5 Tips to Successful Billboard Advertising

A common mistake many new advertisers make is trying to get lots of information squeezed onto a billboard while targeting as many people as possible. It may seem counterintuitive, but this isn’t the best way to billboard advertise. So, what are some practical pieces of information you can put to use when deciding how to structure your billboard campaign?

     Keep your message short and sweet.
Consider that for the majority of billboard campaigns, most audiences will be driving by your message at 60+ MPH on a freeway. Your message should contain no more than 7 words and make a powerful statement that provokes emotion and thought in the viewer. Your message is guaranteed to be seen, so make it short and make it count.

     Show, but don’t tell.
This tip goes hand-in-hand with the first one but has a slight twist. When it comes to billboards, powerful imagery usually trumps words. If a viewer has the option to read your message, or simply absorb it through creative imagery, option two will serve you and them better. In a 2014 study, it was found that visual content is processed 60,000 times faster than textual content. On the freeway when people are racing by, having conversations with passengers and talking on their phones, the time available to communicate your message decreases significantly, so make sure you’re showing your story, not talking about it.

     Use large fonts.
This is great for the sole purpose of helping people see your message quickly and clearly. It also helps the billboard to be visible from further away and from different sides of town. When driving down the road, drivers usually don’t want to compromise their safety while struggling to read a billboard. In fact, they’ll probably ignore your message altogether if it’s even remotely challenging to read. Using fonts that are too small or difficult to read also has the potential to irritate your viewers, which sheds a negative light on your brand.

     Laser target your audience.
This one may seem obvious, but to new advertisers it is a common mistake to overlook this crucial bit of information and try to target everyone. When it comes to advertising, nothing is more frustrating for an audience then when they’re exposed to advertisements that are completely irrelevant to their personal interests. Think about your market demographics and make sure your position your billboards right in front of them the best you can. You’ll have better conversion rates and spend more time closing new business than spinning your wheels.

     Laser target your niche.
Yet another common mistake among new advertisers is to want to market everything their companies have to offer. The better approach would be to focus on a single product or service that you want to build an audience for and focus on that only. Once you’re successful with one area of your business, you can begin to build other areas out one at a time.
If you’re a new advertiser, we hope this information has helped clarify some of the mystique that often comes with billboard advertising. Questions? Give Mollman Outdoor a call today. Our team is here to answer any questions you have about outdoor advertising while offering lots of great information on how to create the most powerful, effective campaign possible.