Billbored? Maximizing the Efficacy of Outdoor Advertisements
Billboards, as a medium for advertising, have stood the test of time. They are one of the earliest forms of advertising, appearing in their earliest avatar as large posters on the sides of buildings. As cities urbanized and the number of roads steadily increased, so did the billboard advertising business along with it. Keeping in tune with the times, billboards have metamorphized from painted boards to their more technologically adept digital variants.
However, in today’s world of mobile-based advertising, have billboards started losing their sheen? Not really. Outdoor advertising of any form helps you reach out to potential customers where no other form of advertising can reach them — outside their homes. Billboards are often designed in a manner such that they are able to create a memorable impression in a short span of time. Given the fact that potential customers mostly chance across billboards while in transit, how can we make sure that they do catch the person’s attention? Well, creative billboard ads are definitely one way to go about it. But is that it? At AdMAVIN, we did some digging around — and figured out the most important factors that affect the attention-grasping-power of any billboard ad!
Let’s start by dividing these into 3 buckets: Physical characteristics of the billboard, aesthetics of the ad content and considerations external to the billboard itself. In the below sections, we’ve tackled each section individually and tried to summarize the key aspects within each bucket that would impact the visibility the most.
Physical Characteristics:
- Height — Billboards with either very short heights or enormous heights have been reported to have poor view-ability, especially in vivid cities where multiple objects clamor for attention. Large boards fail to register an impression because they take longer movement of the eye muscles to register the entirety of the message. Boards with small heights on the other hand merge with surroundings and are therefore difficult to perceive and differentiate.
- Width — Research shows billboards with high width fail to deliver a synergistic message to viewers. On the other hand billboards with too small a width do not capture the attention of the audience for the necessary amount of time. Hence the width need to be calibrated to an optimum size for the billboard to have maximum impact.
- Setback — Distance of the first edge of the sign from the road is defined as it’s setback. Setback should be optimized based on the vehicular traffic on the road. A typical traveler has a 20 degree horizontal view range and thus a large setback helps the sign to be viewed from a greater distance but at the cost of lower view-ability at close distances.
- Tilt Angle — The angle of the billboard with the incoming traffic is referred to as the tilt angle. Tilt angle plays a significant role in determining the magnitude of the impression of the billboard on the viewer. Billboards placed facing the incoming traffic register an increased engagement due to increased visibility and an ease of view. On the other hand, billboards placed parallel to the incoming traffic are least likely to be noticed.
- Illumination — A lit sign needs to be well lit for it to be decipherable during the night, especially from a distance.
Advertisement Aesthetics:
Aesthetics plays a vital role in communicating the message of the ad. People who may chance upon a sign will, within seconds, be able to comprehend a message based on fonts and graphics used in the sign — and make a decision on whether or not the sign deserves a second glance to decipher its meaning in depth.
- Letter Height — With an increase in letter height, the Minimum Required Legibility Distance (MRLD) increases. Below is the standard letter height guidelines for On-Premise Signs issued in 2007:
- Number and Length of Words — Words form one of the most important, if not the most vital, part of the message on the billboards. Words matter especially when the branding is intended for a new product or a service which is not common knowledge for the general public. Research shows that a normal reader takes about 0.7 seconds to register a particular word. However, this number can go all the way up to 13 seconds for a non-native speaker. Hence, it becomes critical to ensure that the intended message is worded appropriately for most viewers to be able to grasp it’s meaning.
- Logo & Graphics Dimensions — A sign’s shape and color are usually noticed and recognized from a much greater distance than its legend. Companies know this quite well; which is why they put in extra efforts to make sure that their trademark colors, logos and shapes are easily recognizable. Public roadway signage should be designed based on the same principle. You don’t need to read a stop sign to know what it is — it’s shape and color are intended to serve exactly that purpose.
- White Spaces — Research indicates that a minimum of 60% of the area of the board needs to be empty for it to be visible and comprehensible. White spaces add to the aesthetics of the board.
- Color Contrast — A study conducted by Garvey and Mace (1996) found no difference in legibility distance that could not be accounted for by luminescence, luminous contrast, or contrast orientation between signs using the following color combinations: white/green, black/white, black/orange, black/yellow, and black/red. In general if appropriate luminescence contrast, color contrast, and luminescence levels are maintained, the choice of specific colors for background and text does not affect the minimum required Legibility Distance(MRLD).
- Innovation on the Billboard Creatives — Yes! Innovative advertisement do work remarkably. They allow the billboards to tell a great story while also communicating the required message. Such messages have the potential to truly reach the tipping point and cause an epidemic. But in general such remarkable advertisement are difficult to engineer.
External Considerations:
Apart from the billboard and advertisement characteristics listed above, there are a few considerations external of the billboard which impact the effectiveness of the billboard ad:
- Traffic Speed — As logic states, the speed of the incoming traffic would impact the noticing, reacting and reading times. The higher the speeds, the lesser the chance of a billboard being seen and the ad being read. Hence, it is always better to put ads on billboards that are located at busy traffic intersections inside cities where traffic speeds are much lower
- Number of Traffic Lanes — A large number of traffic lanes ensure low traffic density and consequently a smaller view count, assuming that the traffic frequency is constant.
- Obstructions or Distractions — Inside cities visibility of a billboards are higher. But so are the number of billboards. When the number of visible billboards increase, a gradual desensitization is noticed in the viewers. People have been bombarded with so many different messages and endorsements in such a small amount of time that they may end up shunning all of them. Hence, billboards in areas where there are multiple other billboards present, often end up falling on the viewer’s blind spot.
To summarize, the visibility potential of any billboard depends on it’s location, it’s physical features and also on the advertisement itself. Hopefully, you can keep the above tips in mind while planning your next outdoor campaign. And we, at AdMAVIN, can help you zero-in on the best billboards in town!
