How To Get Your Brand on a Billboard

Pat Walls

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Updated: April 26th, 2024

What Is A Billboard?

Billboards are large outdoor advertising structures that are usually found on busy roads and high traffic areas.

Billboards are effective because they can reach pedestrians and drivers.

Based on a recent study, 71% of Americans consciously look at billboard messages while driving.

Billboard Ad Key Takeaways

Make your billboard unique and eye-catching or else your target audience will ignore it.
Keep the message short and simple to understand because your audience might not have the time to stop and read the content
When choosing a billboard location consider the number of potential impressions that you can gain
In billboard ads, include a picture to capture the attention of passersby.

Understanding How Billboard Ads Work

With all attention on digital ads, startups may simply overlook billboard advertising. However, billboard advertising is still effective in 2021.

According to statistics, the number of billboards in the US over the past three years has been rising.

Billboard advertising involves paying for space to market your brand, products, or services.

The cost of billboard ads depends on the location, traffic in that area, design, and the size of the billboard.

Billboard ads are more effective if placed in high-traffic areas, and if they are eye-catching to those passing by.

Real World Examples: Create A Billboard Ad

1. Bumble

Bumble, the online dating site had quite the humorous take on OOH during the midst of the pandemic.

They decided to launch billboards that creatively referenced dating and falling in love during a global pandemic.

Bumble uses the bright color yellow to represent their brand, so these billboards were eye-catching and easily recognizable. This campaign was a great way to add some light to the weirdness happening in the world.

2. Twitter

Twitter decided to cover New York with perfect tweets about the year 2020.

The billboards were part of Twitter's OOH advertising, and focused on highlighting tweets from the platform users, to keep the community connected during the global pandemic.

Through the use of billboards, Twitter got New Yorkers laughing despite the tough times during the pandemic, and the heated presidential elections.

How to Start Advertising on Billboards

Know your goals and plan for them
Research your audience and the potential market reach
Define the type of space and the location of your billboard advertisements
Design the Advertisement
Rent the space and Install the billboard
Measure billboard effectiveness

When it comes to billboard ad design, not everyone has the skills needed to come up with a powerful advert. Fortunately, You will find different tools for designing an effective billboard Ad. some examples include:

99designs

Logos, web, graphic design and more.

Pricing: Freemium
Twitter: @99designs
Website: https://99designs.com/

Businesses using 99designs:

43 successful businesses are using 99designs ➜

Get 99designs ➜

Gimp

GNU image manipulation program.

Pricing: Freemium
Twitter: @GIMP_Official
Website: gimp.org

Businesses using Gimp:

38 successful businesses are using Gimp ➜

Get Gimp ➜

Bumble, the online dating site had quite the humorous take on OOH during the midst of the pandemic.

They decided to launch billboards that creatively referenced dating and falling in love during a global pandemic.

Some of these relatable examples include:

“Add falling in love to the list of crazy things that happened in 2020”
“Look for a rebel who washes their hands.”

Bumble uses the bright color yellow to represent their brand, so these billboards were eye catching and easily recognizable. This campaign was a great way to add some light to the weirdness happening in the world.

meet the author

Pat Walls

I'm Pat Walls and I created Starter Story - a website dedicated to helping people start businesses. We interview entrepreneurs from around the world about how they started and grew their businesses.

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