Banner Blindness
I chose to read this article because I am an advertising major, and as such, I am inherently interested in effective advertising research. The article begins with a basic overview of banner ad ethics, and research from the past. Basically some of the most hated methods of advertising are some of the most effective as far as click-through's go. Many advertisers even place "close" buttons on their ads that actually redirect someone to their site. Nielsen warns that these methods may capture attention but do not capture loyal customers.
Nielsen also covered methods that have been proven to work recently. There were three specific examples he gave: first of all, plain text ads. Second of all, faces. Thirdly, cleavage and other inappropriate body parts. This last exampe is, of course, unethical and is not allowed on many sites.
He also talked about how the most effective ads appear to look like the rest of the site. THey don't jump out like a banner ad usually does and they don't use excessive means to capture attention. THey simply follow the basic typography and rules of the rest of the site, blending in in order to gain attention. Nielsen also regarded this practise as dishonest. However, I do not necessarily agree. If you are advertsing and honest product and you have the permission of the website your posting on...why would it be dishonest to blend it in. It really IS part of the site. Why not make it LOOK like part of the site.
I thought it very interesting to read about the obsene, dishonest and extreme measures people go to in order to get a handful of clicks. Most of these methods attract unreliable clients anyway, or make the client angery and frustrated from the very start. It seems so obvious to me that these methods would not be effective in the long run. I was suprised to find them so commonly practised.
I plan on implementing the principles used in this article into my own life by using lots of pictures of faces in my online advertising.
To read this article visit alertbox.
March 31, 2008 12:07 PM