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Choosing the Right Display Format for Your App

Oct 02, 2019
By: Jean Ortiz-Luis

Every app has its own set of challenges when it comes to finding the right placements for ads. It’s important that developers have a variety of ad options that best suit their app and audience. That’s why major brands like Toyota, Sony, Starbucks, and Unilever incorporate both video and display banner ads to maximize monetization opportunities.

We recently announced the launch of SDK 4, the latest version of our mobile monetization platform. This version brings together our HD video ad platform with display and programmatic offerings. Our unified SDK will include various display options that can be partnered with Aurora™ HD Video, Aurora™ Playable, Instant-Play™ HD Video, and full-screen interstitial for an all-in-one ad solution. Take a look at the types of banners that SDK 4 has to offer.

Smartphone Banner

Supported Sizes:

  • 320×50 standard
  • Min: 300×50
  • Max: 450×75

IAB Ad Unit Name:

  • 6×1 Horizontal

This is the style of banner most everyone will be familiar with. Having proven its success, the basic banner format has proven useful for all kinds of websites and now apps. Typically appearing in portrait-mode apps across the board, smartphone banners are often simple and unobtrusive.

MREC (Medium Rectangle)

Supported Sizes:

  • 300×250 standard
  • Min: 300×300
  • Max: 450×450

IAB Ad Unit Name:

  • 1×1 Tile

The MREC is a larger format display unit that is often built to showcase more visuals or text than a banner would. They’re a great step for advertisers to include evocative imagery, larger calls to action, or more detail if needed. They’re often used instead of instead of interstitials in apps where there’s enough screen real-estate to allow the user to keep using the app alongside a relatively large ad placement.

Skyscraper

Supported Sizes:

  • 160×600 standard
  • Min: 160×640
  • Max: 240×960

IAB Ad Unit Name:

  • 1×4 Vertical

Think of skyscraper banners as the vertical version of the smartphone banner or leaderboard ads (below). This gives advertisers a little more creative freedom and also opens up other options for landscape format apps.

Leaderboard

Supported Sizes:

  • 970×90 standard
  • Min: 600×75
  • Max: 1200×150
  • 8:1 aspect ratio

IAB Ad Unit Name:

  • 8×1 Tile

Leaderboard ads are usually seen in tablet apps, where the large screen real estate allows for lots of detail, secondary CTAs, and more emotional appeals with visuals. Many of the same best practices and caveats for smartphone banners apply to leaderboard implementations.

Questions?

Reach out to your account manager or our support team if you have any questions!

By Jean Ortiz-Luis
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