Archive for December, 2008
« Previous EntriesThree Reasons Why More Website Content Increases Traffic
Wednesday, December 31st, 2008People typically visit the internet in search of information. They are looking for content that is relevant to their purpose. They typically are not looking for marketing ploys. There are a number of ways to increase this content, including having a search engine optimization company provide you with keyword rich articles, but there are three major reasons why more website content increases your website traffic.
The first reason more website content increases traffic is that content articles tend to be focused on a topic. This focus will then lead to the repeated use of a keyword or phrase. That repeated use leads to higher search engine rankings. Search engine rankings are the way returns come back to an internet user through a search engine. If someone searches for the term “dogs” they will come back with thousands of pages of results. The order those results are displayed on the screen depends on a number of factors including how frequently the term is mentioned on the site and where it is mentioned on the site.
Research shows that people tend only to click on the first ten results a search engine offers them. Increasing your website content will help you become one of those first ten websites. This means more people than you ever thought possible will be clicking on your site in no time simply based on your website ranking. Not only will you be closer to the top of the search engine with more content, you may also be indexed by more search engines. This could mean something like ninety percent of all internet users seeing your website in any one given internet session.
The second reason more website content increases traffic is a bit more complicated. If you have strong, well written content on your site, you increase your credibility with customers. Suddenly you are no longer a company selling homemade dog food; you are somebody who can offer knowledgeable advice about anything a responsible dog owner needs to know including house training, leash laws, and sleeping problems. This increase in credibility not only makes people believe what you have posted to your site, it also makes them want to stay at your site to read the rest of your content articles. The more content articles you have at your site, the longer they will stay. Keeping them there as long as possible is the key to selling your product to them. You have a much longer time frame in which to pitch your product and close the sale.
Not only will they stay at your site longer with more content, but this also means they may come back to your site the next time they log onto their machine. For example, if you are selling refilled printer ink cartridges, but you have content on your site related to all things printers, you have a good chance that someone might stay to look at a few of the articles. However, the next time they need digital photo printing tips, chances are good that they will remember what great content you offered them during their last internet session, and they will return directly to your site just to read more of your content. This means you have their complete, undivided attention for an even longer period of time. Moreover, if they are returning to your site on some sort of regular basis, chances are good that they will recommend the site to other users like friends and relatives which will mean even more traffic for your site.
The final way more website content increases your web traffic is that it increases the likelihood that advertisers and reciprocal link exchangers will be attracted to your site. Reciprocal links are exchanged by websites that have similar interests.
The more relevant topics you are able to list, the more chances you have of someone with similar interests attempting to link to your site. This could greatly increase your website traffic because not only will people be able to find your site through search engines, they may also be able to find your site through other sites. Further, though, advertisers are looking for sites that encourage customers they want to do business with. More keywords will mean more customers for you which can mean more advertisers for you which can mean more profits and visibility for you.
No matter which reason you choose, more content will increase your website traffic. That can only mean good things in store for you and your website. You can have your content articles written for you or write them yourself. Whichever way you go, though, be sure they are well-written, as poorly written articles will do nothing to increase your website traffic.
Three Reasons Why a Good Looking Website will Increase Traffic
Monday, December 29th, 2008If you really want to increase traffic on your website, you may want to step back and take a look at the site from a visitor’s point of view. A good looking website increases its traffic naturally because those who visit it will likely come back and tell their friends about it as well.
The presentation of your website says a lot about your business. If you want to have a highly successful web business then it is necessary to have a nice website. With more than half of the world logging in web time each week, it is important for today’s businesses to maintain interesting and effective websites that pertain to their businesses. If you are interested in learning why a good looking website is important when trying to increase traffic, take a look at these three reasons.
Professionalism
The first view of your website by a visitor says a lot about your business as a whole. If your website looks cheap and self-made, then it is likely the visitor will not think your business operates in a professional manner. When it comes to dealing with customers on the web, you certainly want to look professional on all levels. If you are an online retailer, you want customers to feel comfortable ordering from you. If they do not think your website looks professional, they may not feel comfortable doing so. It is not necessary to have your website professionally created in order to appear professional. All you need to do is play around with different approaches to see which templates work best for your business.
The more you read and learn about website creation, the better your site will look. Educating yourself on the issue of website development is important when you are trying to do it on your own. If you find yourself overwhelmed, then you can always turn to a professional for the creation of your site. Therefore, to maintain a high level of professionalism, you need to have a good looking website. In turn, but creating the professional atmosphere, the consumers will likely return and bring their friends as well.
