The State of the Banner Ad

People have been proclaiming the death of the banner ad for years. Forbes questioned the longevity of the banner ad as far back as 2006.

If marketers have questioned the effectiveness of banner advertising for so long, they must be moving away from this form of advertising, right?

In fact, MediaRadar analysis reveals that the number of brands placing basic banner ads has remained consistent between July, 2012 and August, 2013.

Even as online video, native ads, and other forms of rich media have come to market, the low cost of development and placement, and the ease to scale have kept the banner ad relevant.

This does not mean, however, that premium advertising isn’t succeeding. The number of brands placing premium, rich media ad units is increasing. In consumer websites between July 2012 and July 2013, the number of brands that placed premium ad units such as homepage takeovers and roadblocks increased by 74%, with page takeovers driving much of the growth.