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Welcome to the AutoTrader.com Online Advertising Guide

From technical specifications to creative guidelines, here is everything you need to develop a successful ad on AutoTrader.com.

Rich Media Guidelines

Maximum Initial Creative Load Size: 40k .swf, .jpg or .gif; Max:15 sec animation length

Max Additional Panel/Tab Load Size: 60k .swf, .jpg or .gif

Audio Initiation: On-click Only

*If 728x90 In-Line Promo ad expands, it is recommended that the rich media provider package this placement with Push Down functionality as opposed to Expandable functionality.

Video

Can run on download as long as audio defaults to "off". There are no frequency caps on the video portion of the expandable ad units. The video can play every time the user sees the Expandable ad unit. Play/Pause, Stop buttons prefered.

Preferred Rich Media Partners

PointRoll, EyeBlaster, Doubleclick, EyeWonder, Unicast

Additional Information

  • There is a 100k total Max Weight on the page at any given time.
  • The "W Mode" must be set to "opaque". It should not be set to "transparent" or no setting at all.
  • The roll over " hot spot" can only take upto 33% of the ad space
  • The ad must have a clearly marked "call to action" Ex. 'Rollover to Expand'
  • The action that causes the panel to expand, MUST also cause the panel to retract.
  • Click open/click close: The creative can be set to expand with the user click; the panel retracts when the user clicks a clearly marked close button.
  • Mouse over/mouse off: When a user passes a mouse over the creative, the panel expands; the panel retracts when the mouse is removed. The creative still needs a clearly marked close button that closes the panel upon click.