Banners For Beginners (Part 4) Banner Sizes

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Welcome to Part 4 of this Banner Tutorial, which is all about creating banners for your website!

But if you're producing banners for use on the Internet, there's something else you need to be aware of - banner sizes.

You're probably accustomed to seeing a certain size of banners, which are 468 pixels by 60 pixels (often called "full size"), as these have always been the most popular. Here's an example of a full size banner, although you'll probably see a couple at the bottom of most pages on this website:

But there are now a range of other "standard" banner sizes, and you need to be aware of them, so I'll go through the most common ones below.

These are 88 pixels by 31 pixels, and they are rarely seen, because they are so small - it's really hard to make them so that the image and/or text is very clear.

These are 120 pixels by 60 pixels, and they are seen more often, although you still have to be careful that the image and/or text is clear enough. Having said that, you'll probably see some of these in the right columnn of this page, for example.

These are 120 pixels by 90 pixels, and now we're getting to a size that gives you more scope as the image is just that bit bigger. You'll probably see some of these in the right columnn of this page, for example.

These are 120 pixels by 240 pixels, and these are typically seen in either the left or right columns of a web page. You'll probably see some of these in the right columnn of this page, for example.

These are 120 pixels by 600 pixels, and these are typically seen in either the left or right columns of a web page. They're also probably the largest vertical-style banner you'll see. You may see some of these in the right columnn of this page, for example.

These are 125 pixels by 125 pixels, and these may be seen anywhere on a web page - some times in the left or right column, but maybe also in the body of the page, too. You'll probably see some of these in the right columnn of this page, for example.

These are 160 pixels by 600 pixels, and you rarely see these. If they are used, they would typically appear in the left or right column.

These are, as their name suggests, half the size of a Full Size banner, i.e. 234 pixels by 60 pixels. You don't see them very often, and they would normally be used where there isn't enough space for a Full Size banner.

These are 250 pixels by 250 pixels, and although you would think they're used in pop-ups, they are more often seen in the body of a web page (e.g. in the middle of an article, as you'll see on other pages on this site).

These are 300 pixels by 250 pixels, and these are almost always seen in the body of a web page (e.g. in the middle of an article, as you'll see on other pages on this site).

These are 336 pixels by 280 pixels, and these are almost always seen in the body of a web page.

That's about it. As you've seen, there's a banner size for every occasion, so no matter what layout your website adopts, you'll be able to find a size and shape of banner that's ideal.

One final tip: if you're running your own affiliate program, selling your own product or service, you really should consider creating at least one or two banners for each of the sizes listed above. You don't know where your affiliates want to promote your product, so you should give them as much choice as possible.

Well, that was a whistle-stop tour of banner creation. The rest is up to you - experiment, be bold, be creative, and you will soon find that your banners are getting more and more professional looking all of the time. You can see some of my own attempts at the following website, and you will notice a marked difference in the quality of some of them: http://www.MarkFarrar.co.uk/banners/

Mark Farrar has been building websites since 1997, both for personal and business use, and is the co-founder and webmaster of www.WealthyTeddy.co.uk, incorporating www.AllKindsOfShiznit.com, amongst many others.