GENERAL FAQS
In the past, billboards were hand-painted or had a combination of paint, vinyl decals and lettering – a time-consuming and costly venture. Today’s billboards are designed on a computer screen and printed on one sheet of flexible material. This process allows the client to include large format photos or any graphic that can be generated electronically.
Once printed, the flexible sign material is most commonly stretched over the front of the sign. The result is a less expensive and higher quality product.
The client will assume liability for display content including copy, representation and illustration, and assume responsibility for any and all claims arising therefrom. All content and copy must be approved in advance by BCbillboards.ca. We reserve the right to remove any offensive advertising at our sole discretion.
- Kelowna
- Vernon
- Osoyoos/Oliver
- Salmon Arm
- Kamloops
- Trans Canada HWY 1
- West Kootenays HWY 3
AD FAQS
Facts:
- In the U.S. there are currently more mobile subscribers than TV & Internet subscribers combined.
- Mobile web access (hand held devices) will surpass PCs by 2013.
- Canadians lead all countries in engagement and online usage, on average we spend 42 hours online each month.
- Canada is the highest penetrated country in terms of Internet usage.
- Online videos watched by Canadians grew 123%, translating into an average of 263 videos per viewer, per year. (More than half of those watchers are over the age of 35)
- 97% of Canadians online in 2009 conducted a search.
- 48% of Canadians are on Facebook
Look at these numbers
- In Kelowna B.C. you can have over 100,000 people* view your billboard each day for less than $25.
- A one year contract would bring you over 30 million viewers.
- Do you need to give people directions to your business?
- Do you want more people to visit your website?
- Do you want more people to call you?
- Do you offer a special service, price or unique product?
- Do you want to promote your new business and make sure the public at large knows who you are?
- Do you want to Build your brand and build Public Awareness?
- Do you want to increase market share during slower economic periods?
- Do you want to boost sales? See the testimonials from others that have sales grow as a result
Do not clutter your billboard with detail. The billboards' primary purpose is to motivate the customer to contact you. Let your website or salesperson do the selling. The billboard should insure that they remember your web address and your name. The customer must be able to easily find you by remembering your website address or by doing a Google search with your name alone.
I was recently trying to reach another billboard company that operates in Western Canada. Their name is clearly posted on the bottom of their signs in other provinces. After much effort I was unable to locate them by doing a Google search. I wonder how their sales performance is?
In our opinion you should be in 2 places
- The internet... With a great website that is optimized
- Outdoor advertising. A billboard drives people to your website at very a low cost per viewer.
With technology gains how do you know where to advertise? Our advice is to find advertising that you know will benefit you. That means paying money for actual numbers. For example you can buy ads on Google based on the number of times viewers click on your ad. Similarly traffic counts on most highways are a known number based on the provincial government statistics (ever see those little black cables across the road and wonder what they are for?...they are recording the number of vehicles that pass on any given day).
Optimizing and driving traffic to your website is probably the single most important thing that you can do at this time. Having a Billboard is one of the best and cheapest ways to do this. Billboard Advertising has one of the lowest costs per thousand in all media.
Look at these numbers:
In Kelowna B.C. you can have over 100,000 people* view your billboard each day for less than $25. A one year contract would bring you over 30 million viewers.
Creating a Brand
A brand is the public face of your company. Building public awareness is likely the single most important objective of any advertising campaign. And it is permanent. Once you are known, public awareness is an asset of your company just like customer loyalty or goodwill. Repeat exposure to an image ensures everyone driving that piece of highway will know who you are. It is a fact that there is a loyalty to recognizing a brand over a non name. Consumers retrace the same routes over and again, your advertising message remains in their line of sight every day and allows for repeated exposure needed to become known by your target audience. Billboards ensure the local public will know who you are and how to reach you.
Pick a designer who is knowledgeable about branding and have them create an image for your company. It should be easy to recognize and say something about your unique place in the market. Your brand should reflect who you are. You want a brand that you will be happy with for a long time therefore spend time trying different concepts. Consider who you are today and who you plan to be in the future. Ask colleagues and friends for their input. Add a tagline on your logo that expresses your uniqueness. Your logo can then be used with or without the tagline depending on the space limitations you may have.
