5 top tips for billboard advertising

People see an average of up to 5,000 adverts every day. While billboards may still be considered premium advertising space, many people are busy with their smartphones, radios or other driving / commuting distractions.

That doesn ‘t mean that billboard advertising should be ignored. In fact, billboards these days are much more inventive than the 2D posters they used to be. Still the simplest designs work best. Like this one for The Economist by Brandsynario.

Here ‘s 5 top tips for making your billboards stand out from the crowd.

1. Say it in fewer than 6 words

Your billboard is going to be looked at while people are on the move. You have between 3 and 6 seconds to grab their attention. The ideal wordcount is less than 6. If you are including more than 10 words, your messages will be lost and you will have wasted your ad spend.

2. Less is not more

Billboards are not cheap. But getting just one is not effective. If your campaign is targeting 100,000 people, you should be thinking of at least 5 billboards in high footfall areas. Spend too little, or go for just one, and again, you are wasting your ad spend.

3. Size matters   for your logo

Be very careful about the logo size on your billboard. Too big and it will distract from the message. But too small and you will have lost the chance for people to connect with your brand. And again ¦you are wasting your ad spend.

4. Remember this is not the place for a CTA

The people who read your billboard are not going to call or visit your website. Remember that a billboard is a secondary advertising medium. It is not the place for a call to action. It is there to get attention and interest. Use it well with other print advertising, television, radio, flyers, social media and direct mail. It is ideal for brand-building and supporting a campaign, but it is not there to deliver every message.

5. Do a test

We ‘re not expecting you to get your billboard printed at full size as a test! But a really good tip that we ‘ve picked up, to help you check that your billboard will work well from a distance is to create the artwork, and then print it to business card size and hold it away from you at arms-length. Still striking, great design, get it printed!

Do you have an OOH or billboard campaign that you would like some help with? Get in touch today: info@cdp.co.uk