Raise Your Banner High!

Whether you have a brick and mortar shop, offer consulting or other services, are an artist, photographer, or author, in today's marketplace you must have a website.

Like it or not, make many or no sales from the Internet -- it doesn't matter. In today's society if someone has heard about you by referral or publicity the first thing they'll do is go on the Internet to find you. Now they may have no intention of dealing with you or your company on the net, but if you don't have a web page for your company you'll lose credibility with the prospect.

We live in an "instant" society. Instant coffee, drive through restaurants, on-line banking, and a mind-set of "I want it when I want it and not when you're open". So when a prospective client wants information about you or your services they'll look for your web page at a time convenient to them.

That being said and assuming you have a website on the Internet, are you making use of "Banner" advertising? There are many pros and cons about banner ads on sites, and you can get as many opinions about them as there are grains of sand on the beach. They are something to be considered though, and here are 10 killer tips to insure your viewers will click on them:

1. USE REVERSE PSYCHOLOGY -- Tell people not to click on your banner. For example, "Don't Click Here If You Have More Customers Than You Can Serve."

2. USE ATTRACTIVE AD WORDS -- Use words like ultimate, powerful, sizzling, hot, etc. Your words should relate to and highlight your total offer.

3. OFFER A DISCOUNT ON IT -- People are always looking for good deals. You could offer a percentage discount, dollar discount, buy one get one free discount, etc.

4. USE IT FOR A TESTIMONIAL -- Put a testimonial on the banner and give people proof they aren't wasting their time clicking on the ad. The testimonial should include enough information so that they understand the offer.

5. USE A FAMOUS/RESPECTED PERSON -- If you're fortunate enough to have a friend or colleague that is known by the public, have them represent your product, site or service. People will click because they'll trust them over you.

6. USE A STRONG GUARANTEE -- You could include the guarantee as a headline for your offer. It could read double or triple your money back guarantee, lifetime money back guarantee, etc.

7. TELL PEOPLE TO CLICK HERE -- Newbies to the Internet may not even know they can click on banners. Just having the phrase "click here" on your banner will increase your clickthroughs.

8. ADVERTISE A SAMPLE -- Advertising a trial or sample offer will tell people there's no risk or obligation if they click on your banner ad and try out your product or service.

9. BENEFITS, BENEFITS -- Tell people the major benefit to them of your product/site/service on your banner ad. It could be benefits like make money, increase energy, save time, save money, etc.

10. FREE IS A MAGNETIC WORD -- You could advertise a "free" offer on your banner. People love "free stuff" but the freebie should relate to your target audience. For example, if I'm offering a book I've authored for sale on my site I wouldn't offer a free sample of chocolate chip cookies. What I would offer free would be a download from my site of the first chapter and the Table of Contents page. This would give them the chance to see if the book meets their needs, and also act as an incentive to get their hands on the rest of the story by buying the whole book.

If you design your banner ads with a purpose, they won't be viewed as a nuisance to your website visitor.  Rather, they'll see them as benefiting them with additional information or offers.  Do you need help with how to create your own banners? Take a quick trip over to www.mynitch.com/dreamweaver for their easy to follow video training series. They also offer great advertising packages for your banner ads. You can register for a chance to win 5,000 Free Monthly Banners at www.mynitch.com/banners
 
Don't confuse "banner" ads with what is called "pop-ups". They are two very different ad types and "pop-ups" are annoying to web page viewers. The one thing you definitely don't want to do, is to annoy and discourage the prospect that is viewing your web page. He/she could be your next client.