

1. your brand logo: your logo shouldn’t cover too much space, but it should take enough space to create awareness for your brand.
2. the value proposition- this should take up the most visual space because it’s what attracts users to the banner. It’ll include things like “Save $60”, “45% off,” and “Free Trial.”
3. Element of urgency: This would include a countdown timer or words like “NOW”, and “Ends in 6 days” and would be close to the CTA.
4. call-to-action: your CTA button invites users to click and should be placed strategically where viewers can easily notice. 

• Use the right web banner size

As we’ve said earlier, you cannot rule out the importance of the right web banner size for your ad.

According to Google Adsense, high-performing banner sizes in terms of click rates are — 728 × 90px  for Leaderboard, 300 × 600px for Half Page, 300 × 250px for Medium Rectangle, 336 × 280px for Large Rectangle and 320 × 100px for Large Mobile Banner.

• Keep the visuals and text simple but attractive

Regardless of the banner size, avoid stuffing your banner with too much content- images, slides, colors, and other elements. Simplicity is king.

Viewers only have a few seconds to look at your web banner. So, it’s important you stick to the most relevant content only. Keep the design simple and devoid of fancy elements. Use easy-to-read fonts and simple backgrounds.

• Use appropriate CTA buttons at appropriate places

Call-to-action buttons increase the CTR (click-through rate) of your ad. Design them using contrasting colors and strategically position them below or on the left side of your copy.

 Make sure to keep them consistent throughout the ads.

• Make sure the copy is clear

Clarity is non-negotiable in creating ads. You want your copy optimized with headlines and readable that wouldn’t run more than 4 lines. Consider using different sizes for your headline and body texts.

• Use animations

Unlike static web banners, animated banner ads are more eye-catching and engaging. But before using them, consider what goal you want to achieve. Then, keep the animations simple with your message properly placed. 

• Use the right file size 

Google AdWords recommended a maximum of 150 Kb for web banners. This is to ensure that ads load quickly. You want your banner to be below this size so that it can load fast before viewers scroll past it. Also, avoid flash banners because of their very slow load time. 

• Choose the right section for your ad placement

Just like we noted earlier, the top of websites or in-between content is the best place to showcase your banners and get more engagement.

Conclusion

Display advertising- web banners- is important for businesses today, brick-and-mortar or online businesses. And choosing the right banner ad size is crucial to the success of your banner ad.

Before you begin to create web banners, we recommend looking through forum sites or searching for sites in your industry that use AdSense. Check which formats they are using. Specific industries will use different banner sizes depending on the web theme. This means that one niche may prefer to use a rectangle, while another prefers a square or wide skyscraper.

Understanding your industry and the ad sizes is crucial if you want to make the most of your campaign.

To ace your display advertising, it’s advisable to reach out to a professional design agency that knows what they’re doing. They know all the most effective web banner sizes and the elements that can set you up for success.

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