Where do banner ads appear?
We have three banner ad zones, one of which has premier and standard placement:
Blog sidebar banner: PREMIER (includes homepage)
Premium sidebar ads are in the right sidebar on all 10,000+ pages of the Offbeat Wed blog — including the homepage! The premium banner ad appears at the top of the sidebar banner zone. There are two ads rotating through the zone, which means that while your ad will always be at the top, it will only show every other page load.
Blog sidebar banner: STANDARD (includes homepage)
Sidebar ads are in the right sidebar on all 10,000+ pages of the Offbeat Wed blog — including the homepage!
The banners rotate randomly through all the available slots — meaning that each time the page is loaded, you're as likely to appear in the bottom slot as the second-top slot. There are two banners rotating in each slot.
On mobile, these banners appear at the bottom of every page of the site, acting as the final “call to action” on each page:
Other banner questions
Can banner ads use a direct link?
No. Only Vendor Spotlight posts and vendor listings feature direct links, and even those are rel=sponsored links, in accordance with Google's best practices.
What do you mean when you say your ads “rotate”?
“Rotating” means that there are a maxiumum of two ads that cycle through each ad slot. Each time a reader loads page, the ads will be shuffled through the slots — sometimes near the top, and sometimes near the bottom. Since there are multiple ads rotating in each slot, this means that you may not see your ad the first time you load a page. Reload the page, and you'll see that the ads shuffle.
Can you change the banner image part-way through my campaign?
Yes. Once your ad is live, you'll receive a weekly email with a link to your Advertising Dashboard where you can update your banner image.
Can I see stats about how my banner is performing?
Unfortunately, no. That said, you're welcome to use a link with a UTM so that you can track clicks on your side with Google Analytics.
Can I use an animated banner image?
Flickering, flashing, and strobing effects on webpages can cause some people to have photosensitive seizures (and can cause many other people to just get irritated!), so we ask advertisers not to use animated banner images.
Do you guarantee a certain number of impressions?
No. Our estimates should only be used as a guideline since impressions can vary with ad inventory and site traffic.
Whew, got all that?
Alrighty then, LET'S DO THIS THING!