How Billboards Can Be Better

A few days ago, I posted an article called, “A Tale of Two Billboards.” In this piece, I explained that billboards are one of the few types of advertising that still reach me, and I compared two billboards for educational institutions, one that I feel is right on the money and one that I feel is ineffective. (Some of the commenters disagreed, but that’s why it’s fun to talk about ads… everyone has a different perspective!)

Driving in today, it occurred to me that I should probably explain what makes a good and effective billboard, because there are certainly a lot on my commute that could be better. Keep in mind that I am approaching this from a communication standpoint, and not from a pure marketing standpoint. After all, it could be that a billboard that appears poorly designed to 90% of the population is super effective with the 10% of the population that’s within an organization’s target. You can’t just stand on the sidelines and judge what an effective message is without having some knowledge of the target market.

But from a communication standpoint, I often find that billboards are lacking in their ability to be clear, concise and understandable, which means that their message gets lost. Drivers only have a couple of seconds to absorb a billboard’s message, and unless they are going to be stopped in traffic, they probably won’t have the time or interest to read a lot of copy or dissect a complex layout.

Billboard ads should have a simple message. Typically, this message should be just a few words long. The message needs to be short and punchy, and easily understood. For example, a billboard for a notebook computer repair company might have three or four lines about all the work they can do and all the certifications they have. Or, it could just simply have a picture of a broken laptop and big, bold letters saying “WE CAN FIX IT” with the logo and Web site for the company underneath. The second message would be far more effective, simply because it’s easier to read and understand.

Billboard ads can say more with a clever image than with lots of words. The St. Louis McDonald’s region has been running annual Filet-O-Fish ads depicting the sandwich in larger-than-life situations. Last year, they had animals coming out of the billboard trying to get to the sandwich. This year, they’ve made it look like the sandwich is the catch of the day by depicting it in fishing nets, on a tape measure, or on a hook. This conveys a rather complicated message about the sandwich being fresh and appealing as well as easily available, but it’s so easily understood that any motorist could pass by it, glance up, and be reminded that the Filet-O-Fish is a viable option for lunch or dinner.

As it happens, there’s an ad from Circle K convenience stores on the same stretch that uses an image effectively and then mars it with copy. The ad depicts a 7-Up two liter bottle with a sparkling glass of ice. The copy says something along the lines of, “Deliciously bubbly, even during rush hour.” And then, in smaller print, “2-liter bottles just 99 cents.” The copy completely ruins an otherwise striking image and, in the most baffling move of all, doesn’t match the target market. (Who wants to deal with a 2-liter during a rush hour commute when you can buy a more car-friendly fountain drink at any gas station?) The billboard may have increased some impulse sales, but it would be far more effective if it should the same image and simply said, “Fill’er Up” or something along those lines with a Circle K logo at the bottom. The image conveys a lot; the copy needs to get out of the way.

Web addresses are a call to action; phone numbers are not. I’m sure there are some people who call companies offering services because they saw a billboard, but I’d be willing to bet you that few of them used the number printed on the ad. They more than likely remembered the name of the business and looked it up in the phone book or online. That’s because phone numbers are too hard for people to remember unless they’re REALLY simple.

But you know what people can remember? Web site names, especially if they match the name of the company. And just the presence of the “.com” at the end of the Web site name is a call to action in itself. When I see a billboard that says, “Shop St. Louis.com”, I can remember that and immediately know what to do with it. If I see a billboard that says, “Call 1-800 ShopSTL for more info”, I’m not only likely to forget it, but also unlikely to call it because I don’t want to have to speak to a live person about information I could just dig up on my own.

Web sites also make for a simple message, provided that they’re part of a campaign and not just a standard homepage. This is one of the reasons I feel “BeABilliken.Com” is such a strong message – it offers a marketing message AND a call to action AND a place to go for more info.

Billboards are not print ads. The best and most striking billboards are simple in design, limited in copy, and focused on a very specific message. They have the ability to be larger than life, and they also have the ability to change ever week to keep commuters’ interest. Rolling Rock did a great campaign a couple of years ago where they had billboards announcing some weird thing called “Moon Vision” and then gradually explained, via billboard and radio ads, what that mean. It certainly got my attention, and I know others were talking about it as well.

One of the best billboard campaigns I’ve ever heard of was something one of my marketing professors at SIUE experienced. In the town where he was growing up, someone took out a billboard that said, in large block letters, “WHO CARES?” The billboard was mysterious and became the talk of the town. Everyone wondered who had put it up, and why.

Soon after, the billboard was replaced with something along the lines of “Fred Jones Ford Dealership Cares!” A disappointing payoff, perhaps, but it got peoples’ attention.

What are your favorite billboards? Which messages stick with you best? Post your comments below!