Display advertising

What it means

Display advertising consists of image, animated or video ads in the form of banners on websites, in apps and across ad networks. Unlike text ads in search, it reaches people who are not searching for anything but reading news, playing games or browsing content.

It is best suited to building brand awareness and to retargeting, reminding people who have already visited the site about a product. For direct sales to completely new visitors it is usually less effective than search advertising.

It is bought through ad networks such as the Google network or Sklik, or through programmatic advertising, where every impression is decided automatically in an auction. Payment is per thousand impressions, per click or per conversion, depending on the campaign goal.

How it works in practice

Success depends on creative and targeting. A banner must say what you offer within a second, show the brand clearly and have a clear call to action. Targeting can use site topics, interests, demographics or your own lists, and performance is compared with other forms of PPC advertising.

When judging results, remember that banners get few clicks but influence later purchases. Besides clicks, reach, frequency and view-through conversions credited by the attribution model are therefore tracked.

For smaller firms, display advertising works best as a supplement: retargeting basket visitors or a local campaign when opening a new outlet. It is worth capping frequency so the same person does not see an ad ten times a day.

What to watch out for

Retargeting and behavioural targeting rely on cookies and require visitor consent. Without consent the audience shrinks considerably, and a company should not get around the rules with hidden scripts, as the supervisory authority may impose fines.

Ads may appear next to unsuitable content or on fraudulent sites with fake traffic. Excluding categories, using allow-lists and checking placements protect both budget and brand reputation. This is where display differs from native advertising, which blends into the content.