WebMetro has made a big push in 2007 / 2008 to leverage the content networks to provide new incremental sales opportunities for our clients.  Essentially a new play on banner advertising, the content or contextual networks, allow you to go beyond traditional PPC text ads and created visually appealing graphic banners that will display on related subject matter websites, such as news sites, content portals and blogs.  So while WebMetro’s design / development roots are being tapped for these new campaigns, we have found that sometimes it is making your ad not stand out that will help you win.  Let me explain.

First of all, I’ll lead by saying the results have been very strong and are demonstrated in this recent Murad content case study we produced with Google.  But we need to remember this is not search.  These people did not just look for your product.  Instead, they are reading about your industry, researching options, and in general, browsing the Internet.  While ads are a necessary and accepted element by most, they are typically slotted immediately as just that.  In some cases, where the subject matter of the page is very specific and targeted, we’ve found that banners that are not obtrusive, but instead appear to be an integral part of the page, work best.

Imagine you’re on a tech related blog getting the latest info on new IT security threats.  What are you more likely to respond to, an ad with beautiful graphics including professional product photography that introduces your security software suite of products, or a simple ad with an appealing yet toned-down color palette that says click here to view the latest threat matrix and most recent security threats?  We’ve found that the latter often outperforms.  And it is for this reason that we say design for the sake of beautiful design does not always equal maximum return.  So as usual, test, test, test and see what works best!