Submitting an Ad
In order for your ad to be distributed campus-wide, the ad must adhere to the following guidelines:
- Must be submitted no later than Wednesdays at 5:00pm in order to be distributed on Thursdays.
- Ads will be displayed no more than 11 days (Thursday through Sunday a week later). Please plan accordingly.
- Must be sponsored by UA departments, colleges, or organizations, including only student organizations registered with The Source.
- Must adhere to the University of Alabama graphic standards provided by the Office of Strategic Communications.
- Must be 16:9 aspect ratio (1920 x 1080 pixels).
- Your file may be a png or jpg image, or mp4 video.
- Videos must not require audio.
- The file should be no larger than 5MB for images and no larger than 15MB for video.
- Videos should not be less than 10 seconds or longer than 20 seconds.
- The design must have a background. If the design has a transparent background, the background will appear black.
- The ad resolution should be 72 px/inch.
- Due to the large number of ads received each week, your ad is more likely to be posted if you:
- submit only one design (avoid multiple versions of the same ad),
- submit one ad per department per week. If you have multiple upcoming events, consider combining them into one ad.
- Ads may be denied for the following reasons:
- Contrast issues between text and background (e.g. white font on light grey background)
- Too much text – ads are posted for ~12 seconds; consider whether the important facts can be read within that time.
- Incorrect aspect ratio or file type
- Submitted too far in advance of an event.
- Ads for job postings or academic classes.
Ad Design – Five Tips for Better Ads
Keep it simple!
Messages can quickly become clunky or unwelcome. When in doubt, ask yourself – what is the message my audience needs to receive from this ad?
Keep it short.
Remember that your ad will only be displayed for 8 to 12 seconds.
Use attention-grabbing headlines and graphics.
A picture is worth a thousand words.
Give basic details and direct viewers elsewhere for lengthy info.
It’s a good idea to provide a URL to your website where more information is available.
Contrast is key!
Be sure font color and size are readable from a distance.
Non-Graphic Designers – Use PowerPoint
If you are not comfortable with graphic design, you may create your ad using PowerPoint. PowerPoint is a great tool to quickly add text and images to create a suitable digital ad.
- Set the Page Size, 16:9 (widescreen).
- PC users: Change the size under the Design menu (Design>Page Setup).
- Mac users: Change the size under the File menu (File>Page Setup).
- Insert or type your content (including text and images) to a single slide and arrange it so that it is clearly readable.
- Contrast – be sure the font color doesn’t blend into the background.
- Text – limit text so that the main point of the message can be seen within 8-12 seconds.
- Images – images draw attention more than text.
- Save. When you are satisfied with the design, save the file as a PNG (image), not PowerPoint.
- PC users: To save as a PNG, go to File> Save As> Save as type, then choose PNG from the drop-down list.
- Mac users: To save as a PNG, go to File>Export>File Format, then choose PNG from the drop-down list.
The instructions above may vary slightly depending on your version of PowerPoint.