Oh, Sprague has really lost it now. He's surely desperate. Why on earth is he talking about billboards?!
With so many exciting, high-tech, fast-passed and sexy advertising mediums available, why on earth would I want to talk about something as mundane and boring as outdoor? Well, because outdoor may seem boring, but it can deliver the most impressions for the lowest cost when used properly. There are many other benefits to outdoor as well.
Outdoor advertising consists of billboards/bulletin boards and posterboards.
Some of the advantages of outdoor are:
· Outdoor delivers the lowest CPM (cost per thousand) impressions of any medium.
· Outdoor can be used to target specific geographic areas.
· Outdoor creates frequency of your ad message at a very low cost.
· Your outdoor message can work for you from 6:00 am to 7:00 p.m. (or 24/7 if you are willing to pay the extra lighting bill).
· Outdoor reaches those people who did not see your message in other mediums.
· Outdoor creates long-term awareness, consistency and credibility.
· Outdoor can fit into any ad budget.
· Outdoor can qualify for co-op.
· Outdoor is excellent for directional purposes.
· Outdoor is great for new product launches, grand openings, sale events, etc.
Some of the disadvantages to outdoor are:
· Very limited amount of copy can be used (no more than 10-12 words)
· Long production lead time (1 to 3 weeks)
· Certain areas, even entire communities, do not allow outdoor advertising
A billboard is the largest of the outdoor boards, measuring 14' x 48'. Billboards are typically located alongside freeways and expressways, and are nearly always illuminated. Posterboards/poster panels/30 sheets are smaller, measuring 12' x 14', and are typically found alongside surface roads, on buildings, and within towns and cities. They are not illuminated as often as billboards. Illumination is a priority, unless you are in a very rural area where the town shuts down at dusk. Without illumination, your sign is working from 6:00 am to 4:00 or 5:00 p.m. in the winter.
Whenever you are considering an outdoor buy, make sure you do one very critical thing-ride the boards! Riding the boards is when you actually get in your rep's car and have him drive you around, so that you can personally inspect each and every available board. What you are looking for is the length of read time when driving an average speed for the road under average weather conditions. A billboard averages a 2-5 second read time in non-commute traffic. Also look for a good read angle that is easy and comfortable to read with minimal foreground or background clutter or distractions around the board. Make notes about each location/number (each board has a number). Look at traffic levels for each location and the type of traffic. In other words, certain areas will have more up-scale cars and others will have more blue-collar cars depending on the neighborhood and local businesses. Look at the overall condition of the structure itself and the quality of the boards the company can produce.
Next, ride the boards at night, about one hour after sunset. If the boards are not illuminated within one hour after sunset, the company is not on their toes. Make sure the illumination is bright enough and that it evenly illuminates the entire board. Check for flickering or partially burned-out lights. Make sure the read is still sufficient at night. Some boards get better at night, some get worse.
Now that you know which locations look best by day, which by night and which by day and night, based on read time, angle, lack of clutter, closeness to the road, etc., you are ready to look at the DEC Counts for all the ones you like. DEC Counts are the daily effective circulation, or the average number of adults 18+ exposed per day to a particular board. The Traffic Audit Bureau (TAB) is an independent audit company that certifies each board's circulation numbers.
Outdoor companies also rate their boards in GRPs (Gross Rating Points), but this is a very odd thing, when you consider that outdoor is a printed medium, and GRPs is a rating system for electronic media. Be that as it may, when you see a board with a GRP rating, cut that number in half, which will give you a more realistic basis for comparison and value against electronic GRPs.
You will also hear the term "showing." A package of boards with a #50 showing for example, will generate duplicated exposure opportunities equal to 50% of the market population on a daily basis. When bought as a package, you will see typical showing sizes of #25, #50, #75 and #100. Showings are measured by GRPs and a #50 showing is the same as 50 GRP's. When you buy a showing package, you typically pay less per board than if you spot buy or cherry pick particular boards. What is best depends entirely on your objectives. The price for each board will be based primarily on three criteria: size (billboard or posterboard), DEC or GRP rating, and illumination. Some may have a premium or discount price for exceptionally good, or below average read times, clutter factor, etc.
Your price will also depend on how many boards you buy, how long a contract you commit to and whether they will be painted, paper, or vinyl boards. Paper lasts for 30 days, but is very cheap to produce. Vinyl lasts for 6-12 months, but is fairly costly. Vinyl is always cheaper than paper if you will have the board for 12 months. You can expect to pay $800-$1,200 per vinyl billboard for the vinyl production alone.
Who does the artwork? Most outdoor companies do fairly poor artwork. And most graphic designers make boards way too busy and confusing to be understood in 3 seconds. Good graphic design for outdoor, believe it or not, is difficult to find. It seems so simple, yet it can be done improperly so easily. Here are some design tips: Keep it simple, 10-12 words max. Use large, simple, thick fonts with 100% ink coverage. No shadows, no screens, no gradations, no outlines. Use the very largest font you can for the space and design. Don't use a typeface that is too bold; the simpler the typeface or type style, the better. Make sure there is ample spacing between each letter. Do not use all caps. Do not use all lowercase letters-use upper - and lowercase. Always put the copy before the design in terms of priorities. A pretty design is worthless if you can't read the copy.
Use black on yellow, yellow on black, red on yellow, yellow on red, black on white, or red on white. Never use pastels, mauves, grays, or soft colors. Use bold, sharply contrasting colors that accentuate one another. Keep it simple, but bold and striking. How many times have you seen one of those cutesy boards with a clever design or picture, and tiny little writing that nobody can read at 60 MPH?
When done properly, there are many benefits to outdoor advertising. Follow my suggestions and you will get the most bang for your buck with outdoor as a component of your marketing mix.