Click-throughs versus brand building

What is the role of banners?

[jose]

After having read a Marketing paper the other day I found an interesting thought that I would like to share with you:

Apparently, Web advertising now amounts to 5 per cent of all US ad spend. However, click-throughs rates are declining (0.3) and people are getting worried about the effectiveness of banners. Now the argument is that the role of banners is not only to create click-throughs but to build the brand.

Ok then....Lets leave them build the brand while we get the click throughs!

jose

[john316]

Lets get click throughs and deliver enough quality content to build brand!

[skibum]

IMHO banners build brand awareness. They do not build the brand. On the web, the brand is built through positive experiences on the site. The site is the brand and the brand is the site. Banners alone stink for click throughs, however when a text link of some sort exists on a page along with a banner, the two seem to reinforce each other.

Even the "rich media" hoopla is fading. Sometimes those things will get a CTR of 10-12% when they first go up if they are very targeted.

One company I'm familiar with just cut loose some kind of rich media plan, similar I think to those banners that YAHOO! would run now and then with stuff flying across the screen. CTR was about 2%.

There is a lot of strategizing, creative development, negotiation, and time required to put together a banner campaign. It is not very convincing that it is worth it most of the time.