What Are Display Ads in Digital Marketing: Definition & How it Works

Display ads are the type of paid advertising that focuses on visually engaging banners, images, and videos shown across various online channels. They can perfectly fit various strategies, from lead generation to building brand awareness. These visual ads serve as a crucial tool for brands aiming to enhance their visibility and engagement with target audiences.

Some may say that the banners’ time in digital marketing is over, but it turns out that display ads do more than just look pretty. WordStream’s research shows that 27% of people actually search for a business after seeing a display ad, and that leads to a 59% jump in conversions! Plus, a whopping 92% of marketers say retargeting display ads are just as good, if not better, than search ads.

In this article, we explore how display ads work, their key benefits, and how businesses use them to enhance online visibility and improve conversion rates. Read on and inspire your future campaigns!

What Are Display Ads?

Display ads represent a popular form of online advertising that incorporates visual elements like images, banners, and videos to promote a product, service, or brand effectively. You’ll find these ads on various websites, apps, and social media platforms, in the advertising spaces reserved for them. They are often managed through networks such as the Google Display Network or Facebook Ads.

Unlike text-based search ads, display ads are designed to capture user attention through creative visuals and strategic placement. Advanced formats, including animated and interactive ads, enhance engagement, making them a key component of digital marketing strategies. Like other PPC ads, these also use targeting techniques that focus on demographics, interests, and retargeting to connect with specific audiences.

How Do Display Ads Work?

Display ads operate by utilizing targeting strategies, ad placements, and tracking technologies to connect with the appropriate audience on various channels. Advertisers design visually appealing ads and position them within ad networks like the Google Display Network or Facebook Audience Network. These networks distribute the ads across a wide array of partner sites, aligning with the specific targeting criteria set by the advertisers.

Targeting plays a crucial role in display ad effectiveness. Advertisers can choose audience segments based on demographics, interests, browsing behavior, or past interactions (remarketing). Contextual targeting matches ads with relevant website content, while behavioral targeting uses data from user activity to show personalized ads.

When a user visits a website, the ad network quickly assesses whether to display an ad based on various factors such as:

• relevance,
• bidding strategies,
• quality of the ad.

Advertisers compete for these placements using either cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-mille (CPM) models.

Tracking and analytics are essential for gauging ad performance, focusing on metrics like impressions, click-through rates (CTR), and conversions. Platforms like Google Ads offer valuable insights into audience engagement, enabling advertisers to fine-tune their campaigns. By adjusting targeting, enhancing creatives, and refining bidding strategies, they can optimize their efforts for better results.

How to Measure Display Ad Performance?

To measure display ad performance, you should use key metrics that track visibility, engagement, and conversions. By leveraging the collected data, you can adjust creatives, targeting, and bidding strategies for better results.

With professional platforms like Google Ads, Facebook Ads Manager, and third-party analytics tools, you can track the following performance metrics:

1. Impressions – the number of times an ad is displayed on a website or app, where a high impression count indicates strong reach but does not guarantee engagement.
2. Click-Through Rate (CTR) – the percentage of users who click on the ad after seeing it, where a higher CTR suggests effective ad creatives and targeting.>box here:CTR = (Total Clicks / Total Impressions) x 100
3. Conversion Rate – the percentage of users who take a desired action (e.g., purchase, sign-up) after clicking the ad, where high results indicate campaign efficiency.
4. Cost Per Click (CPC) – the amount paid for each click, where lower CPC means better cost efficiency.
5. Cost Per Mille (CPM) – the cost for 1,000 impressions.
6. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) – the revenue generated for every dollar spent on ads, where a high ROAS indicates a profitable campaign.>box hereROAS = (Total Campaign Revenue / Total Campaign Cost) x 100
7. Viewability Rate – the percentage of ads that appear in a visible area of the screen. Google considers an ad “viewable” if at least 50% of its pixels are visible for one second (display ads) or two seconds (video ads).
8. Engagement Metrics – includes interactions such as video views, hover rates, and ad expansions, showing how users engage with rich media ads.
9. Attribution Analysis – tracks how display ads contribute to the customer journey by analyzing multi-touch interactions before conversion.

