admit to having clicked on one ... once ...

But most people haven't spent much time thinking about online ads,

so we'll break them down into two categories: search ads and display ads.

First, let's look at search ads.

Whenever people search for a specific topic, advertisers can pay for their ads to show

up alongside the search results. Advertisers are able to showcase their business at the

moment it's most relevant to what someone's looking for.

Search ads are typically as simple as a few lines of text, but can be more elaborate and

include things like images or links to product reviews.

Next, we have display ads.

Unlike search ads which are typically confined to search engine results pages, display ads

appear on all types of websites. Also called display banners, these ads come in a range

of shapes and sizes and vary in complexity.

Display ads can be simple images, contain video clips, or even be interactive - like

allowing you to play a game inside the ad.

Whether it's search or display, the ad needs to be clickable so people who are interested

can go to the advertiser's website.

This clickable prompt is called a call to action.

Whether it's to make you aware of a new car, splurge on a new pair of shoes, or to revisit

an advertiser's site to buy accessories for the new camera you bought, search and display

ads can help advertisers accomplish their goals.