How to design a Billboard in five simple steps
Rajendra Zadpe
Outdoor advertising is about catching the attention of your audience through brilliant and stimulating outdoor art and a copy of a billboard. As the biggest and most prominent form of outdoor advertising, billboards are the best examples (and acid tests) of doing outdoor advertising right. As an advertising strategy, billboards can still play an important role in your brand’s presence outside of the digital realm.
Not surprisingly, billboard advertising is teeming with competition. Since other brands also use this medium in advertising their business, it is imperative for your brand to differentiate itself from all the visual noise. These are some of the practices that we think are essential in reaching your audience.
Focus on a single message with a specific goal.
Each billboard must focus on communicating a single message. Since billboards are often found near roads and public areas, brands are competing for the audience’s split-second attention. Having multiple messages adds complexity to your advertisement. Remember: Your audience won’t stop in the middle of the road just to ponder your advertisement.
Use short copy
The best practice in billboard copy is: Use seven words or less in your copy. While it might not seem economical to rent an entire billboard to communicate a short copy, your advertising agency will make it worth it. More often than not, billboard copy is purposively short but designed to be effective (because your audience won’t have much time to read a longer message).
The simpler, the better.
In terms of design, keep your billboard simple. Using unnecessary elements in your billboard distracts you from your message. Don’t add to the visual noise that other billboards are already emitting. Also, use a minimal number of attention-grabbing images.
Choose the right colors.
When it comes to using colors in your billboard, remember to choose hues that reflect your company’s branding. Being consistent with your branding on every platform creates a strong, unified image in your audience’s mind. If the design calls for different colors, try eye-catching colors and color combinations to draw attention. You can have a reference from the billboard templates or billboard designs from an online platform.
Put a premium on typography.
Billboards are meant to be viewed in a few seconds. Therefore, the fonts, kerning, spacing, and visual flow of your content affect your audience’s perception significantly. Make your content easily readable for your audience.
Billboards are opportunities for your brand to show how different you are from others. Don’t fade into obscurity by just flooding your audience with multiple messages, complex copy, and boring design. Create a tight, direct, and unique billboard that will make your brand memorable for your audience.
You don't have to reuse your website, social, or print advertising content for your next digital out-of-home campaign. Depending on the asset(s) you have picked, small changes can make a big difference to the viewability and impact of your message. Here are a few things to keep in mind while designing billboards online or using an online billboard maker.
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Go Straight-to-the-Point:
While you're not surrounded by a clutter of tabs and other ads like in the online world, you are still trying to reach an easily distracted audience. The idea is to get your message across in as little as a single glance.
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Use high quality, impactful images:
Your pictures tell the story. There is now an increasing number of billboards in population-dense and affluent areas. To stand out, your creativity has to be anything but boring.
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Focus on One Message:
Don't leave the audience confused. Do you want them to visit a website? Maybe go to your store? Or even redeem a coupon? Make sure you clearly communicate what you want the audience to do.
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Optimize for Billboard Quality:
No two digital billboards are the same. Apart from shape and size, the quality of content is affected by the pixel pitch and resolution. Make sure you are well aware of what type of content looks best on the type of billboard you are buying space on. Boards with lower pitches, for example, don't do too well with smaller text sizes and closer viewing distances.
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Analyze and Optimise:
Put up your ad? Good. Then you're all set, right? Wrong. Executing your digital signage campaign is just the beginning. Analyzing its impact, based on your objectives - website traffic, store traffic, or voucher redemption, is how you'll learn what works and what does not.