What Is the Importance of Display Advertising in Digital Marketing?

Display advertising is crucial in digital marketing because it enhances brand awareness, drives engagement, and facilitates conversions through eye–catching ads displayed across various online channels. Unlike search ads, which target users with immediate intent, display ads introduce products or services to potential customers who may not be actively searching for them yet.

Display ads increase visibility by reaching large audiences – advertisers can use demographic, interest-based, contextual, and retargeting methods to reach specific audiences. Engaging formats like banners, video ads, and interactive creatives capture attention better than plain text ads, increasing engagement and message retention.

With models like CPC or CPM, advertisers can optimize spending based on campaign goals. Another advantage of leveraging this type of advertising is multi-device reach. Ads appear across desktops, mobile devices, and apps, ensuring continuous engagement across various touchpoints in the customer journey. Still, the crucial aspect that makes display advertising a vital part of digital marketing strategies is the possibility of performance tracking and optimization for maximum impact.

Overall, display ads play a key role in both top-of-funnel brand exposure and bottom-of-funnel conversions. Techjury statistics highlight that users who see display ads are 155% more likely to search for a brand, demonstrating their influence in driving customer interest and action.

9 Different Types of Display Advertising in Online Marketing

Display advertising comprises various formats, such as banner ads, video ads, native ads, retargeting ads, social media ads, pop–up ads, or interstitial ads. These formats vary based on placement, interaction level, and ad objectives. Each display ad format serves specific marketing goals – banner ads for visibility, video ads for engagement, remarketing ads for conversions, and native ads for seamless integration. Using the right mix of display ads ensures maximum reach and impact in online marketing campaigns.

Check out the distinct popular display ad types and choose those that will help you achieve your business goals, whether to attract users, increase engagement, or drive conversions across digital platforms.

1. Banner Ads

Banner ads are the most common display ads. They appear as rectangular or square images across websites, typically at the top, bottom, or side of a page. They use static or animated visuals to capture user attention and drive clicks. While effective for brand awareness, they can sometimes be distracting if not designed thoughtfully. These ads operate on cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM) models, making them a cost-efficient way to reach large audiences.

2. Rich Media Ads

Rich media ads are an advanced form of digital display advertising that incorporates interactive elements like animations, videos, and expandable content. These ads engage users more effectively than static banners by encouraging interaction, leading to higher engagement rates. Their dynamic nature helps increase brand awareness by creating memorable ad experiences. Examples include expandable ads, floating ads, and ads with interactive elements like quizzes or games.

3. Video Ads

Video ads are highly engaging digital advertisements that use motion and sound to capture user attention across websites, apps, and social media platforms. They can appear as pre-roll, mid-roll, or post-roll content, often integrated within streaming services or YouTube. With strong storytelling and visual appeal, they effectively drive user engagement and improve campaign performance by increasing brand recall and conversion rates.

4. Native Ads

Native ads are a common display advertising format that blends seamlessly with website content. They appear in recommendation widgets, in-feed placements, or within articles. Their non-disruptive nature enhances user experience, making them more engaging and trustworthy. These ads achieve higher click-through rates by matching the style and tone of the surrounding content, effectively driving brand awareness and conversions.

5. Retargeting (Remarketing) Ads

Retargeting ads are display ads that target users who have previously visited a website but did not convert. By using cookies, these ads remind potential customers of products or services they viewed, increasing the chances of engagement. They are a powerful tool in ad campaigns, helping businesses recover lost traffic and improve conversion rates by keeping their brand top of mind.

6. Social Media Display Ads

Social media display ads are visually engaging ads that appear on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. They allow businesses to run a display advertising campaign with precise targeting, ensuring ads reach users based on interests, behaviors, and demographics. These ads are effective for increasing engagement, driving conversions, and reaching a broad audience across multiple devices.

7. Pop-Up and Pop-Under Ads

Pop-up and pop-under ads are “aggressive” display marketing formats that appear over or behind a webpage to capture user attention. Pop-up ads immediately demand interaction, while pop-under ads remain unnoticed until the user closes their main window. Though effective for lead generation, they can impact user experience if overused.

