The 5 best ad formats for your brand
Posted: May 2, 2012 | 9:15 ET by Tessa Wegert

What we wouldn't give to know which of the countless digital ad formats out there will perform for our brand. Well, good news: rich media developer MediaMind (formerly Eyeblaster) has released the results of a study on ad format performance that could hold the answers to the most pressing questions to befall a campaign.

By looking at engagement data across 300,000 banners, the company measured exposure and interaction rates – in particular "Dwell rates," which "measure the proportion of impressions that were touched by the user's mouse for more than one second." What follows are the top-performing ad formats, all of them ready and waiting to work for your brand.

1. Sidekick. This relatively new format - one of the IAB's Rising Stars pushes the site content aside to give the ad a prominent placement. In MediaMind's study it delivered an average Dwell rate 60 per cent higher than that of a polite banner (in other words, a banner that doesn't disturb the page content).

2. Pushdown. Similar in style to the Sidekick except that it pushes the site content down, this is another Rising Star format that, according to MediaMind's report, users were 164 per cent more likely to engage with than a traditional polite banner.

3. Homepage Takeover. A tried and true favourite that continues to captivate users and generate Dwell rates 32 per cent higher than a polite banner.

4. Messenger Ads. These are a vastly underutilized format. Messenger ads appear to instant messenger users during chat sessions. They may be small, but they pack a powerful punch.

5. Video Extender. This format allows consumers to expand a site-based video asset to any size they desire, without interrupting the video stream. The ability to resize an ad at will gives consumers more control over the online video experience, and can improve Dwell rates by upwards of 100 per cent.

For more information on MediaMind's study, download the PDF here.




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Tessa Wegert is a veteran media strategist with a background in media planning and buying, content development, ad copywriting, and campaign management. As a prominent industry writer she has been covering digital marketing and technology for leading newspapers and trade publications for over a decade. Connect with her on Twitter (@tessawegert) and LinkedIn.
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