How display ads work and how to measure their impact
- Laura Indiana
- Feb 17
- 3 min read
Summary This article provides a practical guide to what display ads are, how they work, formats, buying models, and metrics to measure their impact in multichannel campaigns for SMEs. Key takeaways
|
The key is to define the right platform and create effective creatives to maximize reach and conversions. This guide explores what display ads are, how they work, where they appear, and how to measure their impact on multichannel campaigns for SMEs.
What are display ads?
Display ads are visual ads like banners and videos that appear on websites, apps and social to drive visibility, traffic and conversions. They are tools that allow you to reach users while browsing in diverse contexts.
How do they work?
They are bought in three main ways: Direct buying, Ad networks (for example Google Display Network) and Programmatic advertising. These models vary in control, management and scalability and allow you to target ads to specific audiences.
You pay for the inventory available on selected networks or properties and you achieve measurable reach. In practice, buying models let you place ads and measure effectiveness.
Display ad types include: banners, native, video and interstitial, with responsive formats and remarketing that adapt to the available assets.
Common cost metrics include CPC and CPM, with CPC per click and CPM per thousand impressions; programmatic buying offers greater transparency and control. These metrics drive targeting and budget decisions.
Do display ads fit your strategy?
If the goal is to increase awareness or test creatives, display ads can be useful in the acquisition funnel. To maximize their effectiveness, align copy, creatives and the conversion funnel.
Casper, an ecommerce mattress brand, tested 467 display ads in the United States over the last year, with an average CPM of $4.35 and a direct publisher agreement share of 63.57%.
ActiveCampaign relies mainly on programmatic for display campaigns (90.39%), with an average CPM of $2.52 and a below-the-fold impression share of 84.73% to keep costs down.
Expedia uses a combination of programmatic and direct buys. It spends about $150,000 per month on display ads, conducting frequent A/B tests: they used over 8,000 ad variants in the last 12 months.
6 tips for effective display campaigns
1. Choose the right platform for your audience
The choice of platform depends on where your audience spends time and the level of targeting and scalability. Common options include Google Display Network, Microsoft Audience Network and programmatic platforms.
Consider which solutions offer the reach and formats suitable for your brand and budget.
2. Write strong copy and CTAs
Write copy that communicates a clear benefit and a specific, action-oriented CTA. Keep messages simple and unambiguous within the constraints of ad formats.
Focus on benefits and concrete evidence rather than the product alone.
3. Research competitors' strategies
Use tools like AdClarity to understand how much competitors spend, which campaigns they launch, and which ads they use. Analyze the reports to identify patterns of success and areas for improvement.
Check the top ads and top publishers sections to understand where competitors' ads appear.
4. Use strong visual elements
Visual elements are decisive: use high-quality images, keep a simple layout, and maintain a brand-consistent look. Design for small screens and use video or animation sparingly.
5. Optimize placements and formats
Test manual and automatic placements and remove those that perform worst. Try different formats to see which generate greater engagement.
6. Run A/B tests
Run A/B tests to compare creativity, copy and CTAs, setting clear objectives before you start. Keep sample sizes adequate for reliable results.
How to measure the impact of your display ads and adjust
Measure impact by tracking impressions, CTR, conversion rate, CPA and ROAS. Use the data to adjust targeting, creatives and placements across multi-channel.
To measure brand impact, monitor brand lift and the trend in branded searches to evaluate the awareness generated by the campaign.
Useful tools include managing metrics for display campaigns, with targeted queries on Organic Rankings to analyze visibility and performance over time.
The combination of targeted placements and creative flexibility is the key to achieving real results.
A consistent multi-channel approach allows you to measure impact on awareness, traffic, and conversions reliably.
Enhance Your Display Ad Strategy
If you want to accelerate creative production, use tools like AdCreative.ai to generate brand-aligned content. Follow the guided workflow to import brand, create creatives and generate variants for testing.
Set up your project and generate multiple versions you can use in A/B tests, to quickly iterate on copy and visuals.