8. Interstitial Ads

Interstitial ads are larger display ads that appear between content transitions, such as when users navigate between pages or within mobile apps. These ads cover the entire screen, ensuring high visibility and engagement. When timed correctly, they can drive strong conversions without disrupting the user experience.

9. Google Display Network (GDN) Ads

Google Display Network (GDN) ads are display ads served across over 2 million partner websites, apps, and YouTube, reaching approximately 90% of internet users worldwide. They support various formats, including banners, responsive ads, and video ads, allowing businesses to target audiences based on demographics, interests, and behavior. GDN ads help increase brand awareness, drive traffic, and improve conversions with cost-effective bidding options like CPC and CPM.

7 Advantages of Display Ads

Display ads are a powerful tool in digital marketing, offering numerous benefits, such as increased brand awareness, multi–device reach, advanced targeting options, scalability, and performance tracking. With cost-effective pricing models and advanced tracking capabilities, display ads offer businesses flexibility in optimizing their campaigns for maximum impact.

Check out the key advantages that make display advertising a valuable marketing asset:

1. Increased Brand Awareness

The first advantage of display ads is increased brand awareness, a marketing goal each business aims for. These ads help businesses stay visible by reaching large audiences across websites, apps, and social media. Their visual nature makes them more engaging than plain text ads, reinforcing brand identity with repeated exposure.

2. Advanced Targeting Options

The second advantage of display ads is advanced targeting, a key for effective campaigns. Beyond basic demographics, advertisers can leverage contextual targeting, placing ads on websites relevant to the product or service. Remarketing allows re-engagement with users who previously interacted with the brand, increasing conversion potential. Interest-based targeting reaches users based on their online behavior and interests, ensuring a receptive audience sees ads.

Custom audience targeting allows advertisers to upload their own customer data to target existing or similar customers. These advanced targeting options maximize campaign relevance, minimize wasted ad spend, and improve ROI by reaching the most likely customers. This precision is unmatched by many other advertising channels.

3. Cost-Effectiveness

The third advantage of using display ads is cost-effectiveness, making it a great digital marketing strategy for businesses of all sizes. Unlike some traditional media, display advertising allows for precise budget control. You can set daily or campaign budgets, preventing overspending. Advanced targeting options ensure ads are shown to the most relevant audience, maximizing the impact of each impression and minimizing wasted spending.

Bidding models, such as cost-per-click (CPC), mean you only pay when someone interacts with your ad, making it highly measurable. Additionally, programmatic display ads automate bidding for better efficiency. The combination of budget control, measurable results, and precise targeting makes display advertising a cost-effective solution for reaching specific demographics and achieving marketing objectives.

4. Engaging Visual Formats

The fourth advantage of display ads is a variety of engaging visual formats, essential for capturing attention in today’s crowded digital landscape. Beyond static images, display ads can incorporate rich media like animated GIFs, interactive elements, and even video. These dynamic formats can tell a story more effectively than static images, grabbing users’ attention and conveying complex messages quickly.

Interactive ads encourage engagement, prompting clicks and interactions. Video ads, increasingly popular, offer a powerful medium for showcasing products or services in action. This variety of formats allows you to tailor your ads to specific platforms and audiences, maximizing engagement and campaign effectiveness.

5. Multi-Device Reach

The fifth advantage of display ads is extensive multi-device reach, which is crucial in today’s digital world. Users access the internet across various devices – desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones – and display ads can seamlessly follow them across these platforms. This ensures consistent brand messaging and maximizes visibility, regardless of how users choose to browse. Responsive ad formats adapt automatically to different screen sizes and resolutions, providing an optimal viewing experience on any device.

This cross-device reach is invaluable for building brand awareness and driving conversions, as it allows marketers to connect with their target audience wherever they are. The ability to reach users on multiple devices enhances campaign effectiveness and maximizes the potential for engagement and conversions. This pervasive reach across devices is a key strength of display advertising.

6. Performance Tracking and Optimization

The sixth advantage you’ll appreciate while using display ads is robust performance tracking and optimization capabilities. Key metrics, like impressions, clicks, click-through rates (CTR), and conversions, are readily available, providing insights into campaign effectiveness.

