Attractive, appropriate, attention-getting banners are one of the keys to a successful online campaign. In this tutorial, I'll explain how to design banners using graphic tools like Photoshop or Paintshop Pro . We'll spice things up by using animated GIFs , and rich media like Java , Shockwave and HTML banners. An ad banner can be a graphic image, a snippet of HTML, or a file created with an interactive technology such as Java, Shockwave or Flash. Whatever tools you use to design your banner, start by defining what you want the banner to accomplish.
Many advertisers see the banner's sole function as enticing the Web surfer to click on it.
You could create a banner that offers free beer, and you would probably get phenomenal clickthrough. Unless you really are giving away free beer, however, this isn't going to generate any business. Media buyers hate to admit it, but banners also serve another important purpose - building brand awareness. Joe Surfer may not click on your banner, but if he sees it enough times that your company name is drilled into his head, and thinks of you at some later time when he's in a shopping mode, then your banner is a success. Designing a banner to build awareness, however, is different than designing for maximum clickthroughs.