Out-of-home (OOH) advertising is all around us, from billboards on the highways to adverts on buses and even digital screens in shopping centres. Before you jump in and join this advertising strategy, you will be sure to be wondering just how effective it is. 

In this blog post, we will take a look at some interesting stats that will give you some perspective on just how much impact this form of advertising has. 

OOH Advertising Is A Growing Trend

In South Africa, there continues to be significant growth in the OOH advertising market. It is predicted that this segment of the market will continue to grow steadily at an annual rate of 2.4% until 2025. The reason for this ongoing upward trend has a lot to do with this industry’s adaptability when faced with a changing market. 

Another factor that makes this advertising option so successful is its ability to reach so many different types of people simultaneously. Not only that, surveys show that over 80% of people can remember the contents of OOH adverts that they saw over four weeks ago.

There is also evidence that, in general, people have a favourable opinion of out-of-home ads and don’t mind seeing them as they are out and about. This is very positive when compared to the fact that over 40% of these same people find online adverts annoying. 

Lastly, it has also been found that OOH adverts are far more likely to be remembered than print ads, social media, and podcast ads, as well as TV and live streaming campaigns. 

It is not surprising, therefore, to note that OOH accounts for over 5% of global advertising spend, beating out both print and radio ads. 

Bang For Your Money With Billboards

Many companies have opted out of billboard advertising as they consider the cost to be too high. However, statistics show that money spent on this advertising medium has one of the best returns on investment. 

It is estimated that there are over 13,500 billboards dotted around the county (for obvious reasons, mostly in high-traffic urban areas). Companies are making use of this form of OOH advertising for the following reasons:

• Extensive reach
• Cost-effective way of reaching your target audience
• Flexible and updatable
• Best builder of brand awareness 
• Works 24/7 365

Contact Face First Media today to find out how we can put your brand on the map with effective out-of-home advertising.

Billboards are a powerful tool for reaching a broad audience, but to truly connect with viewers, your message needs to be clear, convincing, and suited to the medium. Here are two tips for creating content for digital billboards that speaks to every audience.

A Strong Call-To-Action

The Call-To-Action (CTA) is the prompt in your message that urges the viewer to take a specific action, for example, visiting your website, contacting you, or purchasing your product. A strong CTA is essential to promoting engagement and conversations with your potential customers, providing you with the opportunity to convert them into paying customers.

Without a clear CTA, the viewer will not know what to do next and will, therefore, most likely do nothing, as there is no motivation to take action.

Useful words to include in your CTA include:

• Buy
• Shop
• Learn
• Discover
• Join
• Subscribe
• Sign up
• Try
• Get
• Download
• Register
• Reserve
• Book
• Explore
• Save
• Watch
• Attend
• Request
• Start
• Connect
  

Always Apply The KISS Principle

“Keep it simple, stupid” is a universal design principle that states that all designs should be kept as simple as possible. This encourages the highest level of user interaction and acceptance. Seeing as the average viewer only has 6-8 seconds to view your billboard, this is a valuable concept to apply.

Do this by focusing on one core concept only. Pick out one area, service, feature or element that you would like to highlight. Use plain language and avoid jargon or unnecessary details. Then, use bold text, simple fonts, and contrasting colours to make your message stand out.

Here are some examples of South African companies that have embraced the KISS principle in their marketing campaigns:

• Pick n Pay – “Inspired by You”
• Sasol – “Inspiring Energy”
• Standard Bank – “Moving Forward”
• Shoprite – “Lower Prices You Can Trust”
• Spar – “My Spar, My Savings”
• Absa – “Today, Tomorrow, Together”
• FNB – “How Can We Help You?”
• Woolworths – “Quality, Style, Value”

Find those few short, sweet words that personify your business, your brand, and your goals.

For top advice on content for your digital billboards, contact Face First Media today. As one of the leading digital billboard providers in South Africa, we are renowned for our expert insights, tactical abilities, and personalised service. Call now to get started.