This data-driven approach empowers marketers to optimize campaigns for maximum ROI, refine targeting to reach the most receptive audience and allocate budget efficiently. The ability to track and optimize in real-time makes display advertising highly accountable and allows for continuous improvement.

7. Scalability and Flexibility

The seventh advantage of display ads is scalability and flexibility. Campaigns offer the flexibility to scale up or down according to budget and performance. Regardless of whether you’re a small local business or a large multinational corporation, display ads can be tailored to meet your unique needs. This budget flexibility allows you to start small and gradually increase spending as your results improve. You can also adjust targeting options, broadening or narrowing your audience as needed. Additionally, creative elements can be easily refreshed or modified to align with new promotions or messaging.

Thanks to testing and optimization, you ensure campaigns evolve to maximize effectiveness. Display advertising’s inherent flexibility and scalability make it an adaptable solution for various marketing goals, ranging from brand awareness to direct response initiatives. This approach empowers marketers to adjust their strategies quickly and efficiently, capitalizing on opportunities and maximizing their return on investment.

5 Disadvantages of Display Ads

Although display advertising can be highly beneficial, it also comes with challenges that can impact campaign effectiveness, such as low engagement, ad fatigue, the negative impact of ad blockers, or higher costs in specific industries. You should consider the following disadvantages when using display advertising:

1. Low Click-Through Rates (CTR)

Low click-through rates (CTR) are a common challenge in display advertising. Such ads often blend into website content, making them easy to overlook. Users are usually focused on the content they’re consuming, not necessarily looking to click on ads. This results in lower CTRs compared to search ads, where users are actively seeking information.

However, low CTRs don’t necessarily mean a campaign is unsuccessful. Display ads are excellent for building brand awareness and reaching a broad audience. Even if users don’t click, repeated exposure to your brand can increase familiarity and influence future purchase decisions.

Tip: To improve CTR, focus on compelling visuals, clear messaging, and relevant targeting. A/B testing different ad variations can also help identify what resonates best with your audience and optimize for higher CTR.

2. Banner Blindness and Ad Fatigue

Another problem that challenges marketers who use display advertising is banner blindness and ad fatigue. Banner blindness describes the phenomenon where users subconsciously ignore banner-like elements on web pages, including display ads. Over time, users have learned to filter out these visuals, often associating them with irrelevant or unwanted content. This can drastically reduce the effectiveness of display ads, as they may not even be seen, let alone clicked.

Ad fatigue occurs when users are repeatedly exposed to the same ads, leading to a decline in engagement. Seeing the same creative and messaging over and over again can cause users to tune it out, diminishing the campaign’s impact. This can result in lower click-through rates and decreased brand recall.

Tip: Refreshing ad creatives regularly is crucial for preventing ad fatigue and keeping the message relevant. Contextual targeting and precise audience segmentation can also help ensure ads are shown to users who are more likely to be interested, increasing the chances of engagement.

3. Negative Impact on User Experience

Display ads can sometimes be perceived as intrusive, negatively impacting user experience. Aggressive ad formats, such as pop-ups or autoplay videos, can disrupt the user’s browsing flow and create a frustrating experience. Excessive or poorly placed ads can clutter web pages, making it difficult for users to find the content they want.

This intrusiveness can lead to negative brand associations and even prompt users to install ad blockers, rendering display advertising ineffective. Striking a balance between promoting your message and respecting the user’s online experience is crucial.

Tip: Prioritize user-friendly ad formats, ensuring ads are relevant to the content, and limit the frequency of ad displays. It can help mitigate the risk of intrusiveness and maintain a positive user experience.

4. Limited Reach (Ad Blockers)

Ad blockers pose a significant challenge to display advertising by limiting its reach. Many internet users employ ad-blocking software to eliminate unwanted ads from their browsing experience. This software prevents display ads from loading, effectively making them invisible to a substantial portion of the target audience.

This limitation can impact campaign effectiveness, particularly for broad reach or brand awareness initiatives. Advertisers actively seek ways to get around ad blockers, exploring strategies like native advertising and collaborating with publishers to develop more acceptable ad formats. Nevertheless, ad blocking remains a persistent challenge for display advertising, highlighting the need for a well-rounded marketing strategy.

