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With all of this confusion regarding high search engine placement, mainly how to achieve and keep it, it is important to remember what really brings people to your website.

The fact of the matter is that banner advertising accounts for more than 50% of all online advertising expenditures. This is due to the fact that it is the most effective form of promotion on the internet.

In many cases, the person who is most likely to seek your product or service online is the same person who turns to the internet for entertainment, communication, research etc. This person has built habits online. This person exhibits very specific behaviors. As someone who is looking to convert this person into a customer, you need to do the following:

Know what his online habits are, and

As a result, know what websites he visits,

Place banner ads on those websites in an attempt to bring him to your website.

This is what I like to call the billboard approach. For example, a fast food restaurant knows that a potential customer is someone who is in a hurry. So what does this fast food joint do? They put up a billboard along the interstate. Similarly, you place banners where someone who would use your product or service will likely be.

Why do we do this? We do this to get our name out there. Notice I say "name" and not "image". I say this because image refers to branding. Banner ads don't actually brand your business. Branding occurs at the website through the practice of placing your logo at the top of every page and various other methods (That is another article).

Additionally, statistics show that good banners have a .5 to 1% response rate. This rate of response is comparable to response rates from other media. This means that you'll need to create an array of banner ads and rotate them frequently.

Now that we know how and where to place a banner advertisement, we must now create a banner ad. In order for an ad to achieve the highest possible click-through rate, consider the following criteria:

Ask questions. Questions like, "Do you?" and "Are you looking for?" are good for initiating a user action. This action is, of course, a click-through to your website.

Standard sizing. The fact of the matter is that there are standards for banner sizing. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) (www.iab.net) has developed standards for the actual size (L x W) for your banner ads. It's important to adhere to these standards because most websites conform to them.

Keep the file size small! You want users to see your ad. In order to increase the chances of this happening, you need to have an ad that loads quickly (Before a user finishes scanning the first screen). With this in mind, stay away from animations.

Don't Lie. If your banner makes a claim that isn't true or has nothing to do with what you're selling, the user will leave almost immediately.

Give the banner a professional appearance. If the banner is high quality, the user will assume the site is high quality. High quality images = credibility on the internet. I would recommend that you find a professional to create your banners.

Keep them fresh. Banners wear out. It's important to cycle through multiple banners. I would recommend changing them two to three times per month. This will help keep click-through rate up.

At this point, I've laid a pretty good foundation for why to and how to use banner advertisements as a method of web site promotion. Thank you for your readership.

Joel is the Director of Operations at 3D Solutions for Business, a business consulting/web development company founded in 2004. Joel is obessed with web accessibility and has, therefore, begun a campaign to inform the world of its importance and to overhaul all of his past work to make it accessible.