Out-of-Home Advertising Strategy: Chapter 10 (Alstiel and Grow)

Why Out-of-Home? Flexible: The location, timing, structure, and dimension of the concept give you a lot of options. High-impact medium: Nothing gives you a bigger campus Exclusive: You can select a specific location Economical: Low cost per impression

Why Out-of-Home? Ideal for establishing brand image and building rapid awareness Ideal for promoting packaged goods Effective for reinforcing existing brands Message is always on display Combines selling with entertainment. Quickly conveys a concept, look good in portfolio

Why not Out-of-Home? Usually cant change creative quickly Cant provide details, in most cases Have to tell whole story in about 5 seconds or less for billboards May be on display 24/7, but paying for off-peak times too Limited to certain urban areas/ roads

Posters and Bulletins Outdoor posters: Use sheets of preprinted paper glued to backboards Painted bulletins: Traditionally have used hand-painted images. Have given way to Superflex vinyl-coated fabric, gives them mag. like quality. 36-sheet poster: 48 ft. wide by 14 ft. high A4 size: 10 inch wide, 4.5 inch high

Different formats Standard static boards: Basic poster or bulletin that fits within limits of the sign’s borders Extensions: Part of your image violates the boundaries of the board Motion boards: Can be motorized images on a static board with sliding panels that reveal totally different message, usually another advertiser

Different formats Illuminated boards: Can be lighted for night viewing or, more dramatically, to include neon, moving lights, and selective spot lighting Three-dimensional boards: Can add dimensional objects to and around the board, such as a car crashing through the middle, people sitting on the top edge, or parts of the poster removed to reveal the backing framework

Transit Transit advertising also has its own special terminology. To make it simple, think of transit as advertising that goes on the outside or inside of things that move and at the places where you wait for things that move.

Transit advertising examples Inside and outside bus cards Outside bus murals Bus shelters and benches Kiosks Train, bus, and subway stations Airports Mobile billboards: car, truck, trailer ads

Inside bus cards Often treated like mini-billboards, but here you have a captive audience Bored bus riders have lot more than 5 seconds to get the message Copy can be a little longer, images more complex than on billboards Typical sizes of inside transit cards are 11x28 inches and 11x14 inches

Transit shelters These glass-and-metal cubes lend themselves to some very creative treatments aimed less at the people who wait there than at the people who pass by

Bus panels and murals We’ve come a long way from just slapping a flat sign on the side of a bus, even though that’s still common However, some of the most striking transit advertising results from full-wrap murals, which envelop the bus totally Side and back panels can be creative too. Brief, striking, entertaining, especially to drivers stuck behind or next to a bus in heavy traffic

Wall murals/ wallscapes If you want a more permanent location without the dimensional restrictions of a billboard, consider this. Good locations are limited. Need a tall, but not too tall building next to an open space so people can see the mural Usually its an older building, so may not be in most prestigious part of town

Posters Can be a creative person’s best bed to pad a portfolio and win awards. Technically all you have to do is print one, post it somewhere, and voila, you’ve produced a real-world advertisement

Out-of-Home and Campaigns Out-of-home advertising is usually used a secondary medium. Billboards and posters are great reminders of a slogan, logo, package, or other aspect of a total campaign. Can you extend the message by using out-of-home and can you repeat the theme created for out-of-home?

Tips and Techniques Be telegraphic: 6-9 words. Someone driving by has about 5 seconds to get it Think big: You’ve got an ad that can be seen from 500 feet away. Images and type should be huge Go for a strong visual/verbal connection: Think metaphors and visual puzzles. May times you don’t even need copy Stick with one main idea: Keep it simple

Tips and Techniques Take advantage of location: A sign on the side or back of a bus can be different from a static billboard because its constantly in motion. Message on a billboard can be very local Use all caps for short headlines and uppercase/lowercase for longer heads: Using all caps makes long copy harder to read

Tips and Techniques Use short words when possible: They’re easier to read and you can get more on a billboard Use bold colors, not pastels: You’re trying to attract attention. That’s why you see so many yellows and reds Use few elements: Easier to read and you can get more on a billboard Use product package instead of words: Show Coke can, not words Coca-Cola