7 Tips for Effective Outdoor Advertising [Infographic]
With so much marketing going digital, it’s easy to forget just how effective traditional marketing can be. Take out of home (OOH) advertising, for instance. Whether they’re driving across town or across the country, the US if full of people who are on the move. In fact, some estimates show that we spend as much as 70% of our waking hours out of the home.
While out of home executions like billboards have the potential to reach millions of captive and, quite frankly, bored motorists, getting their attention and relaying your message in a short amount of time is easier said than done. If you’re considering adding OOH to your marketing mix, make sure it’s effective and eye-catching with these tips for engaging outdoor ads:
Placement
Placement can make or break the impact of an outdoor ad. If the board is obstructed by other signs, trees, or elements like sunlight, it loses impact and wastes money.
Distance
Your type has to be at least one foot tall in order for it to be legible from a distance of 500 feet. Headlines should be 2-3 feet tall.
Typography
Avoid decorative, italic and delicate fonts. Upper and lower-case bold sans serif fonts provide the best readability.
Contrast
Choose bold colors that jump out of the environment. Make your headline and background contrasting colors for optimal legibility. Avoid vibrating colors.
Brevity
Get to the point. Be short and sweet. Don’t use more than 7-10 words (including logo, product & tagline).
Recall
Give your audience something to think about or smile at. Try to stick with one key idea you want to convey.
Impact
Billboards are a visual medium. Since words are limited, use imagery to tell your story. Large images are much more visually impactful than small images or text.
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While these tips can be helpful on their own, making them work together will yield the most effective results for outdoor creative. Remember, your outdoor audiences will only have about ten seconds to take in all of your hard work, so make those precious moments count with strong messaging, bold design, and strategic ad placement.
If you’re looking for some inspiration, or if you’d like some help with your outdoor ad concepts, branded designs and executions, our team at ZG is here to help.