Whether you are commuting by automobile, bus, or train you might end up watching the world — and billboard promoting — go by.
Some billboards will be very entertaining. And in response to 2023 research, 49% of adult consumers notice billboard ads greater than they did only one 12 months ago.
Billboard promoting isn’t your typical inbound marketing strategy. But it may be a strong technique to construct brand awareness and attract customers. It might probably also work to strengthen other marketing efforts similar to blogging, online lead offers, or website positioning.
Keep reading to learn more, or jump ahead to the subject you are on the lookout for:
Billboard Promoting
Billboard promoting is the means of using a large-scale digital or print ad to market an organization, brand, product, service, or campaign.
Billboards are typically placed in high-traffic areas, similar to along highways and in cities. This helps be sure that they are seen by the best variety of drivers and pedestrians.
And billboards fall under the category of out-of-home (OOH) promoting. Out-of-home ads can include billboards, bus shelters, wallscapes, and posters.
Billboard promoting is effective for constructing brand awareness. It is because it broadcasts your online business (or product or campaign) to as many individuals as possible. Because they’re in such busy areas, billboards are likely to have the best variety of views and impressions in comparison to other marketing methods.
Does billboard promoting work?
Until 3D digital billboards began going viral, many individuals were considering that billboard promoting was a dated strategy.
But while billboards are sometimes criticized for being disruptive, they’re also quite effective.
While billboard rental costs will be higher than digital promoting, there are lots of advantages to the sort of marketing. In truth, the dimensions of the audience alone can create a giant boost in brand awareness. How big a lift? Let’s go over some statistics.
Billboard Promoting Statistics
Almost 82% of viewers can recall a digital out-of-home ad they saw over a month ago.
2022 Statista data shows that 32% of respondents like billboards, and 9% like them quite a bit. Compared, a unique Statista survey shows that online ads annoy 41% of respondents.
And research from OOH Today says that out-of-home ads show much higher recall for consumers than:
- Live and streaming television
- Podcasts and radio
- Print ads
- Online ads
These incredible numbers could also be why top brands are increasing their OOH promoting spending.
The Out of Home Promoting Association of America data says that 79% of the highest 100 advertisers increased their spending in 2021. Of those, 32% doubled their spending. 27% of the highest out-of-home advertisers are technology or D2C brands.
One other necessary area of billboard statistics is the rise in digital billboard promoting. Per 2021 Statista data, there are 350,000 billboards in america. Of those, 9,600 are digital billboards.
And consumers who see digital billboard promoting often take motion. In line with 2020 Statista research, 35% of respondents visit an internet site or search online after seeing a digital billboard. And 20% recommend that product or brand.
Plus a 2023 Azoth Analytics report says that the worldwide digital billboards market was price over $18.5 billion in 2021. The report expects this figure to grow by 7% in the subsequent five years, a rise of more than $1.2 billion.
Billboard Promoting Cost
The price of billboard promoting depends upon many aspects. These include:
- Billboard location
- Total traffic in the realm
- Estimated numbers of how many individuals will see your commercial
Billboard promoting costs are typically charged monthly. They’ll range anywhere from $250 on a rural highway to upwards of $50,000 in Times Square. The common cost runs around $850 for 4 weeks.
Digital billboard costs start at a rather higher price point. While some can charge as little as $10 per day, the typical cost of a four-week campaign is $2,100.
As mentioned above, billboard promoting is out-of-home (OOH) promoting. That is any promoting that reaches consumers after they’re outside their homes.
Each OOH promoting opportunity gets an OOH rating. This rating ultimately determines its value and value to advertisers.
Geopath is a nonprofit organization that provides OOH rankings. To do that, it uses technology and media research to estimate the weekly impressions of each billboard within the country.
Then, OOH promoting corporations, like the businesses that own the billboard spaces, pay Geopath for this data. Then they share this data with potential advertisers.
In line with Geopath, there are as much as 10 determining aspects that make up an OOH rating and, subsequently, the associated fee of every billboard promoting opportunity.
Listed here are the three principal aspects:
Circulation
That is the entire number of people that pass by the billboard each week. Local transportation authorities collect and share this information.
Demographics
This refers back to the age, gender, income level, and other characteristics of the traffic that passes the billboard. Geopath collects this information from travel surveys and native transportation authorities.
Impressions
That is the number of people that see the billboard. This information is calculated based on many aspects including:
- The billboard’s circulation
- Billboard size
- How close it’s to the road
- Billboard visibility
- Traffic speed beside the billboard
But the associated fee of billboard promoting doesn’t stop with “renting” ad space. You will need to also consider the associated fee of designing the billboard in addition to printing and construction. Depending on what form of billboard you should create, this might cost anywhere from $2,000 to $100,000.
This cost won’t apply to each billboard, but is something to think about if you should get creative along with your billboard.
