7 ways to get your online ads noticed

By Ben Walker on 04 June 2018

Everyone who’s anyone is advertising online these days – and for good reason. Online advertising isn’t just affordable in comparison to other types of advertising, it’s also a highly targeted way to reach new potential customers and connect on a deeper, more meaningful level with your audience.

But in a world where online ad blindness is an actual thing (see banner blindness on Wikipedia) how can you possibly craft a winning online advertising campaign?

With a little help from us and this blog post, that’s how. Ok, let’s dive in…

Decide what type of ads you want to do

With so many different types of ads to choose from, where should you start? A good idea is to start with a clear definition of your objectives – what do you want to achieve with your ads? More sales? Greater brand awareness? Different types of online ads come with different benefits. For example:

• Display ads (like banners, pop-ups and video) are one of the most affordable ways of advertising online.
• Social media ads (on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for example) offer the chance to deliver a highly targeted ad to a defined demographic.
• Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising is excellent if your website doesn’t have good search engine optimisation (SEO) because it means you will appear above your competitors in search results.

Remember, we’re here to help with your online ads. So if you aren’t sure where to start, contact us and we’ll help you out. You can also read our blog post on ‘5 key ingredients to make your Facebook ads irresistible‘.

1. Learn to stand out

The digital world is a busy place. Do you have what it takes to stand out from the competition? This is where a professional designer can come in handy, and this is exactly where our online advertising services can help.

We’ve got more than a couple of tricks up our sleeve to help your online ads stand out in a crowd. Design is one important aspect of grabbing attention and drawing the eye.

2. Make an offer they can’t refuse

Most people don’t like being pestered by intrusive ads online. But what they do like is a really good offer. If you can give your target market something they’ll love – a discount, special offer or some other goodie – they are going to be far more interested in what your ad has to say. Make it worth their while noticing (and clicking on) your advertisement.

3. Focus on the benefits

Like any kind of marketing, you want to put the benefits of your product or service front and centre. What’s your USP? Why should your customers choose you and not the cheaper bloke? Make it all about the value you can add to your customer’s day and life. If your customer believes you identify with them, you’re more likely to make a connection.

4. Include a call to action

Tell your customers what you want them to do. Call us! Read more! Book now! Use active verbs to spur potential clients into action. It may seem a little heavy-handed and obvious, but studies have shown that, thanks to our short attention spans, we quite like being told what to do online because it makes life easier for us.

5. Tell a story

Emotions sell. That’s why so many of the world’s top marketers are also master storytellers. The trend for online ads is moving away from direct-response advertising (in other words, a ‘buy now’ approach) and more towards creating ads which showcase the brand, its products and include a call to action.

6. Pack some powerful words

We’ve mentioned before how important using the right words, in the right place, at the right time can be for effectively getting your message across (see our blog post on The Power of Words). Writing copy for online ads requires a high degree of skill, because you have limited space for text and want to make your message as compelling as possible. Where possible, try to remove ‘filler’ words such as just, even, really, very and that.

7. Use analytics to target

One of the best features of online ads is the ability to gain insight into your ad’s performance through analytics. By regularly reviewing how well your ad is performing, you can tweak it to have maximum effect.

For example, you can install a piece of code called a Facebook Pixel on your website to track people who view specific pages, then retarget them with ads on Facebook. Or you can create a ‘lookalike’ audience, which is users with specific things in common with your existing page followers.