.::Marketing Tips
We've compiled a few tips mostly for banner advertising. Hopefully these will give you some guidence.

.::Click Here
For maximum results make sure you have a 'call to action' on your banner eg.click here! or something similar flagging their subconscience to click your banner and visit your site. This may sound a little silly but people have to be told to click your banner.

.::Don't lose your customer
If you are advertising a product on your banner make sure the product is featured on your main page so the customer can find it straight away. Do not let the customer go astray.

.::No Heavy Banners
Keep your banner down in size. Most banners will never be put into rotation if over 12 - 15k. Remember that you do want your banner to be loaded in time before the visitor leaves the page.

.::Placement
If you can pick the placement of your banner always go for the top of the page. This will cost a little more per CPM but worth the results.

.::Be Persistant
Do not expect results straight away. Most banners will only have a clickthrough rate (conversions of people clicking on your banner and visiting your site) of about .7% to 1.2% which does not sound like very much. Allocate a monthy budget to your online advertising and include promotions. If necessary, chop and change your sales pitch, layout, color scheme in order to evaluate maximum potential.

.::Keep Track of Banners
Use some kind of banner tracking software on your website that will track & analyze your visitors trends - find out what they're doing, how long they read a page for, what your most common pages are and more. Use this information and make adjustments to your website accordingly.

.::Know your Target
Advertising your site can be tricky. Make sure to research your target market carefully. If you do plan to advertise on a website using banner ads, (the most popular method) find a list of common websites that your market would frequent. For example, if you were selling camping equipment you would not necessarily advertise on a 'Caring for your Newborn Baby' site. On the other hand target websites such as 4WD and Fishing/Hunting sites, where you will find that the traffic (naturally) will be more orientated towards your camping products.

.::Pay per click
Banner Advertising will be considerably expensive depending on which site/s you decide on. Banner advertising is most commonly charged by units of 1000 impressions (page views that contain your ad) some sites will require a minimum purchase of 50000 impressions before they commence your campaign. At US$20 to US$60 per thousand impressions this can be particularly expensive.

.::Read the Demographics
Most popular websites will have demographics which have been compiled from customer surveys. Don't be afraid to send an email requesting this information. Demographics can be invaluable when it comes to making decisions about advertising on a website and will contain information such as age, income, occupation, favorite color etc. If the data doesn't match up with the market you're targeting, try looking elsewhere.

.::Combine Forces
Print advertising when used in conjunction with web advertising can be quite effective. If you are advertising on a website and the website has an accompanying magazine or vice versa try placing an ad in the magazine as well. This will obviously increase your exposure to customers who view both. Don't position your ad just anywhere either. Find out what articles are in the upcoming issues. If an article is on hiking boots, then place an ad of your showcase of hiking boots on the same page or opposite. This may cost more but it will produce results that will be well worth it. Also, don't forget to include the URL for your website on the advertisement.

.::Persistence
Always remember that selling to your audience requires persistence. Try variations of a common theme to your approach over a mature period of time. It is very seldom on the internet that you will have instant success with your advertising campaigns. It is important to maintain a continual effort to keep potential customers informed, so back up your advertising by asking them to join a mailing list. As long as you have consent to use their email address, you've still got a second chance to sell them. Try sending them a catalogue or update from time to time.

Take your time when designing banners, as these are ambassadors for your website.