Banner Advertising
Perhaps the most common and well-known form of online advertising, banner advertising or banner ads allow the marketer to purchase 'online billboards' on popular or relevant sites in order to show a promotional message. The ads are typically a standard size, contain text and images and are presented in a jpeg, gif or Flash format. The main challenge associated with banner advertising is a low response rate to the advertisement. Because the majority of sites feature several banner ads on a single page, attracting a consumer's attention and initiating a click can be a difficult process. Recently, enhanced targeting methods have begun to improve the low click through rates (CTR) typical of banner ads. Refer to the next section
for more information on targeting.
SEM
Search engine marketing or SEM, is another popular form of online advertising that involves purchasing sponsored links for certain search engine keywords. As a user searches for a purchased keyword or phrase, an additional listing displaying a marketing message is displayed above or to the side of the regular or natural search results. Part of the benefit of SEM is that the consumer is actively searching for your keyword and in theory, is already interested in your product or location. While a SEM advertising campaign does feature several benefits, it can be an expensive and time-consuming project for a small marketing budget. Additionally, businesses should focus on optimizing their search engine optimization (SEO) campaign to enhance rankings in natural search results, rather than rely solely on SEM.
Email Marketing
An email marketing campaign is a cost-effective and direct way to market and communicate with consumers who have already shown an interest in your product or location. Building an email database including users who have agreed and expressly consented to receiving your marketing messages is not only a solid approach, but it is also a requirement of federal law under the CAN-SPAM act. When creating an email marketing campaign pay close attention to the design, distribution and effectiveness of each email.
Sponsorships
Similar to, and in most cases including, banner advertising, online sponsorships commonly offer the ability to integrate your content or marketing message into another website. A typical sponsorship package could include several banners, locations for copy inclusion and links to the marketer's website. For example, a local CVB could sponsor the weather section of a local newspaper's website in exchange for banner ad placement and the opportunity to talk about (through copy) what local attractions you can experience during sunny days.
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