Only 3% of B2B buyers are in-market at any given time. That’s why display advertising is essential — it keeps your brand visible through every stage of the buyer’s journey. Whether they’re researching, comparing or deliberating, display ads help build awareness, support lead gen and reinforce trust.
From banner placements to programmatic campaigns, display ads ensure brands show up where their audiences already are: on websites, newsletters, apps and digital publications. Done right, display advertising isn’t just a touchpoint — it’s a strategic advantage.
Why B2B Display Advertising Still Matters
Unlike B2C campaigns, B2B buying cycles are longer, more complex and involve multiple stakeholders. Display advertising provides the consistent presence needed to stay top-of-mind until decision-makers are ready to take action.
It’s also one of the most cost-effective ways to generate awareness and support full-funnel efforts. As part of an integrated campaign or a standalone initiative, display ads can boost visibility and drive engagement — when backed by smart audience targeting, platform selection and creative strategy.
Where B2B Display Ads Live
B2B display ads can appear across a variety of digital platforms, from programmatic ad networks to industry publications. The strength of a display campaign often comes down to platform choice.
Here are some high-impact options:
- Google Display Network: Broad reach across millions of websites. Good for awareness and retargeting.
- LinkedIn: Gold standard for B2B targeting by company, title, industry or function.
- Meta (Facebook & Instagram): Often underutilized in B2B, but powerful for remarketing or talent campaigns.
Don’t overlook industry-specific publications or associations. These placements offer highly targeted opportunities — from banner ads to sponsored newsletter content — where your brand benefits from built-in credibility.
Programmatic platforms like Demandbase, StackAdapt or Terminus also enable sophisticated targeting for account-based campaigns and real-time ad delivery at scale.
What to Measure: B2B Display Advertising KPIs
To gauge success, it’s essential to track the right performance indicators. B2B display campaigns should focus on metrics that indicate successful resonance, such as impressions, click-through rates and conversions.
Impressions
Impressions measure how many individuals see a display advertisement. This metric can be used to measure the reach of an ad campaign, but it will not provide specific insights on whether this campaign is effective or has led to any conversions alone.
Clicks
Clicks analyze how many viewers interact with a display ad. By clicking the advertisement, they are brought to a landing page on a brand’s website and are brought closer to conversion actions that can lead to sales opportunities. Clicks generally vary by platform.
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Click-through rate (CTR) measures how many viewers click on a display advertisement. It’s useful for measuring how engaging the ad is to your target audience. A low CTR implies that the ad content is not persuasive enough to earn interactions from viewers, even if it’s targeted toward an ideal audience.
Conversions
Conversions measure how many visitors fill out the lead generation form on your website. This metric is one of the most important performance indicators for B2B campaigns because it analyzes the success of getting visitors to perform the desired action. A high conversion rate can lead to more sales. However, a display campaign’s main goal is awareness, so conversions are not as important when it comes to evaluating the performance of these types of campaigns.
Types of B2B Display Campaigns
Not all display ads have the same purpose. Some focus on creating general awareness, while others support retargeting an audience that has already been exposed to your brand.
The right display campaign strategy hinges on your specific goals and your audience’s stage in the buying journey. Common B2B display campaign types include:
Banner Ads
Banner ads are one of the most common forms of display advertising. These static or animated images appear in designated spaces on websites, typically at the top, bottom or sides of a page.
Video Ads
Video ads provide an engaging way to tell your brand’s story. These types of ads most frequently run on platforms like YouTube or within embedded video players. Video ads directed at a B2B audience are often used to explain complex solutions, showcase customer testimonials, or highlight product demos.
Newsletter Ads
Newsletter ads are display advertisements included in a publication’s newsletter. These are useful when it comes to targeting a publication’s audience and getting your brand’s message in front of fresh audiences. By leveraging the trust a publication has built with its readers, newsletter ads help position the brand as credible and respected within the industry.
Interstitial Ads
Interstitial ads are full-screen ads that appear between content, usually during natural transition points on websites or apps. They can be more intrusive than banner ads and should be used strategically.
Native Ads
Native advertisements blend seamlessly into the content of a page, matching the look and feel of the surrounding display. These are especially useful for promoting thought leadership content like whitepapers, reports or blog posts that can help introduce your brand.
Programmatic Ads
Programmatic ads use automated systems and bidding to place ads in front of highly specified audiences in real time. These ads are effective for delivering results on an individual level, allowing you to target an audience across the web based on demographics, characteristics and behaviors.
Targeting Tactics That Work
Effective targeting ensures your ads reach an audience of decision-makers within your industry, not just casual browsers. From demographics to intent data, refining your targeting helps to increase both relevance and return on investment.
Targeting tactics include:
Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
Account-based marketing (ABM) focuses on targeting specific companies or even individual decision-makers within those companies using a pre-defined list. With B2B display advertising, brands can serve personalized ads to predefined accounts, making messaging more relevant and increasing the odds of conversion.
