Heather Paulson posted an article to her blog just recently called “Affiliate Banners | How PMG increased banner impressions by 600%”.
In the article, Heather discusses the importance of affiliate banners to an affiliate program and the strategies that the PMG (Paulson Management Group) took for a new client to gain a 400% affiliate banner impression increase in one month and a 600% increase in affiliate banner impressions within 4 months.
As you may have already guessed, increasing banner impressions has a lot to do with creating better affiliate banners, because, as Heather says, “Affiliates are savvy online marketers“… “who have advanced knowledge of what works as far as display advertising“.
So, what is it that we savvy affiliate marketers are looking for in an affiliate banner?
- Well, first there is the look or attractiveness. Ugly design doesn’t inspire clicks. No clicks, no sales.
- Secondly, there should be an offer. Nothing gets the click faster than offering your blog readers a deal like 50% off, free shipping, coupons and other offers that save them money.
- Lastly, there has to be a call to action. Click Here, Buy Now and Learn More are good examples of calls to action.
Heather also discusses advanced affiliate banner considerations which you can read in her post about affiliate banners here.
Here’s a test based on what we’ve learned about affiliate banners.
Which of the following has the highest EPC in the Commission Junction Network?
| eHarmony Banner 1 |
eHarmony Banner 2 |
Share your choice in the comments below.
And No cheating! 
Note: comments are now closed and the answer has been posted here.
About Rosalind Gardner
Banner one is easier to read and more balanced but banner two acts on our emotions. People are known to act on emotions even so far as to misread a simple banner. No where does it promise true love only true compatibility. So my choice would be banner two.
I would only click on 1 and I don’t think I would even notice 2 as it seems just too faint in the context of this page at least, but if you read 2 then there is more appeal – interesting experiment!
#2 has the better text, particularly when you consider that particular target market, and my usual preference is for softer colors like it has, but #1 got my attention first because it’s clear and crisp.
It almost seems like they are equally good, but again considering the target, the emotionalism of #2 makes it the better choice, IMO.
I would click banner 1 . Two has more key words, but nothing stands out and it recedes into the color.
I think banner #1 It has better colours with less clutter. Definitely a case of less is more
Hi Rosalind – very interesting blog article and a topic of interest to me
I think Banner 2 gets more clickthroughs because besides the nice colour design – find love based on true compatibility gives the visitor a REAL POSITIVE BENEFIT or USP up front in clear white text so easy to read and it is free to review matches so a second obvious benefit.
I vote for banner 1. It says less, but the brand is larger, the font is larger, and it leads with the word “FREE” in upper case.
I think banner 1 would have higher ctr.
Regarding your suggestion of attractive ads doing better, I have I have found that “ugly sells” and performs better in many cases. Depends on the niche I’m sure.
One suggestion for banners: stand back 6 feet from your monitor. Can you see the headline and the strong call to action?
See you in Vegas!
Byron
Banner #1 caught my eye over banner #2. The word FREE is prominent on banner #1. With a quick scan I saw eHarmony and the word FREE. Without having to think about it I know exactly what both words mean so it actually made me want to click on it over banner #2 before I had even read exactly what it had to say.
Thanks for the info, Ros.
I like banner #2 better. It has the required information but it goes a step further by adding emotional and visual appeal.
Number 1 for me as it does not blend into the webpage as much.
Hmm, tricky one.. Of course I could cheat but would like to know the answer first..lol.
T
Number 1. No question. If I’m wrong, I’ll eat my computer.
Number one grabs my attention and makes the free offer plain as day. The call to action button stands out, makes me want to click it.
Number two blends into the page and has a small font. The free offer is buried in a lot of print. The call to action has an understated look to it. The design is weak but may be good for disclosure statements to keep the FTC happy, not for getting clicks.
My answer is Banner 2. Reason it communicates the following
The who.
The what
The added benefits
Three communicated benefits in one banner
No. 1 banner may attract the most clicks but it could have the highest abandon rate if visitors need to spend more time drilling for more information. No. 2 banner gives more information which will attract more targeted visitors and eventually more converted customers. So the lesson learned, vary the weight of the text – make the title big and prominent and add secondary info for clarity.
I choose no 2 because although it is not as clear it at least tells you what the offer is.
I’m going to guess number 2 because of the lighter blue color. Although I agree with some about the bigger font in number 1.
No 2 as it has the word Love in it.
But if you already knew what e-Harmony offers, then No 1 as it’s more legible.
Definitely #1. FREE jumped right at me grabbing my attention. #2 would have been good if they had reversed the order of the sentences and made the FREE… line bigger and the FIND…. line smaller underneath.
Iwould be interested in seeing another experiment. since people read from left to right if you put #2 in front of #1 if the selections would change.
I believe that banner #2 gets more attention because of the word “love” which acts magic. However, i personnally would pay more attention to banner #1, it is short, pregnant, has a more eye catching color, with bigger letters and makes me wondering what’s behind this offer.
Definitely banner #1! Clear, concise, and pointed.. But then again, I’m like Griff. I always choose the wrong one so maybe I’m just always wrong! lol
Also the word FREE stands out in banner #1 and everyone loves FREE!
So Ros,
Are you gonna tell us???
Hi Troy,
Sure will… tomorrow.
Cheers,
Ros
I like #1. Clean, ez to read.
Love this post!
A little suspense in waiting for the answer and good feedback from folks. I’ll join the #1 camp based on eHarmony’s already established identity. It’s short and to the point. I’ll have to check back tomorrow for the final say. Nicely Done!
Banner #1: it has fewer competing visual elements and a clear focal point. #2 has NO focal point — your eyes struggle to make sense of it.
Resolution and saturation are also sharper and clearer on #1, with a clear call to action.
Banners rate about the same viewer time as outdoor ads: about 2-3 seconds, unless they can flag their target audience and hold their attention long enough to get read and acted on.
Any visual media ad has only three duties:
1. Get itself noticed.
2. Get itself read.
3. Get the desired action.
Banner #1 should be the clear winner.