It’s become the norm for most arcade owners to join banner exchanges to drive traffic to their sites. Many users enjoy the free traffic and many use these exchanges to purchase impressions for an extra boost of traffic. Whether you are buying or just exchanging impressions from these exchanges, probably the most important factor you should consider is the CTR (click thru rating) of the banners you are using. Banners with a low CTR can mean you are giving away more traffic than you are bringing in and if that’s the case, you may as well not even bother using the exchange.

After testing out many banners, it seems that overall the more flashy the banner, the better the CTR. Many webmasters make the mistake of using branded images that are not animated enough. It may be natural for a webmaster to dislike these seizure-inducing gif’s on our sites but the truth is; people definitely click these things!

The key is to include your website branding in these animated gif’s.
Here are some tips for creating your 100×100 animated banners:

• Here’s an example of an animated gif that would potentially get a good CTR:

Notice how it incorporates many popular video game characters by using so many quick frames.

• To tweak your banner, consider adding some text like “Play Now!” or “Hot Games!” that would further explain what the banner’s url leads to. Some users just need a little more explanation of what that flashy image will do for them. Example:

• The next tip is to consider adding your own branding to the banner. DO NOT rely only on a logo. The animated background is probably the most important part when it comes to CTR. Simply add your site’s name to the banner just as the “play now” text in the previous banner. This will help users start to remember your website’s name, which will potentially start bringing you more repeat visitors.

Here are 2 samples of a branded banners I’ve made that tend to get a high CTR:

There are many programs available out there to create these images. ESO now offers a free animated gif creator. [Click Here To Create Your Banner] Just choose how many frames you would like and each one’s delay time(speed), upload the images and voila.

• It’s probably a good idea to rotate in some new banners occasionally on your account(s). With so many arcades out there, maintaining a good CTR relies on your banners being more appealling than the rest.