Entertaining
Not only should your website look professional, but it should also have an entertaining value. Entertainment is something that will draw visitors into your site in a deeper way. If they see an interesting link, they will likely examine your site in more detail. By offering things like contests and free giveaways, you can easily draw in more traffic. If your site is boring however, it is unlikely you will be able to keep anyone there for more than two seconds. Offering games to play on your site that may pertain to your business, you can keep the traffic flowing. You can even offer links to other exciting and informative websites, in order to act as an “in-between” for the fun. Anyone would rather visit a fun and entertaining site than a boring and plain website. If you offer enough excitement it is likely the regular visitors will advertise your site to everyone they know!
Easy On the Eyes
A good looking website will also increase traffic if it is easy on the eyes. In addition to being professional and fun, your website should be easy on the eyes. This essentially means that it should be attractive as well as easy to function within. Choose colors and an arrangement that will appeal to a wide variety of people. Using really bold colors will possibly hurt the eyes of viewers if they look at them for extended periods of time. You can always add splashes of colors in graphics and borders, but it is best to keep text in dark colors. Create an interesting layout, but not one that is so unique that it is difficult to use. If your website is easy to look at and visitors can navigate easily around it, they will want to come back.
If you focus on these three reasons to create a good looking website, your traffic will surely increase. Having a website that looks professional, entertaining, and is easy on the eyes is the key to inviting and maintaining web traffic for your website. So, if you are creating your site now, or if you want to overhaul your existing site, keep these three tips in mind to get the most traffic to your site as possible.
Three Online Advertising Tools that Do Not Work
Saturday, December 27th, 2008It should be common knowledge for most advertisers on the net that they should not use any of the three advertising tricks of bad pop-ups, spamming or tons of sneaky ads that disable a computer screen. However, many advertisers do not take this advice. People that you are targeting with advertisement to can get very annoyed, and even down right mad if you try these antics. Also, consider the financial cost if you are thinking about employing these tactics. In the end, it is not worth the headache and risk. Read on about why these forms of advertising will not work.
A tight, well thought out marketing approach it the best way to promote your business. Do not think for one second that you will gain customers by using spam. Sending out bulk emails harvested from a spam list and then trying to forge where the email is sent from is tacky and deceitful. There are many federal laws against spamming and people can take it very seriously. They take it so seriously in fact that some advertisers went to court and the court forced them to pay a hefty fine for spamming email accounts. Shutting down someone’s email is not the way to gain business. Talk does fly at Internet speed, and your reputation will go down the tubes as word spreads about your annoying advertising.
The use of spamming software is very sophisticated today. If you want to take a chance with it, it would not be a very good idea though. The likelihood that you will even get a few good customers out of it is almost nonexistent. People enjoy your asking them to join your network or buy your product in a legitimate way. Financially opening up to involving a third party is certainly asking for trouble. By using some else’s email and causing a lot of heartache for them will open a complex issue for you.
The next form of advertising that will turn off a customer in a heartbeat is pop-ups. Today, there is not only the traditional pop-up but pop-under too. A barrage of pop-ups or quick pop-ups from under the screen will leave your customer insulted and angry. It does not matter how great your product is – do not do it. In addition, a new marketing software technique slides pop-ups across the customer’s screen. This might sound non-intrusive, but think about this – what if they are in the middle of reading some information about your site? That is not helpful to your cause. It can be especially bad if they were about to click to the order page.
Loss profits are never good for your wallet. If you are going to use them pop-ups for goodness sake, learn the software, and more importantly learn a bit about the human psychology of advertising. Look around for information on how and why people buy on the Internet, and apply that to your advertising and marketing campaign use.
Not only are spam emails, pop-ups and pop-under ads bad advertising techniques to use, but the tactic of high speed spawning is hideous and more than irritating to your potential customer. If you have ever thought about using it on a customer and have experienced it yourself, then go back and experience it again. You may have forgotten what it was like, although that is hard to see how you could forget it. A vicious attack on your customers’ browser button will not let the customer leave your site. Worse yet, they are forced to do an emergency shut down of their computer. Let us hope they have saved all information they were working on because ad after ad upon hundreds will over take their screen. Please do not use this software to try to increase your profits.
I hope that you will avoid using any of these three tactics in your marketing campaign. Using them will not bring the money in at a faster rate – in fact, just the opposite may occur. Take the time to use good marketing strategies. Learn what people appreciate in the way of business practices. Also, use manners and courteous along with a little shrewdness in your marketing strategy. There are many ways to do it. By exercising patience and learning your way around the Internet, you can bring in many very happy customers and a lot of money for you.
