iMedia Connection: 6 display ads people loved

Article Highlights:

* Canon's ad on Entrepreneur.com turned the site from black and white to full color
* Unlike traditional passive and linear video, interactive video -- such as that in Avatar's ad -- lets users decide what is going to happen next
* In a 2012 online ad, two meteors shoot out of nowhere and blow up the screen

A little serendipity

Inspiring online moments begin with a little serendipity, or the accidental discovery of something pleasant, valuable, and useful. Although online users do not typically browse for display ads, users will engage with an interesting ad that can provide a rewarding experience and, thereby, increase the brand's relevancy. Thus, online display advertising is a process of accidental discovery.

However, there is a fine line between serendipity and randomness. Accidental discovery does not mean that users randomly pick ads to engage with. On the contrary, it requires creative shops to produce entertaining and engaging ads that are worth the discovery. In an online world with declining click-through rates, in-banner engagement is gaining prime importance. Data released by Eyeblaster show that for every 1,000 ads, users engage in 70 rich media impressions -- but only click on three. That means nearly 95 percent of impressions that users engage with are never clicked. This confirms that advertisers must bring the experience to the user, rather than have the users seek it out on their own.

There are two key points that turn an ordinary ad into an extraordinary ad. First, great ads are highly visible over the publisher's content. This can be achieved through myriad ways, such as wallpaper ads, purchasing multiple ads on one page to eliminate competing ads, use of rich Flash and video to attract attention, synched ads, or just visually attractive creative.
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Second, great ads engage users and allow them to explore the brand in a compelling manner. These advertisers are cognizant that the vast majority of users are not going to click on the ad and browse to the minisite, so they create a full-fledged experience contained within the banner itself. Many ads blow users away by using a full screen, spectacular images, and dynamic Flash and large videos. Adding to the initial impression, they allow users to get as much information as they can in the banner itself, and explore the brand by bringing the minisite to the user, rather than the other way around.

Here are six serendipity-ready ads that have taken these creative elements a step further...please continue reading here: iMedia Connection