Cognitive impact of banner ad characteristics: An experimental study

Banner ads function as both image and direct response advertising Industry wisdom assumes that banner ad characteristics affect the viewer's recall an d clicks; however, most evidence is anecdotal. This study examines the view er's cognitive response as a function of banner ad size and type in a lab e xperiment. The study finds that animated banner ads result in quicker respo nse and better recall than non-animated banner ads and that large banner ad s lead to better comprehension and more clicks than small banner ads. User mode-information-seeking or Web-surfing- was not found to affect the viewer 's response to banner ads.