The Write Way to Better Website Traffic Results
Thursday, December 25th, 2008When you are trying to develop a successful website, you soon realize that your website content is very important. Websites with great content are more likely to have great traffic results than those with lousy articles and headings. The more interesting and diverse your content, the better traffic results you will have. When trying to get the right mixture of content, you may become frustrated. This is especially true if you are not a strong writer. Use these tips to help you find out more about website content and the decisions you can make to create the best text on the web.
Care about Content
Many times, website operators don’t give content much thought. This happens more frequently than one might expect and the repercussions are immediate. If you want better website traffic results, you should always be sure that you make content a priority. Whether you write the content yourself, or hire professional writers to develop it for you, it should be quality writing. Someone who has passion for the subject should write it. The more passion the writer has, the better the writing will likely be. Usually, this is the website owner and operator, because no one will want the site to succeed as much as this individual. However, if you are not a great writer, you can always hire professionals to help you with the task.
Quality over Quantity
When it comes to website content, there are obviously guidelines. When trying to fill up a specific amount of area on a website, it may be necessary to set limits on word count. As a whole however, you should always strive for quality over quantity. Having too much content can drive viewers away because they are likely to get bored. Knowing exactly how much content you need for your site can also be a challenge. You should always view your site like a potential visitor would, which means that many of your decisions may be made by instinct. You will know when you have too much content on your site. The main goal is to have specific and direct content that is not too “wordy” . When there are excessive words in the content, you will quickly lose your audience. Be direct and to the point with your writing and you will be more efficient overall.
Natural Flow
Like discussed before, much of the content decisions for your website will be done with instinct. You need to be sure the content flows naturally. Natural flowing content leads easily to other issues. One subject should flow into the other seamlessly. The same is true with the placement of other website functions. When you are writing, consider the placement of “submit” buttons or other links on the page. This can help you develop content that looks great on the page as well as sounds great to the reader. If a piece feels unnatural when it’s being written, it will likely look uncomfortable to the reader and will be a disaster on your website.
Proofread
Some of the most unnecessary mistakes made with website content writing are grammatical. Websites that contain articles with spelling and grammar mistakes come can look ridiculous. If you want your site to be taken seriously, you should always be sure that your articles are proofread many times. This will help ensure you are delivering information that is intelligent and complete. It may help you to read your text out loud, in order to hear what it actually sounds like. Although it may seem unnecessary, you will find that the response will be greater when your text is without mistake.
As you can see, there are several important aspects to developing website content that will boost and maintain your website traffic. You should focus on passion, quality, and flow of your content. If you would rather not worry about these issues, hiring a professional is the way to go. However, if you are up to the challenge, try it yourself. Just relax and begin writing. Let the content come to you without effort. Try different approaches with your writing and you will quickly learn what works best for your site and its traffic. As long as it feels right to you when you read it on the site, it will likely look great to your site’s visitors as well.
Prioritizing Features for WordPress 2.8
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008Everyone knows by now that WordPress 2.7 is packed with new features. Now that it’s available (almost 600,000 downloads as I write this!), it’s time to start working on 2.8. There were dozens of things that got tabled during 2.7 due to time constraints, and there are a lot of high-rated features in the Ideas [...]
The Search is on – How to Make an Effective Search Online
Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008The average web user conducts at least two searches online during each session they use the internet. It is a surprise however that most web users will complain that they never really get what they are looking for when searching. Many will tell you that it takes them forever to find what they need or that they have to visit twenty websites to get to the site they initially wanted to find. These occurrences do not happen because the internet is lacking proper information. They happen because users do not know how to conduct effective searches online. If you want to conduct an effective search online, you need to follow a few general rules.
The more practice you put in, the faster you will see your results pour in. After using these rules for a while, you will be able to find anything you want on the web in less than half the time you once did.
One of the easiest tips to follow is one that deals with exact wording. If you are looking for a specific person or item on the web, then you will want to use exact wording. To do this, you will need to use quotation marks with your words. If you are looking for information on John Doe, you would type “John Doe” into the search box. By using quotations in this manner, your search engine will only return sites that list the complete name as you typed it. If you neglect to use the quotations however, you may get results with only the first name in them. This tip can really save you time and works for topics as well as names.
