Help us stand out! Banner ad for network security company

Firewall Builder (http://www.fwbuilder.org/)

NetCitadel develops a software application called Firewall Builder that makes it easier for businesses to manage their Internet firewalls. We are a small company that competes against several very large companies so we have to be better and faster than they are.

We try not to take ourselves too seriously, but we want our ads to look professional and polished.

Our target audience is systems, network and security administrators. Some people might call them "geeks", but they are our users and we are proud to have them!

They hang out on websites like ServerFault, Linux Forum, Slashdot, etc. and they tend to respond best to ads that explain how something will make their lives easier. Our users don't like gimmicks and things that are over the top.

The first ad is targeted a users that manage the built-in Linux firewall called iptables.

Ad Size: 728x90 (leaderboard)

This is the first of a series of new static banner ads for a new marketing campaign we will be launching. Each ad will be targeting different audiences but will need to have a similar look-and-feel of the first ad (this ad).

We want the banner ad to try and stay visually consistent with our website (http://www.fwbuilder.org). In particular we want the ad to try and use the same color palette.

We prefer designs that are clean and not cluttered, but there has to be enough there to catch the eye and interest of the audience.

Key Messages:

* Free download
* iptables configuration management
* Drag-and-drop GUI (evoke the feeling of motion) replaces need to type commands
* Easy-to-use
* Secure

Having the word iptables in the ad is very important. Some of the specific benefits we want to convey to our audience include:

* Save time
* Reduce errors

Sample screenshot of the application attached. A free evaluation version of Firewall Builder is available on our website (http://www.fwbuilder.org/) we encourage the use of screenshots in the banner ad.

Example of current banner ad also attached.

Ads should be provided in PNG, GIF and JPEG formats.