Know-How Exchange : Advertising/PR

Outdoor advertising can be very effective ... but it all depends on how well the creative expression resonates with the target audience.

So start with your objective and a clear definition of your target audience. What is it you want your target audience to buzz about? What message do you want them to communicate and to whom?

If it's a broad audience that regularly passes the right billboard locations, and if you have a great visual message with no more than 3 words of copy, then it might just work very well for you.

Of course, this is a general answer because we don't know about your specific market and objectives. And we don't know anything about the economics. Some markets are more cost-effective than others, so the answer to the "cost-effective" part will depend to some extent on where you are.

You might also ask yourself, "Compared to what?" Have you looked at local cable television, for example? Etc.

If the billboard is creative -- message is share-worthy -- and the area in which it stands is well-traveled by 18-year-old males, it can be effective.

The message just begins there, though. One tool typically does not drive a consumer to purchase something. A memorable (preferably brief) website would be a great feature for that wildly-creative billboard.

When I lived in Denver I didn't see billboards as that effective -- but in Atlanta they are everywhere and people rely on them for new services.

After I posted, I wanted to ask-- so are you selling a calendar or photography service/

If its the calendar do you really think you can carve enough out of this to make it cost effective? I'm not shooting the idea down, just asking the question.

And to my dear respected colleagues-- when I was in Denver the billboards were minimal. In GA, one of her targeted areas-- things are very different. They are on top of each other -- litter-ally (see the pun??) we have double decker billboards. It isn't pretty but its not for me to judge as to results. I haven't been here that long but you get to rely on them. "Which exit is that restaurant?" "I don't know but we are close to their billboard that will tell us". I am driving 80MPH and jotting a link from a billboard.

Things are different here. People read newspapers even. (Central GA - that wouldn't work in ATL) It taught me a lesson in how different regions have different answers.