Some of the information on the web may be full of spelling errors. That is why it is sometimes necessary to try alternate spellings of words when conducting a search. This is especially true if you are searching for a name that may be spelled in different ways (ex. Shawn, Sean, Shaun). Try one of the spellings and if it does not yield what you need, try another. Many people give up after the first failed attempt, but trying other spellings is worth the extra time if you really need the information. Misspellings occur with words that are not names as well. Therefore, you may need to try alternate spellings of simple words to get what you need as well.
Using synonyms of the words you are searching for is also a great idea. For example, if you are looking for articles on dogs, you may also want to search for canines or pets. This will help you get a broader array of information on the subject you need. Some articles may refer to the animals as dogs, but others might always call them canines, so it is helpful to include both in your search. You may also want to do separate searches for each synonym to get more results. This is great for slang words as well. If there are more than one acceptable word for something you are searching for, by all means, use everything you can to get the most information possible.
Similar to synonym use, to get good results you might also have to use related words in your search. For instance, if you are searching for vases, you might need to include the word “flower” in your search. This will likely target a few sites that don’t have vases, but most of the results will be appropriate for what you need.
The more specific you can be with your search, the faster you will get where you want to go. Try to be as specific as you possibly can. If you want to know what temperature it is in London, England, don’t do a search for “weather” or “weather in Europe”. Instead type in “what is the temperature in London, England?” to get the best and fastest answer to your question. If you can be specific, you will weed out all of the results that don’t offer what you need. This will make your search time much more pleasant because you won’t have to trek through pages of unneeded information to get to the real results. Use these tips by themselves or together to make an effective search online.
Sign our Guestbook – How Signing Guestbook’s or Creating your Own Helps your Website
Sunday, December 21st, 2008Guestbook’s are some of the most popular areas on websites. Before a consumer does business with you, they are likely to check out your guestbook. Guestbook’s are somewhat like testimonials in that they offer real feedback on your site, your business, and your products. They are honest and are created from those that have had some sort of experience with your business or those who simply visit your site. Signing other guestbook’s or creating your own can really help your website. If you are considering creating a guestbook or want to sign other guestbook’s, check out these great reasons on why you should.
Get Your Name Out There
Anytime you sign a guestbook you are taking the opportunity to get your website’s name out there. When signing, be sure to offer a positive and honest comment about their site or products. Make sure you are saying something worth reading however and not simply plugging your own site. At the end of your comment however, be sure to include a little tag with your website link and your business name however. When other people read the guestbook, which many people often do, they will not only see the comments made but also see your link and possibly visit your site as well. This is particularly true if they liked what you said on the guestbook. So, be sure to think about what you write and try to subtly draw people to your link. This is an inexpensive and quick way to increase your website’s traffic without a lot of effort.
Support Other Websites
By signing a website’s guestbook you are basically lending your support. This is a great thing to do with other websites, because if you offer your support to their website, they are likely to return the favor regarding your site. Anytime you can positively network with other website operators, you will likely benefit in one way or another. Be sure that anything you ever post about another website is positive however. Even the smallest criticism can really be taken incorrectly and can harm your relationship or potential relationship between your site and theirs. Who knows, you could eventually work an advertising plan out with other websites in an exchange deal.
Validate Yourself or Your Business
When you create a guestbook for others to sign upon visiting your website, you are essentially opening yourself up for honestly. You are allowing others to post exactly what they feel about your business or website. This can be scary for some, but visitors to your site will see it differently. Having a guestbook is especially important if you are offering products or services online. This is a great and inexpensive way for potential customers to feel more comfortable doing business with you. Many consumers are afraid of being ripped off via the web, so anytime you can offer positive comments from previous customers, you will make potential clients feel good about your business. When they read positive information, they will be more likely to trust you with their money. You are telling them subtly that you are not afraid of what others will say, because you conduct business in fair and decent manners.
Get That Feedback
Another reason to create a guestbook on your site is to get feedback from visitors. This can be very helpful if your site is new. You may want visitors to tell you what they like or don’t like about the sight. Of course, you always want them to be constructive and not mean, but honesty is the key to this method. By getting feedback, you can make changes and create the best website you can. You can also get feedback telling you exactly who is visiting your site. This will help you identify the groups your site targets and therefore allow you to make decisions to that effect. By allowing others to give you feedback, you are offering yourself the potential to create a site that is strictly for the user, which is a quality most great websites possess.
As you can see, guestbook’s are very useful, whether you are signing someone else’s or creating your own. They are inexpensive to use and can provide loads of information and traffic for your site. So, if your site does not have a guestbook, strongly think about adding one. And, when you notice a guestbook on a site you are visiting, don’t pass up the opportunity to sign it and add a little about your website and yourself!