Building your Brand
Once you have created a logo and tagline, you have branded your company. A brand is only useful when consumers are familiar with it and remember it. The goal is that your brand comes to mind in the consumer when they want your type of product or service. The next step for you is to build your brand awareness in the market that you want to capture. Create as many opportunities in the marketplace for the consumer to connect with your brand. Put your brand on everything including your vehicle and all correspondence. Every email you send out should have your brand at the bottom plus a direct connect link to your website. These all create impressions in the mind of the public. Building your brand should be something that you do continually. The most important feature of building your brand is your ad campaign. The use of outdoor billboards is by far the greatest exposure in terms of numbers. You can reach tens of thousands of consumers per day at very low cost. Click here to see how cheap. Want some help with your branding? Contact Us.
Billboard Advertising has one of the lowest costs per thousand in all media. For example you can have over 100,000 people* view your billboard each day for less than $25. Where? Kelowna, B.C. That is over 30 million viewers /year.
According to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America, outdoor advertising is 80 percent less expensive than TV, 60 percent less expensive than newspapers and 50 percent less expensive than radio. 96 of Canada’s top 100 advertisers include Outdoor in their media mix.
| Media | Circulation | Type | Price Per Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radio | Vernon to Kelowna | 30 seconds | $15-$55 |
| TV(CHBC) | 96,600 viewers | 30 seconds | $300 |
| Daily Courier | 16,300 | 1/4 page | $911.40 |
| BCbillboard.ca | 582,400 | Hwy 97 | $175 |
| Info Tel | Big White to West Kelowna | 1/16 page (no colour) | $791.20 (year) |
| BC Transit | unavailable | 30 x 139 | |
| Castanet | 169,392 | news section | $200-$500 |
Outdoor media reaches more people per ad dollar spent than any other media. $750 will buy you a small ad in a local newspaper for a few days but how many people will pick up that paper and how many of those will see your ad amongst all the other photos and editorial?
A well located billboard sits alone as one very large message and in their line of site every day. In Kelowna B.C.for example $750/month will reach up to 100,000 motorists/day or a total of 3 million in just one month. A lot of them are repeat viewers commuting to and from work and that is how you build your brand... a continuous public awareness campaign. Putting the same message in front of the consumer builds brand awareness and that translates to sales.
| Area | Impressions per day | Cost per 4 week cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Toronto | 48,000 | $16,000 |
| Kelowna | 100,000 | $725 |
| Victoria | 99,960 | $1,365 |
Building public awareness is likely the single most important objective of any advertising campaign. And it is permanent. Once you are known, public awareness is an asset of your company just like customer loyalty or goodwill.
The most common question asked of an advertising salesperson is: "Can you tell me how many people will see my ad?". Most forms of ad media such as yellow pages, radio, phone, television etc. have subscriber, circulation, or listenership numbers based on the number of units distributed or number of viewers polled. How many of those people however see your ad amongst all the other information in that media? Do you switch channels when you know there are going to be 10 ads in a row?
It is a certainty how many people will see your Highway billboard
- Highway Billboards cannot be turned off.
- Highway billboards are in the consumer's line of sight every day.
- Highway Billboards are very large - stand alone - single message advertising.
- Traffic counts are knowable so you know precisely how many viewers will see your sign every day.
- The cost to reach X number of viewers is known.
- The cost to reach X number of viewers is far less than any other option.
- Viewership in most other media is unknowable but rather an estimate.
- Government statistics are used based on the actual number of cars using a particular highway.
Certainty is important in business.
Due to their size, Billboards create a visual impact not possible with any other form of media.
By choosing a specific location you can target the audience. You are controlling who sees your ad and where it is placed. Television and Magazines don't offer the same.
It is worth spending time to find a good Billboard location that suits your needs. The following are some considerations:
- Drive by the spots that your considering.
- Proximity to your place of business.
- Demographics of the consumers that use that stretch of road.
- Traffic counts of the highway where the billboard is located.
- Reserve your space six months to a year in advance. Many of the best locations are purchased on long-term contracts and only become available once or twice a year. If you spontaneously decide that you need a sign you will have to choose from the existing supply of vacant space at that time.
- If you obtain a great location consider negotiating a long term contract at a fixed rate.
- Ensure that the visibility and sightlines are good
Call us for a quote or reserve your favourite location in advance: 1-800-795-7525
When designing a billboard, it is extremely important to follow a certain set of criteria or the process could end up taking a lot more time and effort than necessary. BCbillboards.ca has years of experience designing billboards and that's why we should be your number one choice for billboard design.
