Flash Banner Ads - Part 1
Flash has long been a great option for advertisers who want 
to put more riches in their rich media campaign. Size IS important on the web, at least for now, and Flash allows longer, more dynamic messages to be packed into a typical 728×90 or 300×250 banner ad. I’m sure you’re familiar with the hateful, repetitive ‘punch the monkey’ and ‘catch the cellphone’ banner ads that force Flash to do their evil bidding. I share your pain. But while these types of campaigns seem to dominate the landscape, I’ve also seen plenty of well-animated, well thought out banners, complete with modest or even strong character animation.
So, without further adue, I’ll list below the first half of my favorites - all earmarked during the typical (obsessive) surfing that I perform most mornings.
Yahoo Small Business Sleigh - 300×250
A cycling background and re-use of the reindeer animation kept this one at 30k, and the reveal of the ‘get your store off the ground’ tag at the end was a clever thought.
Yahoo Small Business Elves - 300×250
Not so dynamic, but the singing elves surely pulled in the ‘awww cute’ audience, and the penguin’s ‘I’m too happy’ stare still haunts my dreams.
Comedy Central’s Drawn Together Pig Piss - 300 x 250
This ad weighs in around 35k, which is rather impressive. A run cycle, several poses and expressions and a giant, green fart cloud - all tastefully buttoned up with a flipping of the bird. I, for one, really enjoy ‘Drawn Together,’ so I’m going to offer my biased opinion that this is the best banner in the bunch.
Wendy’s Make a Square - 500 x 380
They want me to ‘do’ a burger? In college, maybe, but I’ve gathered together a bit of dignity and I simply refuse this offer. Hey, notice the weird pop in the upper-righthand circle character? Someone got drunky and went to worky. Check out the ‘Good To Be Square’ site, which has longer Flash-animated shorts, and less burger sex offers.
Wendy’s Boxing - 300 x 250
That punch could use a little more punch, and I thought I was perfectly clear about the ‘do this burger’ offer.
Yahoo Hotjobs Flex - 728 x 90
Simple stuff here, and lots of repetition, but if you want your resume to bulk up and kick some ass - it’s all about the reps.
Ask Jeeves Rowing - 728 x 90
Ol’ Jeeves is gonna get a wicked-ass rash in those tweed pants.
Tags: Comedy Central
December 28th, 2005 at 3:25 am
in my opinion…all of these really suck. even for low file size ads.
i think my biggest problem is they’re all terribly lame and unfunny in the idea dept. I could put up with mediocre production values if they were actually funny or clever.
February 27th, 2006 at 10:42 am
I am trying to do something about flash banners here;
http://www.cartoonbanners.com