Search Engine Optimization – The Basics of Boosting Website Traffic
Friday, December 19th, 2008Search engine optimization is vital if you want to get your website listed at the top of the search engine rankings. You will have to design and write your pages not only for the customer, but also for the search engine spiders and crawlers. It does not have to be hard and it does not have to make you pull your hair out in frustration. By following a few tips on how to go about writing your pages, you will find success with your website.
One of the first mistakes that most people make when designing a website is that they think about the entire website. Do not concentrate on the entire site. Instead, create your landing page with only that page in mind. The rest of the design will come later. Next, narrow down your list of keywords to keyword phrases. Make sure they are highly targeted keyword phrases. For example, if you sell motor oil your keyword phrase would be motor oil and not just oil. Remember that people, when searching for your website in the search engines, will search for general phrases, and not just keywords. A good place to get keyword phrase ideas is http://www.overture.com. There are many there, so be sure to check it out.
After you have chosen your phrase to use, put it into a search engine and see what comes up. This is an honest way to check out your competition and to get a real look at how your keywords work. You might find that your keywords are highly popular, and you will need to rework your phrases. Targeting a keyword that is not highly sought after could lead you to keyword phrases in niche markets. Fortunes have been built of niche markets in the Internet community.
Next you’ll want to look at your meta tags. The tags are html code that lists the different words in relation to your product on the web page. Search engines look mainly for descriptive tags that tell the engine and visitor what the website is about. If there is no tag, it will use other ways to search for information, like in a cached page of the directories. When setting up your keyword phrase, include it twice, and make it a clickable title tag too. You’ll need to describe your information for your page with the keywords.
Be creative in the description. Search engines like versatility up to a point. One important aspect that you will need to use is not only your Meta keyword phrases, but a few sub keywords that are relevant to your site. Do not overuse keyword phrases because will hurt you with certain engines – your site will actually be penalized, and drop in the search engine rankings. Make sure you use a header tag. Certain search engines use these tags heavily for rating the value of your site. When writing your page, use your main keyword phrase or phrases right off the bat. A good inclusion would be twice in the first paragraph. Any other types of information about your site should include your keyword-targeted phrase as well.
Do not think that that is all you will have to do though. You will have to get others to notice your web site. Continue using your keyword phrase or phrases in any text on the page. For instance, if you have a blog set up on your site; use the keyword phrase in your Meta tag about the web blog. You may have to submit your web page to the search engines. Sometimes the engines don’t pick up a site with the spiders and crawlers. In fact, you might have to redesign your site with new Meta tags, and targeted keyword phrases and sub keywords. Don’t rush to do it though. First, find out if the search engines pick up your page. Usually only 2 – 3 weeks will suffice to see if it’s happened. If not re-do your site words so you can climb to at least the first two pages of any search engine.
The key is to remain patient and to follow the ever changing rules of SEO search engine optimization. It will take time and developing your confidence about your skills. In the end, you will be glad that you have learned the valuable technique, and you will go on to build improved sites that are finely tuned.
Publish or Perish – Three Ways to Write For Other Websites and Link Back To Yours
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008Your website is your company lifeline. Increasingly, though, internet users want website content, not just website advertising. However, filling your website with content may not be enough to increase your web traffic. You can make more of your content by writing for other websites while linking back to yours. There are three simple ways to do this.
The first way to write for other websites and link back to yours is to publish your content articles on a website like ezinearticles.com. Websites like this will publish any type of content. The content is then licensed for reprinting on other sites with the author's permission.
The articles can contain general information about topics your customers might be interested in. They can also contain a website address in the biography blurb at the end of the article. This might increase your website traffic because your content will increase your credibility with readers. This will not only encourage them to consult you on other occasions, it will also encourage them to trust you on other matters, like the purchase of your products.
The second way to write for other websites and link back to yours is through advertising. You can sell your content articles to other websites. Perhaps the best way to do this is pay per click advertising. Pay per click advertising works through search engines that have an agreement with a business to place a small ad on the results page for certain key terms.
The listing on the search engine page usually has a title, a short heading, and a short promotional wording blurb. Depending on the search engine, the advertiser may or may not get to control the text. The advertiser pays nothing to appear on the results page itself. He or she only pays a previously agreed upon amount to the search engine when a visitor clicks on the ad itself. This is one of the cheapest and best ways to advertise your content articles on the web. Other businesses will see the content articles they are looking for and click, costing you a little money, but the fees you earn for the content you write will more than cover the cost of the advertising.
