#HumanizingDesigns: 13 Ways of Personalizing Banner Ads for Upholding Customers Loyalty

By Aamina Suleman , Mar 2 2016
Humanizing Web Banner Ads

Feature Image Source: Freepik

In the article In Defense of Banner Ads on Co.Design, it’s stated that “A common critique of banner ads is that they aren’t particularly effective: just 0.08% of all banner ads shown get clicked on.” Thus designers and copywriters need to find interactive, immersive and expressive ways to engage users.

Don’t undermine banner ads due to the size. It’s got enough power to distract people from other things and attract them towards your brand. So cherish its abilities, and make use of its strengths.

With the web, brands have yet another means to connect with their customers no matter where they are. As long as they have a portable device and internet, you can reach your target market within seconds. Also Samantha Gluck in Time-based Banner Ads Part 1 says “A well-designed banner ad builds brand awareness, creates new leads and increases sales and traffic to the business website.”

But it’s not all about reaching strangers and converting them to customers. It’s also about delivering quality content. You need to create ads that target your target market’s emotions and convince them to buy your product.

Wondering how can you do this? Simple. Just note that it’s important to humanize your web-based designs by focusing on user-experience and human interest. Your web banner ads should mentally and emotionally connect with your customers. The web has given us many opportunities to do this challenging yet fruitful task. In this case, I have highlighted ways to create distinctive, interesting, and personalized banner ads.

Avoid Brand Bragging

Many brands excessively advertise their good points. It’s needed but in order to personalize the design, web banner ads should highlight customers more than the brand. Focus your attention on designing banner ads for the customers because they’re the fuel your business runs on. Charity organizations like UNICEF do it well, they on how their target audience can make a difference. The power they hold to change something.

Avoid Brand Bragging
Image Source: UNICEF

Cling On To Consumers

Unless you have an exciting promotional offer, don’t bother mentioning about money if nothing is off. People like sales, discounts and deals. It’s human instinct. So figure out what is it that’ll excite your target market.

Make A Connection

Understand your niche — find out what stimulates them. It’s crucial to know what your consumers like, dislike, love or hate. Research about the preferences of your target market and then aim. You can also connect with audience by targeting their emotions.

Humor is also a great way to get noticed.

ipod
Image Source: Ads of the World

Study Color Psychology

Colors help create moods, and thus studying the meanings and uses of colors will help you to design better ads. One’s that clings on to customers and urge them to respond.

Define Product Usability

Visually showing how the product or service can be used by customers, increases the chances of the ad getting noticed and clicked upon. You need to drive traffic to your website, but in doing so you need to clasp human interest.

Optical Zoom Olympus
Image Source: Adam Taylor Photography

Follow A Theme

When a holiday or special day pops up, make sure you make theme-based banner ads. This way you can participate in the festivity, derive emotions and make your customers click on your advertisement.


Image Source:Freepik

Use Suitable Font

Typography is a great way to grab attention in print media and online. For this you need to select expressive and impressive fonts that engage users. Also, keep yourself updated about latest typography trends to stay contemporary. For example, a wedding planner banner ad with a swirly typeface will match the occasion.

Customize Call to Action

Click here, click right now, and try it— all these are examples of self-centered and boring calls to action. Why should anyone bother clicking on this button? In order to personalize banner ads to retain customer loyalty, you need to be more creative. Call to action words are trending but they need to be unique, not cliché.

flashtalking
Image Source: Bannersnack blog/ Robert Katai

Adjustable Designs

Make responsive banner ads. As in design web banner ads that adjust to the screen size of mobiles, tablets and laptops. This way a user with a portable device will also be able to see your ad clearly. The various sizes of web banner ads give you leverage, and personalizes user experience.

Standard web banner ad sizes
Image Source: Wikipedia

Localize Your Adverts

95% of Mobile Searches are local. You can use this insight to make banner ads that have a “local” aspect in them. Hence, Such a feature defines the proximity of a business to its customers. Ott Niggulis in How to Use Personalized Content and Behavioral Targeting For Improved Conversions makes us aware that “location targeting more than doubles performance of mobile ads”. Adding the name of the city or state makes a banner ad more local.

USHCC
Image Source: USHCC

Videos Say More

A static image is powerful…But not as much as a video. Many feelings can be aroused from using videos in banner ads — happiness, motivation, danger and worry etc. Studies of 20th century show that an animated icon or image clarifies advertiser’s purpose and attracts a user (Dormann, 1994; Müller, Rist, &André, 1997).

Make It Interactive

While videos and images are a great way to add human element in banner ads, you can also make a design exciting by using cinemagraph or Flipagram. You can also attract users by offering them to play a game.

Solve A Problem

Do first-hand research to find out what problems your target market is looking to solve. Then evaluate which of those problems you can solve. Once done, make a web banner ad that offers solutions to your customers.

get attractive banner designs
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A marketing design enthusiast, super passionate about the evolving scope of visual communication. With 3+ years of experience in content marketing, Aamina is driven by insights, inspirations, trends and creativity. She loves to travel, eat khowsuey, sip coffee, and watch mysteries.

 

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