5. Higher Costs in Competitive Niches

Display advertising costs can escalate significantly in highly competitive niches. When numerous advertisers target the same audience or keywords, the competition increases ad prices. This is particularly true for popular industries or those with high customer lifetime value.

Small businesses with limited budgets may find it challenging to compete with larger corporations that can afford higher ad spend. This can limit their visibility and reach within the desired target audience. While display advertising offers many benefits, businesses in competitive niches must carefully consider their budget and targeting strategy to ensure a positive return on investment.

Tip: To maximize your marketing impact, explore alternative targeting options, refine your ad creatives, or adopt a multi-channel approach.

3 Successful Examples of Display Ads in Digital Marketing

Successful display ads combine eye-catching visuals, precise targeting, and strong messaging to drive engagement and conversions. Brands that leverage creative design, strategic placement, and data-driven optimization achieve higher click-through rates (CTR) and improved campaign performance. Check out the following examples to see how various companies have effectively used display advertising to boost brand awareness, customer engagement, and sales.

1. Blinkist

The first example shows a display ad in the form of a native ad that blends with website content. Blinkist, offering summarized non-fiction books, understands its target audience likely consumes online content and values concise information. Instead of a traditional banner ad that might be easily ignored, they opted for a native ad disguised as a recommended article within MSN’s feed.

The ad’s design and formatting perfectly matched the surrounding MSN articles. It used the same font, layout, and visual style, making it appear as a genuine recommendation from MSN itself. It doesn’t scream “advertisement,” so it’s more likely to be noticed and considered. By referring to themselves as a “magazine” within the ad copy, Blinkist leverages the perceived authority and credibility of established publications like MSN. This subtle association lends legitimacy to their service and makes it seem more trustworthy. Users are more likely to engage with content that appears to come from a reputable source.

The point is that Blinkist has nothing to do with magazines, so this type of advertising is a clever, though potentially misleading, tactic that takes advantage of borrowed credibility. The ad directs users to a 404 page, where they are introduced to the service and directed to potentially engaging content. There is a question about ethics, but a well-thought-out strategy cannot be denied.

Because native ads blend in with the surrounding content, they typically have higher click-through rates than traditional display ads. Users are less likely to perceive them as advertisements and are, therefore, more likely to click on them. This is a prime example of how effective native advertising can be, blurring the lines between advertisement and editorial content.

2. OKRE Development

The second example is a static banner ad leveraged by OKRE Development. They have created a visually appealing display ad as a part of a real estate campaign. A static banner ad, unlike animated or interactive ads, uses a fixed image to convey its message. While seemingly simple, a well-designed static banner can be highly effective, especially when integrated into a broader marketing strategy.

OKRE Development invested in professional design to create an ad that is both eye-catching and representative of their brand. They have used attractive visuals, brand colors, and fonts and focused on creating a clear, uncluttered layout that conveys the message effectively. Thanks to simple CTA, they effectively direct users to a dedicated page. Still, even the most immersive ad creatives wouldn’t work without precise targeting and ad placement. OKRE strategically placed their ad on websites frequented by their target audience, such as lifestyle websites or news sites.

While static banners might seem less dynamic than other ad formats, they can be a cost-effective and efficient way to reach a target audience when designed and implemented strategically. OKRE Development’s approach demonstrates how a visually appealing ad, combined with clear messaging, targeted placement, and integration with a broader campaign, can be a valuable tool for real estate marketing.

3. Lufthansa

The third example shows a rich media ad that leverages animation to build interest among users. Lufthansa promotes flight offers as unforgettable experiences. Lufthansa’s approach exemplifies how animation, even simple animation, can elevate a display ad and make it more compelling. Instead of simply displaying a price or destination, Lufthansa uses animation to tell a mini-story.

The ad begins with captivating visuals of the city or destination being promoted. This immediately draws the viewer in and creates a sense of wanderlust. It sets the stage for the “unforgettable experience” that Lufthansa is promising. These visuals aren’t just generic stock photos; they’re likely carefully chosen to evoke emotion and showcase the unique beauty or appeal of the destination.

