If you decide to try to create a banner for your site yourself, you will not be able to do without searching for images that can be used in ads. Beginners may encounter copyright infringement and subsequent content blocking. Therefore, if there is no opportunity to take unique photos or order graphics and a designer, we recommend searching for images on special sites with a license for free use.
The following resources are poplar:
- Unsplash. The portal presents special database a large collection of high-quality photographs, systematized by topic.
- Pexel. In addition to photos, the site also features videos with permission for commercial use.
- Pixabay. The web resource contains photographs, vector graphics and short videos.
- Freepik. Most images, audio, videos and other files are available for free. You can also subscribe to the platform to access exclusive resources.
These sites will help you make a banner for your store without violating copyright.
How to Create a Banner: Step by Step
We offer you step-by-step instructions on how to make a banner for a website.
- Determine the overall goal of the advertising campaign. What is more important to you: increasing brand awareness, attracting new leads, or increasing sales? The answer to this question will help you decide on the format and content.
- Select the placement sites and format. The banner size depends on where it will be placed.
- Think about the content of your ad. It should be short, attention-grabbing, and include a clear call to action.
- Select a tool to create a banner. We will tell you more about them in the next section.
- Following the design rules, place text and graphics on the banner. Do not overload, use contrasting colors to highlight the CTA.
- Be sure to include your logo, use why should you hire a saas seo copywriter? your brand colors and fonts to ensure your banner matches your brand style and works to increase recognition.
- For this type of advertising, it is important that the images load quickly, especially on mobile devices. Use tools like TinyPNG or ImageOptim.
- Before publishing, check how the banner looks on different devices, whether all elements are displayed correctly
- Export the banner in the required format. PNG, JPG, GIF, HTML5 are most commonly used.
In general, keep it simple and try not to let anything distract from the main message you want to convey.
What tools can be used for banner design
Canva
It is an intuitive graphic design tool that aero leads offers ready-made templates and elements to make website banners. It allows teamwork and a library of templates.
Colorcinch
It is convenient to edit photos, overlay them on top of each other, change contrast, apply filters. One of the main advantages is ease of use.
Infogram
The service is useful for those who decided to put infographics on the banner. It is very easy to integrate and visualize data.
TinyPNG
This is an online image compression tool that is lossless and useful for optimizing banners. It works with PNG and Jpeg formats, but it is not a full-fledged design tool.
Figma
A professional design tool that allows you to work in real time. The service is very convenient for preparing creatives for testing: just copy the finished version and change a few parameters.
Adobe Express
Offers the ability to quickly create banners and other graphic elements using templates and simple tools. Easily integrates with other Adobe products.
Designer
It’s a cloud-based platform with editing features and lots of ready-made templates. It’s easy to work with on mobile devices. But compared to Canva or Adobe Express, its capabilities are limited.
Bannerboo
Specializes in creating animated banners for advertising and social networks. The service offers ready-made templates and simple tools. Supports export in various formats.
Fotor
This is an online image editor. It supports basic editing tools and offers templates to quickly make website banners.
How to Add a Banner to the Google Ads Display Network and Launch a Campaign
After you have completed the task of creating a banner for the site using the tools, the next step is to upload it to the Google Ads KMS. To do this, follow our recommendations. We remind you that all the described actions are performed in your own account. When registering, the system will prompt you to immediately start with creating an advertising campaign.
- From the menu, select the Campaigns tab and then create a new one.
- Specify the goal of your campaign and its type.
- In the next step, set up location settings, select the language your potential customers use most often, and select platforms to display your ads.
- Determine how much you are willing to spend daily and set a budget. Choose a bidding strategy.
- Google Ads allows you to target specific audiences. These can be interest groups, demographic characteristics, remarketing audiences. In the display advertising settings, you can select so-called “targeting signals.” This will help you identify the most effective audiences, focus on specific segments or keywords.
- At the creation stage, select “Upload an image ad” or “Create a responsive ad” (if you don’t have a ready-made banner).
- You can then preview how your ad will look on different devices and in different formats.
- Once all settings are configured and banners are uploaded, click “Save and Continue” to launch the campaign.
After launching a campaign, regularly check its effectiveness, analyze clicks, impressions and conversions, and adjust settings.
Examples of effective advertising banners
When creating advertising banners, the following trends are relevant:
- active use of AI to search for ideas, create and publish advertising materials;
- the growing popularity of video graphics, which is setting new standards for visual content;
- modern interpretation of styles and trends of past years, for example, their hyperrealistic visualizations, the revival of retro fonts, etc.;
- design that focuses on meaning, not just visual solutions.
Next, we invite you to look at strong examples of website banners.
Use images that evoke emotion
Conclusion
In conclusion of our review, we would like to remind you that you should not be afraid of making a mistake. The ideal banner simply does not exist. Your advertising will become an effective marketing tool only if it attracts the attention of the audience, encourages visitors to click on the link and make a purchase. Think about what message you want to convey and what visual elements are suitable for this. Use the tools that are convenient for you, follow our recommendations, and your advertising will start to bring in profit.
