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Five concerns with outdoor advertising

When you are out and about, take a moment to look around and see just how common outdoor advertising is right now. You will see ads on billboards on the side of every highway, major or otherwise, on public transport, buildings, and just about anywhere that can hold an advertising banner. The average consumer is blasted by ads at every turn, and with so many businesses going that route with their marketing efforts, it stands to reason that outdoor advertising is still incredibly effective. While you will almost certainly see results when placing ads outdoors, there are also drawbacks to consider, including the following:

ROI

If your business is interested in outdoor advertising, the first thing that you need to know is that it will not come cheaply. Yes, there are ways to get the message out there that are more affordable, but if you want a billboard in a prime location, such as beside one of the busiest highways in your area, you are going to need to pay handsomely for it. After all, these are not ads that you can simply run for a week, as billboard advertising is usually up for months at a time.

Visibility

Outdoor advertising is great in the middle of the day when they are easy to see, but what about at night. Sure, billboards usually have some type of lighting in place, but the message on the board might still not easy enough to see, especially if there are some smaller details, such as the phone number of your business or your website URL, on the ad. The ad becomes even less effective in the winter months when the number of daylight hours is less than usual.

Speed

Even if you have a massive ad sitting in a great spot beside the freeway, the people who pass it only have a limited time to see it. Speed is a factor here. Drivers are and should be more focused on the road than they are on the ads that sit alongside it. Even when you have ads in a location, such as at a bus stop, where there is foot traffic, people nowadays tend to be in a hurry and have their faces stuck in their phones. That is why viewing speed and ad dimension is a big factor.

Difficulty in measuring effectiveness

When you place an ad online, you are quickly able to gain access from the ad server to all sorts of data that shows you just how well each ad is performing. The same is definitely not true for all outdoor advertising, as the only sure way you will ever know if a customer is using your business because of a billboard is when they actually tell you.

Vandalism

If you have seen outdoor advertising, which we all have, then there is a better than average chance that you have seen more than your fair share of defaced ads. Unfortunately, vandalism is still rampant, and all the money that you spend on your advertising can very quickly be lost because of people messing with those physical ads.

Related

• Limitations of outdoor advertising

  "Take a drive along all major highways and you are sure to encounter rows after rows of billboards. You will also run into outdoor ads at sporting events, concerts, train stations, and just about anywhere where a lot of people congregate. " More
• Advertising on a moving vehicle

  "There are many different ways to get your message out to the masses, not many of which need to be committed to a single location. One of the most effective ways to get your advertising seen is to take it to the viewers as opposed to waiting for them to come upon it on their own. " More
• Advertising opportunities in public buildings

  "When you think about advertising on a physical space, just like online ad serving, you want to make sure that you choose one that sees a lot of traffic. Public buildings certainly fit that bill, with places like community centers and libraries. " More