Instead of simply displaying a price or destination, Lufthansa uses animation to tell a mini-story. The ad begins with captivating visuals of the city or destination being promoted. This immediately draws the viewer in and creates a sense of wanderlust. It sets the stage for the experience that Lufthansa is promising. Even with the emphasis on visuals and storytelling, the ad still needs a clear call to action. Lufthansa includes an outstanding button that encourages viewers to book their flights.

What’s important is that this ad is part of a larger strategy – Lufthansa promotes various offers leveraging the same ad format but with different visuals and tailored messaging. This helps build brand awareness and is a perfect strategy for those who want to promote various seasonal offers and build brand awareness through display advertising.

How to Create a Display Ad?

To create a display ad, define your campaign goal (brand awareness, lead generation, or conversions), and choose an ad network like Google Display Network or Facebook Ads. Select an ad format that aligns with your objectives. When designing your ad, use high-quality visuals, engaging copy, and a strong call-to-action (CTA) to capture attention. A crucial aspect of creating display ads is to optimize them for different sizes and devices to ensure visibility across platforms.

Tailor your targeting options to align with your audience’s demographics and interests, and utilize remarketing strategies to connect with the right people. Set a budget and bidding strategy, choosing between cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-mille (CPM). Then you can launch your ad and monitor its performance to make data-based optimizations and achieve better results.

How to Optimize Display Ads?

To optimize display ads, focus on creatives, targeting, bidding strategies, and performance tracking. Use high-quality visuals and compelling copy to capture attention, ensuring a clear call-to-action (CTA) that drives engagement. Leverage A/B testing to experiment with different ad versions, including colors, headlines, and formats. This allows you to easily evaluate what performs best.

Then, refine audience targeting using demographics, interests, contextual placement, and remarketing to reach the most relevant users. Monitor performance metrics like click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and viewability through analytics platforms like Google Ads. By tracking performance data, you can determine which ads work best and efficiently allocate your budget to the most effective campaigns and placements. Optimize by pausing underperforming ads and reallocating the budget to high-performing ones. Remember to ensure ads are responsive to different devices for better reach.

What Are the Display Ad Sizes?

Display ads come in various sizes and are optimized for different placements across websites, apps, and social media. The most effective sizes, based on Google Display Network and industry standards, include:

1. Leaderboard (728×90 px)

A leaderboard is a wide, horizontal banner commonly placed at the top of a webpage for high visibility.

2. Medium Rectangle (300×250 px)

Medium rectangle is one of the most popular sizes, often placed within content or sidebars for strong engagement.

3. Large Rectangle (336×280 px)

The large rectangle has similar proportions to the medium rectangle but is larger, providing better visibility and higher CTR.

4. Skyscraper (160×600 px)

A skyscraper is a vertical ad positioned in sidebars, designed to remain visible while users scroll.

5. Wide Skyscraper (300×600 px)

A wide skyscraper takes up more space in sidebars, offering a larger area for brand messaging and visuals.

6. Large Mobile Banner (320×100 px)

A large mobile banner is optimized for mobile devices. It appears at the top or bottom of mobile web pages.

7. Square (250×250 px) & Small Square (200×200 px)

A square is a compact ad unit suitable for sidebars and smaller placements.

What Are the Display Ad Networks?

Display ad networks are platforms that connect advertisers with publishers to serve ads across various channels. The largest display ad network is Google Display Network (GDN), reaching over 90% of internet users across 2 million+ sites. Meta Audience Network extends Facebook and Instagram ads to third-party apps.

Microsoft Audience Network is also a popular display ad network that places ads on Bing, MSN, and partner sites. Other networks include Amazon DSP, which targets shoppers across Amazon-owned properties, and networks like AdRoll, Taboola, or Outbrain, specializing in programmatic and native advertising for broader reach.

What Are Display Ads Best For?

Display ads are best for brand awareness, audience retargeting, and engagement-driven marketing. They visually capture attention, so they are great for introducing new products or reinforcing brand identity. Retargeting display ads help re-engage users who visited a website but didn’t convert.

