IAB creative standards2004.01.19

I recently ran across guidelines aimed at publishers as ways of getting those ad buys you really want out of the companies who have the money to do so...

Pressure your publisher to stick with IAB standardized creative formats as much as possible. "Multiple formats frustrate producers and infuriate clients."

Well, like all guidelines, yes and no.

The problem with standard ad size guidelines is that they're standard. Which means they're (likely) common. Which means they're recognizable. Which means they're all too easy to dismiss.

For big companies, buying across dozens of web sites, standardization may be an advantage. I don't know. I'm not handling ad deals in the hundreds of thousands with multinationals - I'm dealing with small to medium-sized businesses.

What these advertisers care most about is results. And I've found overwhelmingly that ignoring the standards, as well as providing style guides that encourage the businesses to create advertising that is seen as a content offering rather than an in-your-face presentation, has really worked. Our ads routinely get between 8 and 10% CTR. We've gone as high as 12% for a particularly well-crafted ad.

[holds up a hand] Sure, sure, remind me that size is not all there is to it - placement, design, etc. also factor in. But we're talking strictly about size now as a recommendation.

So do you have to follow the IAB? Maybe. But not always.

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