Choose your own advertisement – The best ad formats for monetization

For site owners, what’s not to like about monetization? You get the opportunity to earn revenue from the content you’ve collected or created. Earning revenue from your website can increase your financial freedom and allow for more time to connect with your audience or invest in your existing content.

However, your audience may feel that a sudden influx of advertisements plastered across your website could impede on the content they love. What’s the best way to get paid for your hard work, without losing your audience to annoying, poorly-placed advertisements? We’ll walk you through what to consider before you implement ads on your site.

Desktop vs. mobile

In 2017, the Coalition for Better Ads conducted research surrounding different ad formats and their impact on a user’s experience and enjoyment of the site. They found that users were less likely to be annoyed by ads on a desktop than they were on mobile. Users preferred embedded ads over pop-ups, and video ads with sound or music were a big turn-off for users.

Today, advertisers have heard these user concerns and mostly moved away from these pesky pop-ups towards static, programmatic advertising. These ads occupy designated space on a webpage, without infringing on content or blocking navigation for the user. Static ads are also easier to load on both mobile and desktop, which means less impact on the UX overall.

Programmatic vs. direct

Something else to consider when monetizing is the ad content itself. There are two types of advertisements that will populate the available ad formats. Programmatic advertisements go through a speedy bidding process and will populate according to the user’s web history or preferences (depending on which cookies they allow on visiting your site). Direct advertising is typically only provided through your publisher platform.

If you’re part of a publisher platform (like us, here at Publisher Collective), you’ll have access to campaigns that your platform negotiates on your behalf. This means that your site can host immersive, interactive ads over a designated period of time. Publisher Collective pursues and selects ad campaigns that will complement your content and entice your users.

Frequency vs. function

When choosing your ad format, think about your UX as it stands. Where are the dead zones on your website where you could place a banner ad? Is your navigation menu at the bottom or top of the page? There are lots of different ad formats in different aspects and sizes, so pick ones that will complement the existing format of your site.

Keep your user base in mind when selecting the number of ad formats for your site. More ads typically mean more revenue, but if you bombard users with ads on every page, your viewership could go down. Sometimes less is more. Adjust your ad placements and formats to what’s best for you and your audience.

Helping site owners monetize their websites is our specialty. You can apply to join the Collective here. Keep an eye on our blog for more industry tips and news.