This advertising method also works well for top-of-funnel marketing, driving traffic to landing pages, social media, or promotional offers. With precise targeting options, display ads effectively reach specific demographics, interests, and behaviors, maximizing campaign impact.

Where Do Display Ads Appear?

Display ad placement depends on targeting settings, user behavior, and the ad networks you work with. They can appear across:

• websites,
• mobile apps,
• social media platforms,
• video streaming services.

For instance, the Google Display Network serves ads on over 2 million partner sites, including news, blogs, and e-commerce pages. Social media display ads appear on platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Mobile display ads are integrated into apps and games, while video display ads run on platforms like YouTube and streaming services. If you decide to use native display ads, they will blend into content feeds, increasing engagement.

Are Display Ads Still Effective?

Yes, display ads are still effective, especially for brand awareness, retargeting, and audience engagement. While traditional banners face banner blindness and low CTRs, rich media, video, and responsive display ads improve engagement.

Recent advancements in programmatic advertising and AI-driven targeting have significantly improved the relevance of ads, ensuring they connect with the right audience. When paired with eye-catching visuals and tailored targeting, display ads continue to be an essential component of effective digital marketing strategies.

What Is the Best Tool for Display Ads?

The best tool for display ads is Abyssale, a platform that streamlines the creation of high–quality static or dynamic advertising banners. It allows marketers and designers to generate automated, scalable, and customized ad creatives without extensive manual work.

Abyssale makes batch generation a breeze, allowing you to produce hundreds of ad variations in minutes. With user-friendly templates, AI-driven resizing, and effortless brand integration, teams can easily weave banner creation into their advertising strategy. By utilizing Abyssale, you can maintain consistency and efficiency while delivering high-quality visuals across various formats, ultimately boosting engagement and conversion rates.

However, to create effective display ads, you should also focus on designing relevant landing pages. The best tool for this purpose is Landingi, a platform that simplifies landing page creation, testing, and optimization. The fastest way to craft ad-relevant, high-converting pages is to use AI landing page features, such as Composer. This tool generates professional pages tailored to your brand and campaign in minutes.

Those who appreciate automation can leverage the Figma plugin. Leveraging a dedicated Design System, you can design your page, and with Figma to Landingi, turning this project into a real page takes just a moment.

However, Landingi is a professional platform that also enables A/B testing. Experimenting with various ad creatives is just one part of ad optimization – the second part lies in tailoring the ad-related landing page to the target audience’s expectations. With Landingi, you can test multiple page versions to discover the best layouts. A built-in EventTracker lets you track each page’s performance, giving clear insights on further optimization. Thanks to Landingi, paid campaign optimization goes effortlessly and enables you not only to attract a broader audience but also to turn this interest into real outcomes.

What Is the Average Cost of Display Ads?

The average cost per thousand impressions (CPM) for display ads ranges from $2 to $20 for banner ads, $20 to $50 for video ads, and $10 to $100 for native ads, as reported by Speed Marketing Agency. On the Google Display Network (GDN), cost-per-click (CPC) ranges from $0.50 to $3.00, depending on competition and audience targeting. Display ads here cost on average $0.63 per click, while for search ads the CPC is $2.69 – display ads are cheaper because of lower click-through rates compared to search advertising.

Retargeting display ads tend to have higher costs but better conversion rates, often with CPCs between $0.60 and $4.00. However, GDN has higher fees than Facebook and Instagram, so it’s something to think about when deciding where to run your ads. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram offer display ad placements with CPMs averaging $5–$12.

Additionally, it’s important to consider industry benchmarks. Branches like finance and technology often see higher costs due to increased competition, while local and niche markets can achieve lower CPCs and CPMs. Overall, advertisers can always optimize advertising costs through effective targeting, bidding strategies, and ad quality improvements to maximize ROI.

How Do You Pay for Display Ads?

You pay for display ads using different pricing models, primarily the following:

• CPC (Cost Per Click), ideal for driving traffic and conversions.
• CPM (Cost Per Thousand Impressions), best for brand awareness.
• CPA (Cost Per Acquisition), used for performance-driven campaigns.

