How Not To Blog ?

Dear Mr. Banner Advertiser

Wow! After some 14 years of looking at banners, I finally found one I want to click on. Isn't today your lucky day?

Alas, I mouse over the banner ad, hesitating to click because I think it will make me feel dirty when.. what do I see? You're using a Flash banner. That's nice in itself, but it makes me think that if I click the result would be that you hog my bandwidth for a few seconds while you download all of your marketing materials (more Flash animations) to my PC. And perhaps a couple of cookies while you're at it.

How about some simplicity? Provide an option at the bottom of the banner for those who just want the facts, without flash or Flash, without cookies or other BS. I think part of the reason Google Adwords is popular is that people really don't mind ads, as long as they're to the point and simple. Most reasonably intelligent people walk away when they feel they're being marketed to. The same kind of marketing doesn't work with everyone - but one would never know it by the way you advertise. If you can somehow assure me that you won't try to rape my senses or my sensibility, I'll guarantee that I will listen to your message even more closely.

Call it "TruClix" or some other nifty name (you gals are good at that) for those of us who don't click for various reasons. When someone clicks on your TruClix link, show them how different you are from all of the other companies. Heck, you could even take me to your product's Wiki page that you've developed and opened up to the community. Err... but don't touch it or splatter crap all over it. Don't ya know, the most successful marketing is when actual people have control of the marketing message? If your product is good, it's good. Trust the marketplace. (You've made money thus far, right?*)

I didn't end up clicking on your banner (who does?) but instead performed a search for your product and found another site that showed me everything I wanted to see on the first page.

*made you look!