In this dynamic realm, the term “digital display” often pertains to visual advertisements that grace websites, mobile apps, and various other digital platforms. These visually appealing ad formats come in diverse shapes and sizes, from banners to video display ads, all aimed at promoting products, services, or messages to a vast online audience. Common formats include: banners, MPUs, 728×90, 300×50, retargeting and video display banners.

What are the Trends in Digital Display Advertising?

AI and Machine Learning

These technologies continue to influence ad targeting, personalisation, and optimisation, leading to more efficient and successful campaigns.

More Ad Spend in Programmatic Advertising

With so many websites and publishers online, media buyers are overwhelmed by sellers. Programmatic advertising provides our team a centralised point whereby we can tap into global digital inventory across a wide array of formats. Digital Willow’s programmatic software allows us to access 98% of global ad inventory via access to 40+ ad exchange networks, all abiding by strict data privacy legislation.

Connected TV (CTV) and Over-The-Top (OTT) Advertising

As more consumers shift from traditional TV to streaming services, advertising on platforms like Roku, Disney+, Netflix, and other CTV/OTT platforms has become more popular.

Dynamic Creative Optimisation (DCO)

DCO allows Digital Willow to create multiple versions of an ad and then serve the version that’s most likely to perform best based on the target audience’s data. It’s real-time personalisation for ads and beats standard ads on performance nearly every time.

Learn more about programmatic advertising here.

Interactive and Immersive Formats

Ads that allow users to interact, such as 360-degree video ads, augmented reality (AR) ads, and virtual reality (VR) ads, are on the rise, offering unique and memorable experiences.

Continued Focus on Performance Advertising

Advertisers are increasingly looking at measurable outcomes, such as conversions, sales, or leads, time spent on site, and engagement rates rather than just impressions or clicks. This trend leads to a focus on performance-based ad models.

Tried & Tested Display Formats

Native Advertising

These are ads that match the look, feel, and function of the media format in which they appear. These ads are non-disruptive and blend in with the user’s experience, often resulting in higher engagement rates. We love how easy it is now to buy native ads in local news sites or even big national newspaper titles around the world.

Video Advertising

With increasing internet speeds and the popularity of video content platforms, video ads are more prevalent than ever. Formats include in-stream, out-stream, and interactive video ads.

Responsive Display

Responsive display ads have grown in popularity, driven in most by Google. We have seen repeatedly that they are having better results than more traditional display banners (i.e. html5). With the rise of mobile devices and various screen sizes it makes sense to adopt a responsive approach to size, appearance, and format of display banners. The downside of this format is that strict brand guidelines can be more difficult to adhere to. The more control you give a platform of how your ad looks by device, the further away from the original concept it may become. If you are looking for some advice on finding the right balance of brand protection, ad flexibility, and better performance, get in touch.

Contextual Advertising

With increasing concerns about privacy and data use, there’s a resurgence in contextual advertising. It involves placing ads based on the content of a website page rather than user behaviour, ensuring relevancy without relying heavily on personal data.

What are the Buying Metrics / Cost Models for Display Advertising?

  • CPM (Cost Per Mile): Advertisers pay for every thousand impressions their ad receives.
  • CPC (Cost Per Click): Advertisers pay only when their ad is clicked.
  • CPA (Cost Per Action): Advertisers pay when a user takes a specific action, such as signing up or making a purchase, after clicking on an ad.
  • CPV (Cost Per View): Common in video advertising, advertisers pay when their video is viewed.

Important Things to Remember when Planning Display Marketing

Mobile-First Advertising

With the proliferation of smartphones and mobile devices, ads should be designed with mobile first thinking (desktop as secondary). Ads need to be clear and look great on smaller screens as a priority over desktop devices in alignment with usage.

Data Privacy and Transparency

With regulations like GDPR in Europe and CCPA in California, there’s a heightened focus on user privacy. Advertisers and publishers need to be transparent about how they collect and use data, leading to a more consent-based advertising approach. As the cookieless world emerges, us marketers need to stay on top of the trends in alternative targeting methods and equally ensure we are compliant with law and consumers preferences.