Payment for display advertising starts from setting budgets and bidding strategies through Google Display Network, Meta Ads, and programmatic platforms. Then, leveraging professional analytics tools, you can optimize costs for better ROI.

What Is the Difference Between Display Ads and Google Ads?

Google Ads is a broad advertising platform that enables the creation of various types of ads and running campaigns. It’s the overarching advertising platform run by Google, allowing you to create and manage your online advertising campaigns. You can think of it as the control panel.

Display ads are a type of advertising you can do through Google Ads. They are the visual ads (images, videos, etc.) that appear on websites, apps, and even YouTube, across the GDN. To picture this, imagine Google Ads is a grocery store, and display ads are specific product you but at this grocery store.

What Is the Difference Between Display Ads and Native Ads?

The key difference between display ads and native ads is appearance and user experience. Display ads are separate from content and rely on visuals, while native ads blend in for a more organic feel, leading to higher engagement rates.

Display ads are usually visually distinct ad units that stand out from the website’s content and are often placed in designated ad spaces, such as sidebars or headers. Native ads, on the other hand, are seamlessly integrated into the content of a website or platform, matching its look, feel, and format. They appear as sponsored articles, in-feed posts, or recommendation widgets, making them less intrusive and more engaging.

What Is the Difference Between Display Ads and Search Ads?

The main difference between display ads and search ads is intent. Search ads reach users actively searching, while display ads introduce brands to passive audiences, making them ideal for awareness and retargeting.

Display ads are visual advertisements (banners, videos, or rich media) that focus on brand awareness and engagement, targeting users based on interests, demographics, or browsing behavior. Search ads, on the other hand, are mainly text-based ads that appear on Google search results when users actively look for products or services. They target high-intent users, making them more effective for conversions.

What Are the Limitations of Display Ads?

The main limitations of display advertising involve limited intent targeting, viewability issues, and privacy & data restrictions. While display ads offer various targeting options (demographics, interests, context), they often struggle with intent targeting compared to search ads. Someone searching for a “hairdresser near me” clearly expresses a need. A user browsing a cooking blog might see a hairdresser ad, but their intent at that moment is focused on recipes, not plumbing services. This can lead to lower click-through rates and wasted ad spending if the targeting isn’t carefully considered.

Display ads are better at building brand awareness and reaching a wider audience, but they might not be as effective at capturing immediate, purchase-ready leads. The challenge lies in predicting user intent based on browsing behavior or contextual placement, which is less precise than direct search queries.

Another significant challenge for display ads is viewability. Simply because an ad is served doesn’t mean it’s actually seen by a user. Ads placed below the fold (requiring scrolling to be visible), in sidebars, or in other less prominent locations may be overlooked. Furthermore, even if an ad loads, users might scroll past it quickly without registering the message. This makes it difficult to measure the true impact of display campaigns, as impressions don’t necessarily equate to views.

Advertisers need to focus on ad placement, size, and format to improve viewability and ensure their message is actually being seen. They should also use metrics like viewable impressions rather than just served impressions to get a more accurate picture of ad performance.

Concerns about user privacy and data collection have led to stricter regulations and platform policies, affecting display advertising. The phase-out of third-party cookies complicates ad personalization and performance tracking. Regulations like GDPR and CCPA mandate transparency in data practices and enhance user control, limiting available data for targeting. Advertisers must adapt by exploring privacy-preserving methods, such as contextual advertising and first-party data strategies while ensuring compliance with evolving privacy laws.

Match Your Display Ads Strategy with Perfect Landing Pages

Display ads play a crucial role in digital advertising, offering businesses a powerful way to increase brand awareness, engage audiences, and drive conversions through visually appealing formats. By leveraging advanced targeting options such as demographics, interests, and remarketing, you can reach the right audience at the right time. While low click-through rates and ad fatigue present challenges, optimizing ad creatives, placements, and bidding strategies enhance performance.

Behind the success of each advertising campaign stands a well-designed landing page focused on conversion. This serves as a bridge between user interest and real outcomes, which determine the campaign’s success. Try Landingi for free and craft relevant pages for your future display ad campaigns!