It is very important to choose a designer that has experience in the Billboard Industry. You should ask to see some of their work. The following are some design criteria that will help you ensure that the final product looks great, attracts attention and produces the results that you want.
Billboard Design Rules that the Pros Sometimes Forget:
- Keep the message simple
- Use an image or photo to extend the message you are trying to convey
- Use as few words as possible. Remember you have a very short time in which to capture the attention of the consumer
- In addition to a web address or phone number, use the text to make your name or brand dominant. Try to convey the rest of the message through your photo or image
- Use only professional artwork images and photos. It is easy and inexpensive to buy great photographic images on the web. Avoid using your own photos
- Keep all lettering at least 6 inches tall. Anything smaller cannot be read by a passing motorist
- If the Billboard is a long way off the highway the lettering will need to be large
- Try to use primary colours that do not blend in with nature. Use contrast between your lettering and the background making it easy to read. See one of my favorite designs at the bottom of this page
- The primary or dominant image should take up 2 thirds of the space. The viewers eyes will go here first and then to the name or contact information. A sign that is split in half is confusing as it lacks one dominant feature
- Your name must be large and easy to remember
- The design should convey a unique feature of your business that is a call to action. For example: "Drag, tow or bring in any car and we will give you $2500 off your next vehicle purchase"
- Get in your car and go find billboards that stand out. Which company names do you remember? Look at the concept and colours that they are using. Also notice what doesn't work
Using a Billboard is a very cost-efficient way to advertise. 96 of Canada's top 100 advertisers including Outdoor Advertising in their media mix. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America estimates that U.S. businesses spent more than $5.5 billion on outdoor advertising in 2003 and there has been a steady rise in the use of outdoor advertising since.
There are a number of reasons for the recent surge in billboard advertising, not the least of which is cost efficiency. Compared to other forms of advertising, billboards are a relatively inexpensive way to get your point across to the general public. You can't beat a billboard dollar for dollar for the number of people reached. It is money well spent with lasting effect. A billboard ad is working for you twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week whereas newspaper & television ads are good for only a day.
Technology has reduced the cost to produce billboard images. Most are designed and printed digitally eliminating the need for paint and vinyl adhesive graphics. The result: Higher quality ads in less time for less money. Contact us for a quote.
Should I spend the money?
Building public awareness is something you should be doing right away as a small business. Dollars spent on new vehicles and furnishings is better directed to promoting your new business and building brand recognition. You may not be able to physically see it like a new truck; however, brand loyalty is an asset. Unlike vehicles and furniture, brand loyalty and customer awareness are assets that produce cash flow.
If you have a broad customer base, billboards are the most effective way to reach the most people for the fewest dollars. Study the traffic counts of your area and then calculate the cost per day to reach those customers relative to other forms of advertising. Once you have created a great design, your business can look as large as a national chain. Billboards help your customers find you rather than them searching the yellow pages. Your message is visible to anyone old enough to drive (or ride) all day long - and into the night if your board is illuminated. Billboards can drive a lot of traffic to your website. If you want to know how many people will see your sign you can contact the Department of Transportation in your area (in BC visit www.th.gov.bc.ca Highway traffic counts/statistics) - they'll be able to tell you how many cars travel on those roads.)
Consider buying multiple locations to capture all of the traffic coming in and out of your city. Billboards are very helpful to direct motorists to your door.
An effective advertising campaign strategy should include an updated website that is search engine friendly. It's important that your website come up in searches when potential customers search for your business name, products, and services. Why lose out on those leads?
Billboards allow you to reach your target market at a very low cost per ad impression. Actual viewers of a billboard are calculated by multiplying the BC Highway Traffic counts times the average number of persons per vehicle (1.6).*
Traffic count example:
Hwy 97 between Kelowna and West Kelowna B.C.
*52, 000 average X 365 days + 18,980,000 vehicles x 1.6 viewers per car = 30,368,000 viewers /year
Peak summer 63,000 vehicles / day X 1.6 = 100,800 viewers /day
**2009 Ministry of Transportation stats - average vehicle traffic, based on 1.6 passengers per vehicle
**2009 B.C. Ministry of Transportation stats
BC Ministry of Transportation
Highway traffic counts/statistics
