How Web Advertising Works

­ Unicast ads are a wh­ole different animal, and they are spreading across the Web as a way to get serious ad clicks. A Unicast ad is basically a TV commercial that runs in a pop-up window. It is animated and it has sound. The ads can last anywhere from 10 to 30 seconds.

If you would like to see examples of ads from Unicast, go to Unicast.com.

A Unicast ad has roughly the same branding power as a TV commercial. However, a Unicast ad offers something that TV ads cannot -- the ability to click on the ad for more information. And people do click on them at an amazing rate -- a 5-percent click-through rate (50 clicks per 1,000 impressions of the ad) is not uncommon.

Because Unicast ads have branding power and because people click on them, $30 per 1,000 impressions is a common rate paid to Web sites. Because they pay so well, they are likely to spread rapidly.