Banner Ads Types and Basics

Banner ads or web banners typically are graphical advertisements, which are displayed within a web page. A central ad server generally delivers these. To incorporate forms, buttons, animations, audio, video or other interactive elements and programs banner ads can use the rich media. Different types of banner ads are as follows:

• Frame ads: These are the first form of web banners. These are often called as traditional frame ads. These ads are incorporate by the website publishers by setting aside a particular space on website's page.

• Pop ads: There are two types of pop ads, pop-ups and pop-under. Both ads are open or displayed in a separate new window of the user's web browser. The pop up ads are displayed in a new window of the web browser that opens above the browser. Pop under ads opens under the web browser of the user's main windows.

• Floating ads: The floating ad is also called as overlay ad. It is a rich media type of ad. Over the requested site's content, it appears superimposed. After the preset time period floating ads may become less obtrusive or disappear.

• Expanding ads: is a rich media frame. It changes the dimensions based on a predefined condition like, a predetermined amount of time that a visitor spends on a web page, or the user's mouse movement over the ad, or the user's click on the ad. The expanding ads allow to fit more information into the restricted ad space by the advertiser.

• Interstitial ads: The interstitial ads displays while the user is waiting for the loading of the content or sometimes before the user access the requested content. These are a form of interruption marketing.

• Trick banner ads: The trick banner ads are a type of banner ads which ad copy imitates any screen element that users normally encounter. These are like as a popular application message or an operating system's message. These ads are designed with a view to induce ad clicks. In the initial ad, trick banner ads do not mention anything about the advertiser, so there are form of bait and switch. With the trick banner ads higher than the average click through rate (CTR) is possible, but for deceiving users may resent the advertiser.

The banner ads even come in a different sizes and shapes like print ads. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) specifies eight banner sizes based on pixel dimensions. Those are micro button 88 x 31 pixels, button 1 with 120 x 90 pixels, button 2 with 120 x 60 pixels, square button 125 x 125 pixels, vertical banner 120 x 240 pixels, half banner 234 x 60 pixels, full banner with vertical navigation bar 392 x 72 pixels, and full banner 486 x 60 pixels.