The IndyPlanet Digital main page will include a large rotating banner showcasing titles at the site. The spot will be — to borrow a terrible cliche — prime real estate on the site, appearing directly below the site header. However, this spot is NOT for sale. You can’t buy it at any price … because we are making it available completely FREE of charge!

Here’s what you have to do to get your banner in the rotation —

1) You have to make and submit a banner to our EXACTING specifications.
2) You have to make your banner — in our sole judgement — worthy of inclusion on the main page.

Worthiness has nothing to do with sales or sales expectations and everything to do with how great the banner looks. If you send us a great looking banner that conforms to our specifications, then we’ll put it in the rotation and it won’t cost you anything at all.

Here are the specifications — (btw, you can also read the specs on the sample graphic accompanying this post)

1) Your banner must MUST be 800 pixels wide by 240 pixels high with NO border.
2) Your banner should consist of a single background image and include the comic’s logo or title, the issue number, the names of the creators … and NOTHING else.
3) All text or logos must be at least 24 pixels from all edges of the banner.
4) One corner of the banner (you can pick which one) must have a 100 pixel square area free of text or anything that cannot be covered with an overlay.

We’re writing a banner uploader into the IndyPlanet listing editor on your “My info” page where you can upload your banners. It’s yet there, but should be up soon.

Now a few caveats …

While there is absolutely no charge for running a banner, there is also no guarantee that we will put your banner into rotation. The banner area takes up a very large part of the main page and the banners that we choose to put into rotation must fit both our technical and aesthetic needs. We can’t stress this enough — banners that don’t conform to our specs or that don’t convey the kind of instant eye appeal that we need will not be considered. It’s got to be right and it’s got to look GREAT!

The decision on whether or not a banner makes it into rotation is ours and ours alone.

Similarly, if a banner does go into rotation how long it stays in rotation is entirely up to us. Banners with high and consistent click through rates will certainly stay longer than most that register low click through, but that won’t always be the sole consideration.

We will consider only one banner submission per issue, so please give us your best work. We’re going to do our best to spread the banner impressions around as much as possible, so we reserve the right to limit the number of banners any one publisher may have in rotation at any given time. And only one banner per title will ever be in rotation at the same time … so if you have a comic with more than one issue available be sure you highlight the issue you believe to be your best strongest work or perhaps the best entry point to your series.