* Choose your color scheme with great care. Make sure your text color contrast well with your background color. * Animation is great, but don't make it too busy.

* The two most important words you can put on any banner are "Click Here."

Now for a look at banner placement strategy:

Some banner exchanges allow you to target type of sites where your banner will appear and some do not. If your exchange doesn't offer this feature, switch to one that does. Banner advertising may never again enjoy strength it had in good old days, but you can get most out of your banner advertising by following guidelines above.

Bill Daugherty. Do you have an advertising or marketing question you'd like to see published in this column? Send it to mailto:MrD@epm.zzn.com

1. Create An Impressive Title.

Your Title can make or break you. Stress Your Benefits and use Action Words. Benefits will sell your product or service. Will it save them money? Save them time? Make their life easier?

Forget about describing your product or service. Instead, stress what your product or service will do for your prospects.

Use Action Words to capture their attention and entice them to respond immediately. Offer something free in your ad copy. It'll often tip balance between a response and no response.

For a FREE list of Action Words to make use of in your Solo Ad copy, send a blank message at: mailto:action_words@emailexchange.org

2. Keep It Short.

Do NOT try to sell anything from your Solo Ad copy except enticement of your potential customers to request more detailed information or to visit your web site.

The shorter your ad copy, more likely it will get read and responded. Use a maximum of 5 lines of text.

3. ALWAYS Include An Email Contact.

My experience is that your ad response rate will increase by as much as 50% if you simply include an email contact address in your ad copy.

Also include your URL in ad copy but adding your email address gives those responding to your ad option of using what works best for them.

Besides, you can not follow-up with visitors to your web site but you can with those that request your information by email.

Make use of a good Auto-Responder service to deliver your sales message - instantly. For a FREE list of services send: mailto:freeautoresp@emailexchange.org

Follow these few tips and your Solo Will bring you successful results and excellent response rates.