By Daegan Smith

YNOT – Whether you are checking your email, shopping on a website or just searching for information, online ads are everywhere. A new marketing landscape, the internet offers cheaper advertising space, as compared to traditional spaces like print, television, radio and outdoor advertising. Online advertising is a potent tool that can maximize visibility, drive traffic to the company’s website and increase sales, all while helping to build a solid brand.

Another benefit: Most companies, even small ones, can manage their online advertising ventures themselves instead of hiring an expensive advertising agency. Just remember to focus on what you want and employ a strong dose of imagination, and you’ll be on your way.

Here are five basic guidelines that will help you get the most from your online advertising.

Define your advertising objective: Shut the door, switch off the lights, take a deep breath and think about why you need to advertise. Clearly define the goals you want your advertising program to achieve. Do you want to generate new leads, increase the number of hits on your website, make your company visible in the marketplace or increase sales? Each goal requires a different advertising path. You can only expect your program to maximize returns if you know for sure what you want your advertising to do.

Decide where you want to be seen: Being seen in the right places can make all the difference between a successful ad campaign and a failure. As in offline advertising, the placement of your ads is crucial. Advertising on websites that are most relevant to your line of business is the best alternative. Also consider top search engines, media websites that focus on your industry, service provider directories and networks of sites similar to yours.

Tailor the message for your target audience: When you want the caveman to listen, beat your chest! When you want to convince women and couples your products will increase intimacy, whisper. In other words, craft your message to appeal to the target audience. Your message to visitors on a trade forum needs to be very different from what your ads say to the guy clicking on a link list or gallery page. The trick here is to align your message to the mindset of your audience. In online advertising, one size does not fit all. You can advertise the same products and services profitably in vastly different venues simply by changing the tone of your ads.

Be Creative: In a marketplace teeming with new ads, you can easily get clobbered on the head with run-of-the-mill ad copy. Your most valuable asset is your creativity, which will make your ad stand out. Be creative not only in the copy, but also in the placement of the advertisement. Consider giving viewers what they least expect. Some gay adult programs, for example, have discovered advertising gay content on straight websites draws buyers who wouldn’t dare visit an overtly homosexual site. Add more depth to your advertisements by using rich media like video, JavaScript and layered ads. Use animated messages doubled with pull-down menus for better utilization of space and for expanding possibilities of response.

Choose the advertising medium wisely: If you are going to spend a sizeable amount of money on creating and placing ads, they should do more than just wiggle and pop. To maximize response, choose the format for your ads carefully. You have several choices like banner ads, contextual advertising, full pages, fly-ins and -outs, consoles, etc. Research the various formats and the factors for each one’s success, then decide which might work best for your campaign. Once you have decided on the format, it is equally important to choose the vendor. If you have decided on banner advertising, research and list the websites that will provide the maximum exposure to the precise audience. Don’t forget to evaluate whether advertising networks and pay-per-click options are appropriate for your goals.

Once your campaign has been set in motion, take care to monitor response and be ready to change or completely redo your copy and the advertising vehicles you use. Keep a track of the return on investment for every advertising purchase you make. This way you can figure out which forms of advertising are working for you and which ones aren’t.

All online advertising is aimed at inducing “action.” Every online ad is built to make the viewer act: “Register for our free newsletter,” “free gift with purchase,” “buy now and save 50 percent” … the list goes on. The thing to remember here is that once the prospect has been pushed into an action, there should be real value for him at the other end. Unless you can fulfill the promise your brand is making, your online ad has been wasted.

A well-planned and well-executed advertising campaign can fuel the growth of business tremendously. Following a few simple guidelines and see how it impacts your sales, visibility and brand building, all at the same time.

Daegan Smith is an ex-NCAA wrestler turned webmaster. This article originally appeared at MainstreamWebmasters.com. It was revised and reprinted with permission.