Contextual Targeting
Contextual targeting involves placing ads on websites or pages that are relevant to a product or service based on the content being viewed. For example, a company selling medical devices could place ads on pages related to healthcare.
Retargeting
Retargeting is used for re-engaging visitors who’ve previously interacted with a brand. For B2B display advertisements, retargeting helps keep a brand at the top of mind during long sales cycles, increasing the potential for conversions.
Common Display Pitfalls
B2B display campaigns can underperform if you’re not careful. Even when impressions are high, if there are few clicks or conversions it means something is not resonating at some point in the campaign process. Avoiding common issues like poorly optimized creative, irrelevant placements or broad targeting is crucial for success.
Poor Device Optimization
Many advertisement campaigns fall apart due to poor optimization. You need to ensure your display ad is viewable across multiple devices and platforms to ensure an improperly positioned ad will attract your target audience, not turn them away.
Goal Misalignment
B2B display advertising is best used for brand awareness strategies. For brands focused on lead generation, display advertising tends to be less effective than other, more targeted tactics. It is important to match your campaign tactic with the desired outcome.
Targeting Too Broad
If your brand targets too broadly in a display campaign, you risk low engagement and weak conversion rates. It’s important to establish parameters for your audience and target accordingly. Prioritizing impressions at the expense of engagement does little to move opportunities through the sales funnel.
Oversaturated Pages
Crowded ad space on a page can lead to viewers tuning out a brand’s advertisement if it’s not impactful. Recent studies have shown that 86% of online users have experienced ad blindness. So when developing a B2B display advertising campaign, keep in mind how you manage your target audience’s attention in a competitive space to make your messaging both unique and memorable.
Privacy & Cookieless Concerns
Many search engines have begun phasing out cookies. As an advertiser, you’ll need to embrace other methods of targeting an audience in the future. Privacy concerns are the main driver behind why brands are changing how they provide online experiences. These concerns are being reflected in increased privacy regulations globally. Considering the privacy of a brand’s audience is key going forward — anything too invasive will lead to a negative perception.
9 Strategies for Effective B2B Display Campaigns
Want better results from your display ads? These nine proven strategies can help boost engagement, optimize spend and align your campaigns with broader marketing goals.
1. Define Clear, Measurable Goals
Set specific metrics — e.g., 100,000 impressions, a 1.5% CTR or asset downloads — upfront.
2. Align With the Full Buyer Journey
Use display to support messaging from awareness through conversion.
3. Choose Platforms Strategically
Match platform to audience. A cybersecurity tool for hospitals performs better in an industry newsletter than on Instagram.
4. Continuously Optimize Performance
Monitor CTRs, conversions and placements. Refine based on data.
5. Keep Creative Fresh
Rotate headlines, CTAs, visuals and layouts. Fresh visuals can lift conversion rates by up to 400%.
6. Personalize Your Message
Use behavioral data to serve up creative that speaks directly to key personas. Personalized ads increase revenue by 5–15% and cost efficiency by 10–30%.
7. Leverage Retargeting
Stay top of mind with visitors who didn’t convert the first time.
8. Invest in Robust Landing Pages
Align post-click experience with ad messaging. Ensure fast load times and clear CTAs
9. Let the Data Drive
Track performance by platform, segment, format and goal — and double down on what works.
Drive Real Results With Walker Sands
Display advertising is evolving — and so are B2B buyer expectations. At Walker Sands, we help brands turn ad spend into business results with tailored strategies, creative that performs and full-funnel integration.
Ready to turn impressions into pipeline? Let’s build a display strategy that aligns with your buyers — and your bottom line. Contact Walker Sands
Frequently Asked Questions
How are B2B display advertising campaigns different from B2C?
B2C display advertising often focuses on quick conversions and broad emotional appeal, while B2B campaigns focus more on creating trust and earning credibility within the industry. This is because the buying cycle is typically more complex and involves multiple stakeholders when it comes to B2B.
Are display ads effective when it comes to B2B marketing?
Yes, display ads can be highly effective for advertisers in B2B when used for considering stage purposes like brand awareness, retargeting and nurturing.
Where should B2B display advertising campaigns drive traffic?
Display ads should lead to a landing page that aligns with the anticipated user’s intent and stage in the funnel. For top-of-funnel targets, this could be a blog post or gated resource (like a whitepaper or webinar). For bottom-of-funnel targets, it could be a demo request or a contact us page. It is essential to ensure the landing page provides a clear next step from what was highlighted in the ad.
What is a strong conversion rate for B2B display advertising campaigns?
B2B conversion rates tend to be lower than B2C due to longer buying cycles and more complex sales processes. In general, 6.6% is the mean across all industries, but this could differ slightly depending on a certain brand’s industry.
Is display beneficial for B2B?
Yes. Display advertising helps B2B brands stay visible across the entire sales journey. It performs best when integrated with other channels to help move targets down the sales funnel.