There are many different current companies that offer pay per click advertising. Google's pay per click program is called AdWords. Google estimates that over eighty percent of internet users visit Google as a search engine. That results in more customers seeing the ads than most businesses ever thought possible. Google allows you to create your own ads. They do, however, have a service that will design your ad for you if you choose. Yahoo is the other most popular pay per click program. Yahoo's Overture works through partner sites like MSN and Alta Vista. Through these many sites, they claim to allow you to reach over ninety percent of internet users.
The final way to write for other websites while linking back to your own is through a reciprocal linking agreement. You can start by researching the sites that you think might be interested in your content. Write a letter to the webmaster of the site offering them your content and a free link on your site. Then you can negotiate the link and location in terms of both sites. As soon as possible, get their link on your site and send them a note letting them know you have a live link to their site. Check their site frequently to ensure they are upholding their promise to you as well.
Offering your content to other websites can not only be good for your pocket in the short term, it can also be good for you in the long run because it can increase your visibility on the web, driving more customers toward your website. There are many different ways to write for other websites while linking back to your own. It is probably best to choose the one that works for you. Furthermore, if you do not have the necessary writing skills, it might be wise to hire a company who deals with search engine oriented text and use the text using one of these three methods to increase your internet visibility and your profit margin.
Pop-Ups versus Banner Ads: Which is better for Increased Website Traffic?
Monday, December 15th, 2008Everyone who uses the web knows that advertising is a huge part of the entire experience. The internet is full of advertising for every possible company and product you can imagine. Although many complain about the forms of advertising, there is not much difference in internet advertising and telemarketing phone calls to your home.
The interesting thing is however that web users prefer to be annoyed by internet ads over unexpected phone calls. This acceptance of ads has created a breeding ground for millions of pop-ups and banner ads on the internet. Sites use them individually or together, but some still wonder which is better for increased website traffic. Consumers have offered a response, perhaps not verbally, but with statistics of effectiveness.
Pop-ups are typically seen as annoying advertisements. Those that include blinking lights can even be hazardous to some users with certain medical conditions. They have been considered the most hated form of web advertising available. With pop-ups being so annoying however, consumers may wonder why they are still being used so frequently.
The truth is that pop-ups are terribly aggravating, but they are indeed effective overall. For some crazy reason, there are millions of people who actually utilize them when they appear on their screen. This is partially due to many sites using pop-up ads as an excuse and reason for offering free services to site users. They will state that they must use these forms of ads in order to offer the site for free. Users, who don’t want to pay, but still want to use the site, will likely accept the excuse without question.
The trouble with pop-up ads these days are that there are many programs to install on a computer that will not allow pop-ups through. This means that when a pop-up is meant to appear on your screen, your installed “pop-up blocker” program does not allow it to happen and instead blocks the advertisement from reaching you, the user. These programs are very effective most of the time and can cost advertisers a great deal of money if the ad is not reaching the intended target. Advertisers are now coming up with newly programmed pop-ups however that can bypass these “blocker” programs and still deliver the ads to your screen, whether you like it or not.
Banner ads began to appear on websites in response to the annoyance consumers felt from pop-ups. Advertisers thought that if banner ads were not as bothersome, they may offer even better results than the pop-up ads. Sites began sticking banner ads in every free area of their site. Upon doing so, they soon realized that although banner ads are not typically as bothersome as pop-ups, they are also not as effective. Users were less likely to utilize banner ads for their purpose. Many of the banner ads were perhaps not as noticeable as an aggressive pop-up ad right in the user’s line of vision. Some are off to the side of the screen and out of the direct eye contact.
Many users prefer banner ads when asked, because they claim they are easier on the eye and they are often unnoticeable. This may mean more comfortable use for the user, but it means something completely different to the advertiser. An advertiser wants their ad to be noticed, even at the user’s expense. They would rather annoy the user and get the ads noticed than the ads simply sit being unnoticed. In whole, advertisers were not seeing a large turnout with banner ads, and therefore many sites no longer use them for advertising purposes.
The answer to whether or not pop-ups or banner ads are best really lies with who you speak with. Consumers will likely tell you banner ads are much better than troublesome pop-ups. Advertisers however would tell you the exact opposite. They both have a place on the internet and their own group of “fans”. The conclusion is however that unless users completely boycott pop-ups in an extremely dramatic way, they will likely continue to replace banner ads. The power of the choice lies in the hands of the advertisers at this time and until users want to force them to change their ways, the advertisers will continue to support pop-ups over banner ads.