If you want to generate awareness of your company, product or service, then it's time for you to hit the streets with outdoor advertising.
- Outdoor delivers viewers. Today, consumers spend more time traveling in their vehicles than ever before. That makes outdoor advertising a more powerful medium than ever. In the past 25 years, the number of vehicles on the road increased 128%. Those are the people you reach over and over with outdoor advertising.
- Outdoor reaches your audience when they need it. Outdoor advertising is often the final reminder of a brand name product or service just before the point of purchase. It is the most visible media being exposed to everyone who leaves their home to work, shop or play.
- Outdoor is efficient. No other advertising medium reaches as many people, as often, at such a low cost. When it comes to generating repeat exposure to an audience, outdoor advertising is the most cost effective per 1,000 viewers.
- Outdoor is big, bold and dynamic. Its larger-than-life proportions and endless creative options will grab and hold consumer attention.
- Outdoor offers constant repetitive exposure. Seven days a week, 31 days a month, outdoor delivers your message over and over. Your prospects have your sales message right there in front of them.
An important question to keep in mind when designing outdoor advertising is...does your message communicate simply and effectively within 7-10 seconds? That's how long your viewer will have to see your ad.
Outdoor is usually viewed from distances of 100 to 500 feet - so your message needs to be brief, simple and clear.
Color
Choose colors with high contrast in both hue and value. Contrasting colors work best when viewed from a distance. Colors without contrast will blend together and obscure the message.
Copy
Copy should generally be kept to seven words or less and should be concise to register quickly in the mind of a moving audience. A strong illustration is worth 1,000 words.
Font Type
Outdoor type and lettering should be simple, clear and easy to read.
Be careful with spacing between letters and between words. Letters with too little spacing tend to merge when viewed from a distance.
Simple, sans serif type faces work best in outdoor; ornate, serif typefaces do not.
30 Sheet Bleed Posters
When designing a poster, the scale to use for the layout is 1/2" = foot. The actual poster paper size is 10'5" x 22' 8". Your layout should measure 5-3/8" high by 11-9/16" wide.
Depending on the type of images used, the number of colors used, and the quantity of posters required, various methods are used to produce bleed posters.
Currently Collins utilizes the following printing methods:
Hand Painting: After the poster paper is hung on the wall, the artist draws and paints the poster using a projected image of the layout.
Flat-Tone Posterization: A stencil is cut for every color on every sheet of the poster. The stencils are attached to silk screens and the posters are printed as the ink passes through the screens.
Digital & Inket: Photographic images are either digitally produced or the traditional photographic screen printing process may be used.
Painted Bulletins / Vinyls
The scale to use for bulletin layouts is 1/4" = foot for 14'x48' vinyl, and 1/2" = foot for 12'x24' vinyl. Bulletin designs should be prepared in a layout size of 3-1/2" high by 12" wide (for 14'x48') and 6" high by 12" (for 12'x24').
Vinyls are either hand painted at our facilities, or digitally printed with ink jet or ink drop precision at one of our large format printers.
Allotment
The number of illuminated and non-illuminated panels in a poster showing.
Approach
The point where a billboard first becomes fully visible to the point where the copy is no longer readable.
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Billboard
Large format advertising displays intended for viewing from extended distances, generally more than 50 feet. Types of billboard displays that Collins offers are 30-sheet bleed posters, permanent painted bulletins, and rotary bulletins.
Bleed Poster
A poster with a 10'5" by 22'8" copy area. As the name implies, the copy extends to the edge of the poster panel frame on all sides.
Bulletin
A standardized outdoor format commonly measuring 12'x24' or 14'x48'. They are sold either as permanent displays or in rotary packages. Bulletin copy can be rendered using hand painting techniques or computer production.
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Charting a Poster Showing
The process of selecting individual poster unit locations to maximize outdoor advertising objectives.
Co-op
The sharing of advertising costs between a manufacturer and distributor or dealer.
Copy Area
The viewing area on an outdoor unit, including pictorials and words.
Coverage
The placement of outdoor advertising on a network of the principally traveled thoroughfares so that the advertiser's message is delivered to as many different people as many times as possible throughout the display period.
DEC
Daily Effective Circulation. The average number of persons passing and potentially exposed to an advertising display for either 12 hours (non-illuminated) or 18 hours (illuminated).
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Extension
The addition of copy outside the restraints of a bulletin. Sometimes referred to as cut-outs.
Face
The surface area on an outdoor unit where advertising copy is displayed. A unit may have more than one face.
Facing
The direction that an outdoor unit faces. As an example, a north facing bulletin would be viewed by vehicles traveling south.
Flagging
A tear that causes poster paper to hang loose from a bulletin or poster panel face.
Frequency
The average number of times during a month an individual has the opportunity to see an advertising message.
GRP
Gross Rating Point. GRP's represent the number of impression opportunities expressed as a percent of the population of a specific market, normally quoted on a daily basis.
Illuminated
An outdoor unit equipped with lighting that provides night time illumination of an advertising message, usually from dusk until midnight.
Imprint
A paper strip that is added to the bottom of a poster. Traditionally imprints contain the name and address of a local dealer selling a national product.
Location List
A listing of all locations included in a specific outdoor program.
OAAA
Outdoor Advertising Association of America. The term refers to a national trade association representing and supported by the member plant operators, suppliers, associates and international members. The mission of the OAAA is to promote, protect and improve the outdoor advertising medium by focusing on legislation, marketing, product improvement, new technologies and industry unity.
Off-Premise Sign
A sign that advertises products or services that are not sold, produced, manufactured or furnished on the property where the sign is located. An outdoor display is an off-premise sign.
On-Premise Sign
A sign that advertises products or services that are sold, produced, manufactured or furnished on the property where the sign is located.
Override
The continuation of an outdoor advertising program beyond a contracted period. An override, if offered by an outdoor company, is provided at no additional cost to an advertiser.
Permanent Bulletin
A bulletin that remains permanently located at a specified site throughout the term of a contract, usually for 1 to 3 years.
Porta-Panel
A trailer equipped with one or more poster panel units. The trailer is parked at a specified location and may move to additional locations per contract specifications.
Poster Panel
Advertising structures measuring approximately 12'x25' overall on which 30-sheet and 30-sheet bleed posters are displayed.
Posting Date
The date when a poster program is scheduled to commence. A five day leeway is customary.
Proof-of-Performance
Certification by an outdoor company that contracted advertising services have been rendered.
Rating Point
One rating point equals 1% of the market's population.
Reach
Usually expressed as the percentage of individuals in a given market area exposed to an outdoor program during a given time period (normally four weeks.)
Riding the Showing
The physical inspection of the units that comprise an outdoor program by driving by the boards.
Rotary Bulletin
A standardized 12'x24' or 14'x48' bulletin that is moved to different locations in a market every 90 days.
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Showing
A group of poster panels distributed throughout a city or marketing area displaying an advertiser's message. Usually displayed for a 30 day period.
Snipe
Paper sheet posted on top of the poster indicating some special information such as a price, dates, etc.
Spotted Map
A map indicating all locations included in a specific outdoor program. Also referred to as a location map
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Traffic Audit
The third party verification of traffic circulation in a market. Traffic audit information is used to calculate outdoor advertising DEC figures.
Traffic Count
The recording of the vehicles and pedestrians passing a given point; used by TAB to authenticate the potential exposure of outdoor advertising structures.
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Vinyl (or Flexface)
A single-sheet substrate on which an advertising message is rendered by either computer production or hand painting.