Step 1: Research Target Websites
When you plan a display ad campaign, your first step is to research where and how to reach your target audience. Once you have determined the demographics of your target customers, you should research the websites, blogs, and independent “special interest” community sites (e.g., sites outside of Facebook) where your target customers spend time online.
Usually, of course, you develop a display ad (its branding, message, etc.) to appeal to the type of customer you think will be a frequent visitor to the site. (For example, if your target audience is financial investors, you develop a display ad for financial investment sites.) So it makes sense to study the sites where your target customers are spending time, and where your ads will be most appropriate.
I recommend you make a list of target sites—that is, sites that are frequented by your target customers, where you think your display ads will get the most coverage. How many target sites you have on your list depends on how general or specific your products or services are, and how many sites are frequented daily by your potential customers.
If your company offers general consumer products, such as auto insurance, you may find hundreds of general content websites where your display ads will get regular views from your target customers. If your company offers more specific products (e.g., plumbing pipes and fixtures) to a more specific target audience, your list of target sites will be shorter (e.g., home builders sites, do-it-yourself fix-it sites, trade organization sites, and industry news sites for the construction industry).
The best way to find the details of a target site and its audience is to download the site’s media press kit. Go to the site, and click the advertising link that is usually located at the bottom of the home page. The site’s advertising page usually includes a download link to the media kit.
A traditional media kit has four sections:
1. A Site Profile: This section describes the purpose of the site, how the site is structured, and what content sections exist on the various pages.
2. The Audience: This section gives information on what types of people visit the site and their demographics. It usually describes the typical age group, sex (male, female, or both), occupations, and other characteristics of people who spend time on the site. It may also have details about their buying behavior. (Many websites do surveys or polls to gather information about the people who visit them.)
3. Specifications: This section provides specifications for the kinds of display ads the site is willing to accept. It specifies the “ad space” locations on the pages (top of page, right-hand margin, etc.) where display ads can appear. It also tells you which content pages or sections on the site are available for display ads.
4. Advertising Rates: This section lists rates for display advertising.
THE DETAILS OF THE SITE
When examining a target site, there are a few things you should pay special attention to on the site itself, and in the media press kit. (I recommend you take notes for each site where you plan to buy advertising space.)
The Home Page and Other Pages Look at the content not only on the home page, but on the other pages of the site as well. Some pages may have content that is specific to your target audience. Your display ads may get a better response if they are served on these content-specific pages than if they are served on the home page.
For example, a “home builders” site may have a plumbing page that offers advice on home plumbing. If you sell plumbing pipes and fixtures, your display ad may get a better response on this page. If you are selling financial management software for 401K investors, and your target site is a business news site, your display ad might get a better response on the personal finances page than it would on the marketing news page. If you are selling laptops, your ad might get a better response on the technology news page.
The Current Display Ads Look at the display ads currently on the target site. Look at their size, shape, and special features (animation, video, audio, etc.). Note their content, branding, and message. You can get a sense of what types of ads work best for the site. This can give you insight into how to plan and develop your own display ads, so they will fit with the content and standards of each site.
Also pay attention to the locations of the ads (top of page, side margins, etc.). When buying advertising space from a target site, you may want to choose the location on a page where you wish to display your ad. For example, you may want to display your ad in the most prominent places, such as at the very top or in the right-side margins of the home page. (Advertisers sometimes call this “premium space,” and it is usually more expensive to buy.)
Another option for choosing the location of your display ads is called “run of site.” In effect, you let the site owners choose the pages where your ads will appear and their placement on the pages, based on their unused ad space inventory. The run-of-site option is becoming more popular because it allows advertisers to take advantage of unused ad space on the websites, usually at cheaper rates. The site owners prefer to have ads running on any page, instead of blank space, so they will often offer discount rates to advertisers to place their ads on pages that currently don’t have any ads.
The Pricing Structure The pricing structure of the website is usually listed in the “advertising rates” section of the site’s media kit. CPM is the most dominant form of pricing. Many sites charge a flat CPM rate for every 1,000 times your ad is served on their site. In placing display ads on different pages, some sites may charge higher CPM rates for pages that get more visitors. (For example, a display ad on the home page may command a higher rate.)
Other websites sell display advertising space based on CPA pricing structures, such as PPC. Some sites may use an auction-based method, similar to the bid process in SEM and social advertising. On these sites, space for display ads is auctioned off to whoever bids the highest PPC rate. Other sites may use a pay-per-performance model; ads that get the most clicks get served in the best locations on the site.
Sometimes, the pricing structure you encounter depends on how you choose to approach your target sites. We’ll talk about this in the next section.