If you happen to outsource your billboard design, these fees start at $150 but will go up depending on the agency or designer you select. The complexity of your required design matters too. For instance, when you plan to create a 30-second 3D animation in your digital billboard promoting, these costs could start as high as $1,000 per hour.
Billboard Promoting ROI
While digital billboard promoting is clearly a preferred alternative, it is also expensive. But 2022 data shows that digital billboards deliver a 38% ROI. Traditional billboards even have good ROI, with a 40% return on investment.
Note: If you happen to plan to run a digital billboard campaign to direct traffic to your website, this ROI calculator can allow you to work out what to spend.
Billboard promoting ROI could also be lower than other types of content marketing. That said, some of the powerful reasons to advertise with a billboard is brand recognition. If that is your focus you might wish to measure ROAS (return on ad spend) as an alternative.
Whether you are on the lookout for a 3:1 or 5:1 return in your investment in billboard promoting, you’ll have to do your research before committing.
Then, make a plan to create and measure your billboard campaign for effectiveness. For instance, adding a CTA with a novel URL to your billboard ad can allow you to track conversions.
The billboard design suggestions below may allow you to create a billboard with strong ROI.
Billboard Design Suggestions and Examples
If you happen to’re going to speculate in billboard promoting for tens of millions to see, you wish it to do its job. Listed here are a handful of billboard design suggestions and examples that’ll be sure your billboard is effective and crowd pleasing.
Tell a (short) story.
Successful billboards take viewers on a journey. Most billboard designs tell this story with imagery and perhaps some text. In truth, most drivers stop reading after just a few words. Use your billboard to point out the essence of an idea or campaign fairly than describing it with text.
Apple’s iPhone challenges gather stunning images from iPhone users that highlight the photography features of the product. At the identical time, additionally they add inspiration to public billboards.
A story doesn’t need to be complex to be exciting. This 3D digital billboard example from BMW tells the story of their latest model heading out for a fast drive.
Make it daring and easy.
Drivers or passersby only have just a few seconds to get a glimpse at your billboard commercial. To succeed in the best variety of viewers (and potential customers), keep your billboard design easy. In spite of everything, some people could also be blowing by your billboard at 70 mph. Use big, daring fonts against contrasting background colours and avoid narrow, script fonts.
Also, select colours that stand out to viewers. In case your billboard is in a rural area, avoid greens, blues, and browns.
The fun example below plays with the standard billboard format to quickly draw attention and engagement.
This billboard example is just text and color, nevertheless it makes a daring and clear statement. In case your message is crucial a part of your billboard, use design decisions like font, layout, and color to attract attention to it.
Consider its location.
You might not have grown up within the neighborhood where you reside, but you have probably lived there long enough to foster a certain sense of pride. So, whenever you wander by billboards which can be authentic, you concentrate.
Well-designed billboards reflect their location. They make the most of sports teams, nicknames, nuances, or inside jokes related to the realm. This could make the billboard (and brand) way more impressionable to those that see it.
The recognition of the Shinjuku digital billboard in Tokyo, Japan makes it a hub for creative inventions like this instance from Nike.
Mobile billboard promoting like the instance below will be where your audience is on the times they need what you’re offering.
Some billboard promoting is temporary, however the local billboard below is now one in all the icons of town of Portland, OR. This text talks in regards to the history of the Portland stag billboard and its origins as a sportswear brand commercial.
Make it interactive.
Depending in your billboard’s location, you might have the option to design it so it interacts with its surrounding environment. This strategy makes your ad stick out among the many noise. It grabs the eye of passersby.
The billboard from Intel and Genvid below can be an interactive game that viewers can play with their mobile devices.
Make it memorable.
OOH promoting to face out from the hustle and bustle of an everyday commute (or the monotony of an extended road trip). Your billboard shouldn’t be any different.
Every billboard commercial needs to inform a story or share a call-to-action in a way that’s interesting and memorable. Whether you call on humor, anger, empathy, or cleverness, use emotional marketing tactics in your billboard design to assist with recall. Take a have a look at these examples of eye-catching, creative billboards.
It is easy for anyone to place up a billboard, and businesses aren’t the one ones trying to advertise. Proud moms congratulating recent graduates, singles looking for a date, and fans trying to save streaming shows are competing for billboard attention too.
While a few of these efforts might not be right in your brand, they convey smiles and news attention, and lots of of those local efforts find yourself going viral.
Searching for more inspiration? Try these edible billboard examples.
Out of Home Promoting: The Marketing You Never Knew You Needed
Billboard promoting may not be your typical marketing strategy. Nevertheless it’s a highly effective technique to promote your products and boost your brand.
So, benefit from the guidelines and examples above to create an unforgettable billboard in your brand. And, who knows? Someone may look out the window during their next commute and see your billboard — and grow to be a recent customer.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in September 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
