BILLBOARDS
Introduction
A billboard is a large outdoor advertising structure, found in places with high traffic such as cities, roads, motorways and highways. Billboards show large advertisements aimed at passing pedestrians and drivers.
Typically showing large, witty slogans supported with distinctive visuals, billboards are often found on highways or are placed on the sides of buildings.
Bulletins are the largest, most impactful standard-size billboards. Located primarily on major highways, expressways or principal arterials, they command high-density consumer exposure (mostly to vehicular traffic). Bulletins afford greatest visibility due not only to their size, but because they allow creative "customizing" through extensions and embellishments.
Posters are the other common form of billboard advertising, located chiefly in commercial and industrial areas on primary and secondary arterial roads. Posters viewed principally by persons in automobiles and delivers exposure to both residents and to commuter traffic, with some pedestrian exposure.
Technology of Billboards
1)Traditional billboards
Advertising an Iranian beverage on a billboard along the Hemmat Highway in Tehran
Billboards are typically large signs displays advertising goods or services not sold where the sign is located. In North America, "bulletins" are typically 14'x 48' (height x width). (They are smaller in other places.) The display is painted or printed on a vinyl sheet or Vinyl banners which are stretched over the face of the display. Smaller 12'x 24'billboards, are called "posters." Poster displays can consist of a series of printed paper sheets that are pasted or are single sheet vinyl displays.
Bulletins are sold individually or as part of a rotary program where the advertisement is moved or "rotated" between locations at regular intervals.
Posters are usually sold as part of a group called a "showing" that is designed to reach a specific percentage of the market population on a daily or weekly basis. A showing is a specific outdoor GRP level.
2)Mechanical billboards
Rotating billboard in the process of changing pictures.
Some billboards utilize a technology called tri-action movement (also known as rotating or multi-message billboards). These billboards show three separate advertisements in rotation using a mechanical system. They are made up of a series of trilons (triangular prisms) arranged so that they can be rotated to present three separate flat display surfaces. The displays for these billboards are printed on strips of vinyl which are fixed to the faces of the triangular panels, with one strip from each of three different displays attached to each panel. In this way as the panels rotate and pause three unique advertising messages can be displayed on the same structure.
Another popular form of mechanical sign is the scrolling billboard. These billboards are able to show up to 30 images per side using a roll-up, scrolling mechanism that is controlled by a computer. The images are printed on a special material that allows the images to be back lighted for night viewing. Many of these scrolling billboards are used on trucks for mobile applications and can also mounted to fixed sign poles for permanent applications.
3)Digital billboards
Times Square electronic billboards, some changing their messages with motion video.
New billboards are being produced that are entirely digital (using LED and similar techniques), allowing static advertisements to rotate in succession. Even holographic billboards are in use in some places.
Interaction is an emerging process identified with digital billboards. In Piccadilly Circus the Coca-Cola billboard responds to the weather and responds with an animated wave when passersby wave at it. London movie theatres are experimenting with billboards which contain an embedded computer chip which can interact with the web browser found in many cell phones to provide more information on the subject of the advertisement. In the spring of 2004 in Times Square in New York City, a Yahoo! Autos promotion displayed on an LED billboard allowed one to call a phone number with a cell phone and play a two-person racing game where the cars appeared on the billboard. There are also upcoming billboard technologies that will synchronize with advertisements on radio stations. Shinjuku in Tokyo, Japan, is famous for its large digital billboards.
4)Mobile billboards
Billboards can also be made mobile, either by mounting a traditional billboard onto a trailer or flatbedtruck, or by covering an entire vehicle in a "wrap" image. This is sometimes used in bus advertising, though it is more common to mount smaller "boards" on those vehicles. There are also mobile billboards on Segways and Pedicabs. Cargo containers are also used as billboards either on their own or stacked on top of each other. Often these are placed in fields next to busy roads and are often cheaper to use than more permanent structures.